Efficient Enantiomeric Selectivity Separation Via Homochiral Graphene Oxide Membrane

Abstract

Membrane-based enantioselective separation offers various advantages, making it a promising method for chiral separation. However, its realistic application remains a challenge due to limitations in current separation performance. Here, we propose a new type of chiral graphene oxide membrane that exhibits a tyrosine racemates separation factor up to 20.1, as well as a preferential enantiomer flux of 4.5 mmol m⁻² h⁻¹, superior to those of the most advanced membranes. Moreover, the chiral sieving application of this graphene oxide membrane is extended to four different chiral amino acids representing two distinct classes. These abundant oxygen-containing groups in the graphene oxide membrane allow the extensive functionalization of chiral amino acids. Theoretical analyses reveal the significant interaction differences between the functionalized-graphene oxide sheets and D- or L-chiral amino acids, maintaining the remarkable chiral separation performance of this graphene oxide membrane. Besides, the novel fast protein liquid chromatography-compatible column was further developed via stacking these chiral graphene oxide membranes, facilitating more efficient, lower operational requirement, and cost-effective enantioselective separation, a capability that other reported high-performance liquid chromatography-compatible-only materials lack. Therefore, this study not only highlights the superior performance of the specifically designed graphene oxide membrane for chiral amino acid separations but also provides an accessible, cost-effective, and highly efficient approach for chiral separation.

Keywords

chiral separation / deprotonation / FPLC / graphene oxide membrane

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2026 The Author(s). Energy & Environmental Materials published by John Wiley & Sons Australia, Ltd on behalf of Zhengzhou University.