The transition to renewable energy and the pursuit of carbon neutrality have heightened the demand for lithium extraction from salt lake brines to ensure a sufficient lithium supply. Nanofiltration (NF) membranes offer an efficient method for solute sieving; however, achieving highly selective Mg2+/Li+ separation remains challenging due to their similar hydration radii. This study introduces a synergistic modification strategy to adjust the surface physicochemical properties of NF membranes through incorporation of a sodium alginate interlayer and post-treatment with piperazine. The resulting modifications improved Mg2+ selectivity by optimizing steric and Donnan exclusion mechanisms, achieved through a refined pore size distribution and reduced surface negative potential. Consequently, the modified membrane exhibited an outstanding Mg/Li selectivity factor (>100), with Mg2+ rejection efficiency exceeding 98 %. The membrane also demonstrated stable performance under mixed feed conditions with high total dissolved solids (TDS, 2000 ppm) and low Li+ concentration (100 MgCl2/LiCl mass ratio). This study provides a facile and effective approach to enhance multiple exclusion mechanisms for Mg2+ separation, offering valuable insights into the design and fabrication of advanced NF membranes for efficient Mg/Li separation.
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