February 15, 2021
Keio University
University of Fukui
RIKEN
Water is one of our most important resources. To ensure the future sustainability of life, countries around the world are developing technologies that can freely control water transport. A research group led by Associate Professor Norimitsu Arai of the Faculty of Science and Technology at Keio University, Associate Professor Takahiro Koishi of the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Fukui, and principal investigator Shunichi Ebisuzaki of the Ebisuzaki Computational Astrophysics Laboratory at the RIKEN Cluster for Pioneering Research has demonstrated through computer simulations the feasibility of a molecular-scale pump system for water transport.
Until now, molecular-scale water transport has been proposed mainly using carbon nanotubes, but these have been passive transport methods driven by concentration or pressure differences. The pump proposed in this study can actively transport water by applying a special treatment to the tube surface, even when there is no pressure difference or in the reverse case (from low to high pressure). The method demonstrated in this research has a much simpler mechanism than previous ones, making it applicable to various water transport technologies and holding the potential to realize effective devices for achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), such as low-energy artificial purification systems.
The results of this research were published in the American Chemical Society's journal *ACS Nano* on February 3, 2021 (local time).
Please see below for the full press release.