Nanofluidic Catalytic Membranes: Pioneering Environmental Remediation for a Sustainable Future

The rapid industrialization and urbanization of the modern era have led to unprecedented environmental challenges, particularly concerning water and air pollution. Conventional remediation processes often struggle to efficiently remove or degrade persistent organic contaminants, heavy metals, and other hazardous compounds from diverse environmental matrices. In recent years, advances in nanotechnology have facilitated the development of nanofluidic catalytic membranes, which integrate the unique characteristics of nanofluidic channels with advanced catalytic materials. These membranes offer enhanced mass transfer, selective permeability, and improved catalytic activity, providing a promising route for high-efficiency environmental remediation. Their nanoscale architecture enables precise control over transport phenomena and reaction kinetics, opening new possibilities for designing next-generation solutions to environmental pollution.

Despite notable progress, significant scientific and technological hurdles remain before nanofluidic catalytic membranes can be widely implemented in real-world remediation applications. Key issues include membrane fouling, scalability, long-term stability, and the integration of multifunctional catalytic sites. This Research Topic aims to gather cutting-edge contributions that address these challenges and uncover next steps for the rational design, fabrication, and application of nanofluidic catalytic membranes. By fostering interdisciplinary research at the intersection of nanomaterials science, fluid dynamics, and environmental engineering, this Research Topic seeks innovative approaches to improve efficiency, selectivity, sustainability, and cost-effectiveness in environmental remediation technologies using nanofluidic catalytic membranes.

We welcome Original Research, Review, Mini Review and Perspective articles on themes including, but not limited to:

• Design and synthesis of nanofluidic catalytic membrane materials
• Mechanistic studies of transport and catalysis in confined nanoscale geometries
• Anti-fouling strategies and membrane reusability
• Scalability and real-world deployment in water/air purification
• Hybrid and multifunctional membrane systems
• Lifecycle assessment and sustainability analysis
• Computational and theoretical modelling for optimized membrane performance


We invite interdisciplinary approaches, including experimental, theoretical, and computational studies, that contribute to advancing this promising field.

Article types and fees

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• Perspective
• Review
• ... View all formats

Articles that are accepted for publication by our external editors following rigorous peer review incur a publishing fee charged to Authors, institutions, or funders.

Article types

This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:

• Data Report
• Editorial
• FAIR² Data
• Methods
• Mini Review
• Opinion
• Original Research
• Perspective
• Review
• Systematic Review
• Technology and Code

Keywords: nanofluidic membranes, catalysis, environmental remediation, nanotechnology, sustainability

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.