The field of inorganic membrane materials has recently witnessed rapid progress, offering transformative opportunities to address critical challenges in sustainable energy production and environmental stewardship. As global priorities shift toward cleaner technologies and carbon-neutral strategies, the need for advanced separation and conversion approaches has become more pressing than ever. Inorganic membranes—including ceramics, carbons, zeolites, metal-organic frameworks (MOFs), metals, and composites—present unique advantages such as tailored pore structures, robust chemical and thermal stability, and outstanding mechanical properties. These characteristics underpin their superior performance in physically and chemically demanding applications where traditional organic membranes often fall short. Exciting discoveries in controllable synthesis, hierarchical structuring, and functional integration have expanded the potential of inorganic membranes for processes like gas separation, water treatment, resource recovery, and energy conversion. However, major scientific and technological questions remain regarding the fundamental mechanisms of transport, selectivity, stability, and scale-up for industrial implementation.
This Research Topic aims to bring together cutting-edge original research and comprehensive reviews covering all aspects of inorganic membrane materials for energy and environmental applications. The primary goal is to highlight breakthroughs in material innovation, unravel the mechanisms underpinning separation and transformation, and showcase application-driven advancements that bridge laboratory studies and real-world needs. By fostering a platform for interdisciplinary exchange across chemistry, materials science, chemical engineering, and environmental technology, this Research Topic seeks to catalyze new insights and accelerate the translation of novel membrane materials and processes into practical and scalable solutions. Specific questions include: How can we design and synthesize inorganic membranes with enhanced selectivity and durability? What are the emerging strategies for integrating membranes into catalytic and electrochemical systems? How can we better understand and optimize interfacial phenomena and mass transport at multiple scales?
The scope of this Research Topic encompasses fundamental, experimental, and applied studies on the development and application of inorganic membrane materials dedicated to sustainable energy and environmental solutions. Manuscripts focused solely on organic membranes or lacking an original experimental or mechanistic component are outside the intended scope. To foster comprehensive insight, we welcome articles addressing, but not limited to, the following themes:
o Design, synthesis, and structural tuning of novel inorganic membranes (including porous, dense, mixed-matrix, and composite membranes)
o Advanced applications in energy systems: hydrogen separation, CO₂ capture, membrane reactors, batteries, and fuel cells
o Environmental and resource recovery applications: water purification, desalination, pollutant removal, and metal or ion extraction
o Mechanistic exploration of mass transport, selectivity, interfacial interactions, and membrane evolution under operational conditions
o Integration of multifunctional properties: electrochemical coupling, catalytic activity, advanced oxidation, and process intensification
o Technological advancements in scale-up, stability, and industrial translation
Article types and fees
This Research Topic accepts the following article types, unless otherwise specified in the Research Topic description:
- Editorial
- FAIR² Data
- Mini Review
- Original Research
- Perspective
- Review
Articles that are accepted for publication by our external editors following rigorous peer review incur a publishing fee charged to Authors, institutions, or funders.
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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.
