Molecularly imprinted membranes for environmental remediation: From mechanistic insights to scalable applications

In recent years, with the acceleration of industrialization, the residues of pollutants such as heavy metals, organic dyes, and antibiotics in water, air, and soil have caused serious ecological and health risks. However, traditional membrane separation technology is often difficult to meet the needs of complex environmental governance due to insufficient selectivity, poor anti-pollution performance, and long regeneration cycle. Molecularly Imprinted Membranes (MIMs) combine the dual advantages of molecular recognition and membrane separation. Through template-monomer pre-organization, cross-linking, and template removal processes, recognition sites for specific pollutants are constructed on the surface or in the pores of the membrane material to achieve highly selective binding and retention. This article first reviews the preparation strategies of MIMs, including in situ polymerization, phase separation, MOF synergistic imprinting and interface nanoengineering; secondly, it deeply analyzes the molecular recognition mechanism and characterization methods, such as FT-IR, XPS, DFT simulation and adsorption thermodynamic/kinetic behavior; then focuses on environmental application cases, and systematically compares the adsorption capacity, pH stability and cycle performance of MIMs in the targeted removal of heavy metals, organic dyes, antibiotics, etc.; then evaluates its durability, anti-pollution and feasibility of large-scale preparation. Finally, the development direction of intelligent responsive, multifunctional integrated and green degradable MIMs is prospected. By combining mechanism analysis with engineering scale-up, it aims to provide theoretical and practical references for the widespread application of MIMs in environmental remediation.