Entropic modulation of divalent cation transport

Published

September 22, 2025

Author(s)

Yechan Noh, Demian Riccardi, Alexander Smolyanitsky

Abstract

Aqueous cations permeate subnanoscale pores by crossing free energy barriers dominated by competing enthalpic contributions from transiently decreased ion-solvent and increased ion-pore electrostatic interactions. This commonly accepted view is rooted in the studies of monovalent cation transport. Divalent cations, however, have significantly higher desolvation costs, requiring considerably larger pores to enable retention of the first hydration shell and subsequently transport. We show that this scenario gives rise to a strong enthalpy-entropy competition. Specifically, the first hydration shell is shown to undergo rotational ordering inside the pore, resulting in a tight transition state. Our results shed light on the basic mechanisms of transport barrier formation for aqueous divalent cations permeating nanoporous 2D membranes.

Citation

Physical Review Letters

Volume

135

Issue

13

Pub Type

Journals

Download Paper

https://doi.org/10.1103/vtw2-z4f8

Local Download

Keywords

ion transport, thermodynamics, entropy, enthalpy, theory, molecular dynamics

Citation

Noh, Y. , Riccardi, D. and Smolyanitsky, A. (2025), Entropic modulation of divalent cation transport, Physical Review Letters, [online], https://doi.org/10.1103/vtw2-z4f8, https://tsapps.nist.gov/publication/get_pdf.cfm?pub_id=959826 (Accessed October 13, 2025)