Table 3.

Fabrication methods of CNTs-based composite membranes.

Properties	CVD	CVD- Template	Blending	In situ Polymerization	LBL Assembly	Direct Coating
Membrane materials	Inorganic	Inorganic	Polymeric	Polymeric	Polymeric	Inorganic or polymeric
Interfacial bond	In situ growth	In situ growth	Hydrogen bonding, Van der Waals forces, etc.	Covalent bonds	Covalent bonds, electrostatic, etc.	Covalent bonds
Arrangement state	Aligned or random	Aligned	Random	Aligned or random	Aligned or random	Random
Stability	Excellent stability	Excellent stability	Good stability	Poor mechanical stability	Good stability	Good stability
Defects	Impurities	Impurities	Difficulty in dispersion	Poor stability	Pinholes	Easy detachment
Membrane area	Limitation to substrate	Limitation to template	No limitation	Small	No limitation	Limitation to substrate
Membrane thickness and pore size	Controllable	Controllable	Controllable	Controllable	Controllable	Controllable
Operability	Easy	Complicated	Easy	Complicated	Complicated	Easy
Practicability	Strong	General	Strong	General	General	Strong