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Enhancement of the antifouling properties and filtration performance of poly(ethersulfone) ultrafiltration membranes by incorporation of nanoporous titania nanoparticles
journal contribution
posted on 2015-11-11, 00:00 authored by Z Low, Z Wang, S Leong, A Razmjou, Ludovic Dumee, X Zhang, H WangNanoporous titania nanoparticles (NTNs) were synthesized and used as an additive at a low concentration of 0.1-1 wt % in the fabrication of poly(ethersulfone) (PES) ultrafiltration membranes via non-solvent-induced phase separation. The structure and properties of nanoparticles were characterized using nitrogen sorption, X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and transmission electron microscopy. The NTNs have a size distribution with a particle size of mainly <100 nm and have a Brunauer, Emmett, and Teller surface area of ∼100 m2 g-1. The modified membranes were fabricated and investigated in terms of their pure water flux, solute rejection, and fouling resistance. The water permeability and molecular weight cutoffs (MWCOs) of membranes were determined under constant-pressure filtration in dead-end mode at 100 kPa. The membrane fouling resistance was characterized under constant flux operation using bovine serum albumin as a model foulant. The membranes were characterized in terms of morphology, porosity, pore size distribution, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, contact angle goniometry, surface free energy, and viscosity of the dope solution. Overall, the modified membrane showed increased wettability and reduced surface free energy and pore size. The modified UF membrane with 0.5 wt % NTN loading exhibited improved fouling resistance (fouling rate of 0.58 kPa/min compared to a rate of 0.70 kPa/min for the control membrane) with ∼80% water flux recovery. The same membrane showed an ∼20% increase in water flux, an improvement in MWCO, and a narrower pore size distribution.
History
Journal
Industrial and engineering chemistry researchVolume
54Issue
44Pagination
11188 - 11198Publisher
American Chemical SocietyLocation
Washington, D.C.Publisher DOI
ISSN
1520-5045Language
engPublication classification
C Journal article; C1 Refereed article in a scholarly journalCopyright notice
2015, American Chemical SocietyUsage metrics
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