Dehydration of water-alcohol mixtures by pervaporation and vapor permeation through surface resintering expanded poly(tetrafluoroethylene) membranes

For the purpose of separating aqueous alcohol mixtures by the use of the pervaporation and vapor permeation techniques, a surface resintering expanded poly(tetrafluoroethylene) (e-PTFE), membrane was investigated. The surface properties of the modified e-PTFE membranes were characterized by atomic force microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and contact angle meter. The X-ray diffraction measurements show that the crystallinity of the e-PTFE membrane decreases with increasing the surface resintering temperature. The surface roughness decreases with the surface resintering temperature increases. The membrane exhibited water selectivity during all process runs. The effects of feed composition, surface resintering temperature, and molar volume of the alcohols on pervaporation and vapor permeation were investigated. Compared with the e-PTFE membrane without surface modified, the e-PTFE membrane with surface resintering treatment effectively improve the separation factor for pervaporation of aqueous alcohol mixtures. The separation performances of e-PTFE membranes in vapor permeation are higher than that in pervaporation.     

Expanded poly(tetrafluoroethylene) membrane surface modification using acetylene/nitrogen plasma treatment

In this article, expanded poly(tetrafluoroethylene) (e-PTFE) membrane surface modification was carried out using acetylene/nitrogen plasma treatment (p-e-PTFE). The variation in surface morphology of the p-e-PTFE membranes was confirmed by FTIR-ATR, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and contact angle measurements. It was found that the surface hydrophilicity increased with increasing nitrogen content in the feed gas mixture, RF power, and plasma treatment time. The surface pore size decreased with increasing RF power and plasma treatment time. The water contact angles of the modified e-PTFE membrane decreased from 125.8° to 34.1° through the acetylene/nitrogen plasma treatment.     

Chain-length dependence of the antifouling characteristics of the glycopolymer-modified polypropylene membrane in an SMBR

Membrane-bioreactor processes have increased considerably in recent years. However, the natural disadvantages of common membrane materials, such as hydrophobic surface, cause membrane fouling and cumber further extensive applications. In this work, hydrophilic surface modification of polypropylene microporous membranes was carried out by the sequential photoinduced graft polymerization of d-gluconamidoethyl methacrylate (GAMA) to meet the requirements of wastewater treatment and water reclamation applications. The grafting density and grafting chain length were controlled independently in the first and second step, respectively. Attenuated total reflection–Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR/ATR) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) were employed to confirm the surface modification on the membranes. Water contact angle was measured by the sessile drop method. Results of FT-IR/ATR and XPS clearly indicated that GAMA was grafted on the membrane surface. It was found that the grafting chain length increased reasonably with the increase of the UV irradiation time. Water contact angle on the modified membrane decreased with the increase of the grafting chain length, and showed a minimum value of 43.2°, approximately 51.8° lower than that of the unmodified membrane. The pure water fluxes for the modified membranes increased systematically with the increase of the grafting chain length. The effect of the grafting chain length on the antifouling characteristics in a submerged membrane-bioreactor for synthetic wastewater treatment was investigated. After continuous operation in the submerged membrane-bioreactor for about 70 h, reduction from pure water flux was 90.7% for the virgin PPHFMM, and ranged from 80.8 to 87.2% for the modified membranes, increasing with increasing chain length. The flux of the virgin PPHFMM membrane after fouling and subsequent washing was 31.5% of the pure water flux through the unfouled membrane; for the modified membranes this ranged from 27.8 to 16.3%, decreasing with increasing chain length. These results demonstrated that the antifouling characteristics for the glucopolymer-modified membranes were improved with an increase in GAMA chain length.     

基于多巴胺自聚合与表面接枝PHGH制备抗菌纳滤膜

在水溶液中将聚六亚甲基单胍盐酸盐(PHGH)共价接枝在经多巴胺自聚合改性的聚砜膜表面, 制备具有抗菌性能的纳滤膜. 采用全反射红外光谱(ATR-FTIR)、 扫描电子显微镜(SEM)和接触角测试考察膜表面的结构、 形貌和亲水性变化. 探讨PHGH含量对膜的接枝度及分离性能的影响, 并对膜的抗菌性能进行了评价. 结果表明, 经过多巴胺的自聚合和表面接枝PHGH后, 聚砜膜表面形成了具有纳滤分离性能的活性层, 并且膜表面亲水性得到改善. 随着PHGH含量的增大, 膜的纯水通量降低, 而对无机盐和染料的截留性能提高. 接枝后的复合膜具有较高的抗菌性能, 当PHGH含量为3%(质量分数)时, 抗菌率可达98.5%.     

Mechanically durable biomimetic fibrous membrane with superhydrophobicity and superoleophilicity for aqueous oil separation

Developing an effective and mechanically durable biomimetic membrane for the separation of highly emulsified aqueous oil is significant but challenging owing to its low water flux and serious membrane fouling. In this work, a biomimetic membrane with superhydrophobicity and superoleophilicity was rationally developed via co-electrospinning of polysulfonamide/polyacrylonitrile (PSA/PAN) emulsion solution, followed by decorating of α-Fe₂O₃ nanowire onto the membrane surface to create membrane roughness, and grafting of 1H,1H,2H,2H-perfluorododecyltrichlorosilane (FTCS) to lower membrane surface free energy. Benefiting from the nanowire-wrapped rough membrane structure and the low surface free energy FTCS, the resultant membrane showed superhydrophobicity with a high water contact angle (WCA) of 156°, superoleophilicity with a low oil contact angle (OCA) of 0°, which can separate the highly emulsified aqueous oil with an ultrahigh permeation flux over 7000 L m⁻² h^-1 and high separation efficiency of about 99%. Significantly, the biomimetic membrane also displayed robust stability for long-term separation owing to its advantage of antifouling property, showing great potential applications in large-scale aqueous oil treatment.     

Hydrophilic Modification of Microporous Polysulfone Membrane via Surface‐Initiated Atom Transfer Radical Polymerization and Hydrolysis of Poly(glycidylmethacrylate)

Poly(glycidylmethacrylate) (PGMA) brushes were grafted from chloromethylated polysulfone (CMPSF) membrane surface by surface‐initiated atom transfer radical polymerization (SI‐ATRP), and the grafting was followed by hydrolysis of epoxy groups in the grafting chains to improve the membrane's hydrophilic property. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT‐IR) and X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) measurements confirmed the successful grafting and hydrolysis of PGMA. The grafting degree of the monomer, measured by periodic acid titration and gravimetric analysis, increased linearly with the polymerization time, while the static water contact angle of the membrane grafted with PGMA or hydrolyzed PGMA linearly decreased. In comparison with the PGMA‐grafted membranes, the hydrolyzed PGMA‐grafted membranes possess stronger hydrophilicity as indicated by their contact angle and hydration capacity, and as a result they have an improved antifouling property. Therefore, the control of the hydrophilicity of PSF membrane could be realized through adjusting the polymerization time and transforming the functional groups in the grafting chain.     

SURFACE MODIFICATION OF MICROPOROUS POLYPROPYLENE MEMBRANES BY GRAFT POLYMERIZATION OF N,N-DIMETHYLAMINOETHYL METHACRYLATE

Surface modification of microporous polypropylene hollow fiber membranes was performed by radical-induced graft polymerization of N,N-dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate (DMAEMA). The influences of temperature, monomer concentration and pre-adsorbed amount of benzoyl peroxide on grafting degree were studied respectively. It was found that the appropriate graft temperature was 75℃, at which the grafting degree was the highest and the hydrolytic decomposition of DMAEMA the lowest. Scanning electron photomicrography and the average pore diameters of the modified membranes demonstrated that part of the micropores on the membrane surface was plugged by the grafted polyDMAEMA chains, especially at high grafting degree. Contact angle and water swelling experiments showed that a moderate grafting degree could improve the hydrophilicity of the membranes. In the range of I 1.3%o-12.0% grafting degree, the water swelling percentage reached its maximum (51.1%) and the contact angle reached its minimum (74 degrees). The bovine serum albumin (BSA) adsorption experiment indicated that the grafted polyDMAEMA had a dual effect on protein adsorption. At the first stage, the BSA adsorption decreased with increasing of DMAEMA grafting degree. As the interaction between BSA and polyDMAEMA on membrane surface increased, the BSA adsorption increased with increasing of DMAEMA grafting degree.     

Water barrier characteristics of plasma polymers of perfluorocarbons

Perfluorocarbon monomers such as C₂F₄, C₂F₆, C₄F₁₀, and mixtures thereof with H₂, were subjected to plasma polymerization and deposited onto low-density polyethylene (LDPE) substrates. The effect of plasma conditions, surface characteristics, and surface dynamics of plasma polymers on their ability to improve the resistance to water vapor permeation was investigated. An optimum discharge energy density was found for a monomer which provided the greatest reduction water vapor permeability. Although all of the plasma polymers show higher hydrophobicity than polyethylene, the reduction in water vapor permeability is not uniquely related to water contact angle. The surface-dynamic stability of a plasma polymer surface was found to be the key factor in determining the barrier performance of the plasma polymer. The extent of change of surface-configuration after water immersion strongly correlated with the improvement in the water vapor permeation resistance. Plasma polymers with the higher surface-dynamic stability provided the better water barrier coating applied on LDPE films. © 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

四乙基氢氧化铵改性聚偏氟乙烯接枝聚丙烯酸油水分离膜的制备

使用四乙基氢氧化铵(TEAH)液相本体改性聚偏氟乙烯(PVDF), 以过氧化苯甲酰(BPO)为引发剂, 将丙烯酸(AA)接枝到改性PVDF骨架上, 合成了聚偏氟乙烯接枝聚丙烯酸(PVDF-g-PAA)共聚物, 通过浸没沉淀法制备了PVDF-g-PAA亲水性油水分离膜. 通过傅里叶变换红外光谱(FTIR)、 扫描电子显微镜(SEM)和过滤试验分析了膜的结构和分离性能. 研究了不同接枝条件对PVDF-g-PAA膜接枝率的影响. 同时, 通过膜接枝率与膜表面接触角的关系确定最佳接枝条件. 结果表明, TEAH使PVDF脱去HF产生碳碳双键且PAA接枝到改性的PVDF骨架上, 膜内外孔隙分布均匀; PVDF-g-PAA膜的接触角随着接枝率的提高而降低. 接枝单体AA含量为45%, 接枝温度为85 ℃, 接枝4 h制备的PVDF-g-PAA膜的接枝率为20.1%, 孔隙度为65.3%, 平均孔径为78.0 nm, 接触角为57.5°, 且在60 s内接触角降至14.3°; 纯水通量提高到571.33 L/(m²·h), 截留率和水通量恢复率分别达到94.3%和88.7%, 且通量衰减率仅为9.8%. 与纯PVDF膜相比, PVDF-g-PAA膜的分离性能显著提高.     

Chemical-Modified Nylon 4 Membrane for Pervaporation

Abstract

A hydrophilic polymer membrane was synthesized with 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate (HEMA) onto a Nylon 4 polymer backbone, PHEMA-g-N4. The membranes were water permselective because of the hydrophilicity, and the water permselectivity increased with increasing the degree of grafting. Permseparation of water was investigated with respect to the feed aqueous alcohol concentration, feed temperature, size of the alcohols, and degree of grafting. The separation factors of this PHEMA-g-N4 membrane were higher than those of the unmodified Nylon 4 membrane for pervaporation of aqueous ethanol solution, while the permeation rate was slightly lower. A separation factor of 98 and a 194 g/m²·h permeation rate could be obtained. Compared with an unmodified Nylon 4 membrane, the PHEMA-g-N4 membrane effectively increased the pervaporation separation index for the water-ethanol mixtures on pervaporation separation.     

Enhanced desulfurization performance and swelling resistance of asymmetric hydrophilic pervaporation membrane prepared through surface segregation technique

The severe swelling behavior of most hydrophobic membranes has always been an obstinate problem when separating organic mixtures by pervaporation. In some cases, hydrophilic membranes may be an appropriate alternative. In this study, amphiphilic copolymer Pluronic F127 was employed as a surface modifier to fabricate polyethersulfone (PES) asymmetric pervaporation membranes via surface segregation. The scanning electron microscopy (SEM) photographs showed an asymmetric structure of PES/Pluronic F127 membranes. The Fourier transform-infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and static water contact angle measurements confirmed the hydrophilic modification of the membrane surface. Based on the distinct difference of solubility in water between thiophene and n-octane, the prepared membranes were utilized to remove thiophene from n-octane by pervaporation. The effect of Pluronic F127 content on the pervaporation performance was evaluated experimentally. It has been found that both the permeation flux and enrichment factor exhibited a peak value of approximately 60 wt% of the Pluronic F127 content. The highest enrichment factor was around 3.50 with a permeation flux of 3.10 kg/(m² h) for 500 mg/L sulfur in the feed at 30 °C. The influence of various operating parameters on the pervaporation performance was extensively investigated.     

超亲水聚偏氟乙烯中空纤维膜的制备及性能

采用超声辅助接枝聚合技术, 将甲基丙烯酸缩水甘油酯(GMA)接枝到聚偏氟乙烯(PVDF)膜表面, 制备PVDF-g-GMA膜; 再利用氨基诱导环氧基团发生开环反应, 将苏氨酸(Thr)接枝到PVDF-g-GMA膜表面, 制备了具有两性离子结构表面的PVDF-g-GMA-Thr膜. 通过衰减全反射傅里叶变换红外光谱(ATR-FTIR)、 X射线光电子能谱(XPS)、 接触角测试仪、 场发射扫描电子显微镜(FESEM)和牛血清白蛋白(BSA)过滤实验等系统研究了改性前后PVDF膜表面的化学组成、 润湿性能、 表面形貌和抗污染性能. 研究结果表明, 随着PVDF-g-GMA接枝Thr反应时间的增加, PVDF-g-GMA-Thr膜的亲水性能明显提高, 接触角从90°降为0°, 呈现出超亲水性能. 同时PVDF-g-GMA-Thr膜的水通量明显提高, 当Thr诱导开环反应时间为12 h时, PVDF-g-GMA-Thr膜的水通量高达686 L/(m ²·h), 与PVDF原膜相比, 水通量提高了204.5%. 在BSA的过滤测试中, 与PVDF膜相比, PVDF-g-GMA-Thr膜呈现出良好的截留性能和抗污染性能, BSA截留率从42%提高到84%,水通量恢复率从53%提高到87%, 不可逆污染率从47%降到12%, 表明通过接枝Thr构筑两性离子结构表面可以有效减小膜污染.     

Pilot plant studies of novel membranes and devices for direct contact membrane distillation-based desalination

A small pilot plant for direct contact membrane distillation (DCMD) based desalination was built and operated successfully on a daily basis for 3 months. The operation employed hot brine at 64–93 °C and distillate at 20–54 °C. The hot brine was either city water, city water containing salt at the level of 3.5, 6 or 10%, or sea water trucked in from Long Island Sound, CT. One to ten horizontal crossflow hollow fiber membrane modules each having either 2448 or 2652 hollow fibers and 0.61 or 0.66 m² surface area were combined in various configurations to study the plant performance. The highest water vapor flux of 55 kg/(m² h) was achieved with two modules in series; the flux varied between 15 and 33 kg/(m² h) for configurations employing 6–10 modules. The highest distillate production rate achieved was 0.62 gallons per minute (gpm). The membrane modules never showed any sign of distillate contamination by salt. The plant operated successfully with a very limited flux reduction at salt concentrations up to 19.5% from sea water. A mathematical model was successfully developed to describe the performance of the pilot plant with multiple crossflow modules in different test configurations.     

四甲基氢氧化铵改性聚偏氟乙烯一步接枝聚苯乙烯磺酸油水分离膜的制备及性能

利用四甲基氢氧化铵(TMAH)聚偏氟乙烯(PVDF)进行改性,以过氧化苯甲酰(BPO)为引发剂,将苯乙烯磺酸(SSA)接枝到改性的PVDF骨架上,制得聚偏氟乙烯接枝聚苯乙烯磺酸(PSSA-g-PVDF)油水分离膜。 研究了TMAH质量分数对PSSA的接枝率和油水分离膜性能的影响,同时采用傅立叶变换红外光谱(FTIR)、扫描电子显微镜(SEM)和视频光学接触角测量仪测试了膜的结构和表面接触角。 结果表明,TMAH使PVDF脱去部分氟化氢(HF)产生碳碳双键,硫元素均匀地分布在分离膜中。 PSSA的接枝率随着TMAH的质量分数增加而升高,分离膜的水通量随接枝率的升高先增加后降低。 当TMAH质量分数为20%,分离膜的接触角在30 s内降低到37.2°,接枝率和水通量分别为22.1%、643.3 L/(m·h),截留率和水通量恢复率分别达到90.6%和93.7%,衰减率为7.1%。 循环测试显示膜的水通量恢复率和油水通量恢复率均在90%以上。     

Improving the hydrophilic and antifouling properties of poly(vinyl chloride) membranes by atom transfer radical polymerization grafting of poly(ionic liquid) brushes

In this study, poly(1‐butyl‐3‐vinylimidazolium bromide) (PBVIm‐Br) was grafted onto the poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC) membrane surface via a 2‐step atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) reaction. Poly(2‐hydroxyethylmethacrylate) (PHEMA) was grafted onto the membrane surface by aqueous ATRP reaction; then, BVIm‐Br was introduced onto the surface of the PHEMA‐modified PVC membrane through traditional ATRP reaction. The analysis of surface chemistry confirmed the successful grafting of PHEMA and PBVIm‐Br on PVC membrane surface, and the grafting density (GD) of PBVIm‐Br gradually increased as the grafting time was prolonged. The modified membrane exhibited a positive charge and significantly enhanced surface hydrophilicity. The static water contact angle of the membrane surface decreased from 92.3° to 51.6° as the GD of the PBVIm‐Br brushes increased. Filtration experiments indicated that the water flux of the modified membrane increased with increasing GD, and their recovered fluxes were more than twice than the original. In addition, the total fouling ratio of the membranes decreased from 89% in M0 to 67% in M5, and most of the fouling was reversible as the GD of PBVIm‐Br brushes increased. These results indicated that the positive charged poly(ionic liquid) brushes featuring hydrophilic properties would have potential applications in membrane separation.     

Surface modification of polypropylene microfiltration membranes by graft polymerization of N-vinyl-2-pyrrolidone

A hydrophilic polymer, poly(N-vinyl-2-pyrrolidone), was tethered on the surface of polypropylene microfiltration membrane (PPMM) by UV photo-assisted and γ-ray pre-irradiation induced graft polymerizations. Results revealed that the γ-ray pre-irradiation graft polymerization was more efficient in view of the grafting degree. The chemical changes of the membrane surface were confirmed by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Pure water contact angle on poly(N-vinyl-2-pyrrolidone)-grafted PPMM decreased with the increase of grafting degree, which indicated an enhanced hydrophilicity for the modified membrane. Both bovine serum albumin adsorption and static platelets adhesion were measured to evaluate the bio-compatibility of the poly(N-vinyl-2-pyrrolidone)-modified PPMM. The statistical amounts of adsorbed bovine serum albumin and adhered platelets on unit membrane area decreased significantly, which to a certain degree demonstrated that the hemocompatibility of PPMM was improved. The N₂ permeability and the mean pore diameters of different PPMMs increased at first, then decreased after certain grafting degree. The changes of water flux followed a similar tendency. These indicated that at low grafting degree pore degradation induced by γ-ray irradiation had a major impact on permeability, while this was overcompensated by the grafted polymer at high grafting degrees.     

一种新型的亲水性聚丙烯酸-陶瓷复合膜

通过化学气相沉积和丙烯酸(AA)在大孔陶瓷膜表面的接枝共聚制备了一种新型的亲水性PAA-陶瓷复合膜. 用FT-IR、SEM、EDS、表面接触角等方法对复合膜接枝层的化学组成、表面形态、元素分布和亲水性进行了表征. 通过系统研究气相沉积和接枝反应的主要条件对膜的渗透汽化性能的影响, 发现当TEOS用量为5 mL, 汽化温度为175 ℃时进行气相沉积, 然后在丙烯酸浓度为7.5%的溶液中进行接枝聚合, 制得的复合膜对醇水混合物显示了优良的分离性能.     

表面接枝含氟苯乙烯共聚物的聚酯薄膜制备与表征

利用表面引发原子转移自由基聚合(SI-ATRP)在聚对苯二甲酸乙二醇酯(PET)薄膜表面接枝苯乙烯和4-氟苯乙烯的共聚物.研究不同反应时间和不同配比下接枝共聚物对聚酯薄膜表面组成、结构和性能的影响.通过傅利叶变换红外光谱仪(ATR/FTIR),X-射线光电子能谱仪(XPS),凝胶渗透色谱(GPC)和扫描电子显微镜(SEM)对接枝改性前后PET薄膜的表面组成,结构和形貌进行分析;利用接触角测试和表面能计算对比研究接枝改性前后PET薄膜的表面性能.结果表明反应时间和单体百分含量对接枝百分率及接触角有一定的影响,随着反应时间的增长,聚酯薄膜表面接枝百分率增大,接触角增加,表面自由能下降.     

Surface modification of ethylene-vinyl acetate membrane grafted with poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) by UV-irradiation

Surface modification of ethylene-vinyl acetate membrane by grafting poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) was initiated under UV-irradiation. Besides benzophenone and ammonium persulfate were used as initiators, which could enhance the yield of grafting markedly. The occurrence of grafting polymerization of N-isopropylacrylamide was testified by the attenuated total multiple reflection technique and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Scanning electron micrograph showed that the surface morphology of ethylene-vinyl acetate membrane changed after modification. The lower critical solution temperature of the membrane was determined by differential scanning calorimetry. The wettability of membrane was investigated by water contact angle measurement. The results showed that the grafting degree increased with irradiation time, monomer and ammonium persulfate concentration at the beginning of reaction. It was also found that the modified membrane surface became hydrophilic and displayed thermosensitivity similar to that of poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) gel, and the lower critical solution temperature was about 32°C.     

电火花引发丙烯酰胺接枝BOPP薄膜的研究

采用FT-IR,ESCA,试样与水接触角和接枝率的测定探索了电火花用于引发丙烯酰胺(AAM)在BOPP薄膜表面接枝聚合反应的方法,研究了接枝BOPP薄膜的表面结构和亲水性能。结果表明,电火花能有效地引发AAM在BOPP薄膜表面的接枝聚合反应,随着电火花处理时间和接枝反应时间的延长,AAM在BOPP薄膜表面的接枝率增大。电火花处理10min,BOPP薄膜在70℃,20%(质量分数)的AAM水溶液中反应1h,接枝率高达2.06%。接枝后BOPP薄膜与水的接触角显著下降,亲水性能得到明显改善。