A novel method of surface modification on thin-film-composite reverse osmosis membrane by grafting hydantoin derivative

Membrane degradations by biofouling and free chlorine oxidation are the major obstacles for aromatic polyamide thin-film-composite (TFC) reverse osmosis (RO) membranes to realize high performance over a long period of operation. In this work, a hydantoin derivative, 3-monomethylol-5,5-dimethylhydantoin (MDMH), was grafted onto the nascent aromatic polyamide membrane surfaces by the reactions with active groups (e.g., acyl chloride groups) in the surfaces. The grafted MDMH moieties with high reaction activity and free chlorine could play as sacrificial pendant groups when membranes suffer from chlorine attacks, and the chlorination products N-halamines with strong antimicrobial function could sterilize microorganisms on membrane surfaces and then regenerate to MDMH. This was designed as a novel means to improve both chlorine resistances and anti-biofouling properties of the aromatic polyamide TFC RO membranes.Attenuated total reflectance mode Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR) revealed that the MDMH-modified membranes had two characteristic bands at 1772 and 1709 cm⁻¹ corresponding to two carbonyl groups in hydantoin ring. This suggested the successful grafting of MDMH onto the membrane surfaces, which was further confirmed and quantified by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) analysis. After modification with MDMH, the membrane surface hydrophilicity increased obviously as contact angles decreased from 57.7° to 50.4–31.5°. But, there was no obvious change in membrane surface roughness after modification. The MDMH-modified membranes were shown to possess high chlorine resistances with small changes in water fluxes and salt rejections after chlorination with 100–2000 ppm h chlorine at pH 4. The chlorinated MDMH-modified membranes demonstrated obvious sterilization effects on Escherchia coli and substantial preventions against microbial fouling. Therefore, the MDMH-modified membranes offer a potential use as a new type of chlorine resistance and anti-biofouling TFC RO membranes.     

New developments in the studies of the reactivity of cyclometallated palladium(II) compounds with homo- ([P,P],[As,As]) and heterobidentate ([P,N],[P,O]) ligands

Treatment of the chloro-bridged dinuclear compounds [{Pd[RC₆H₃C(H)NCy-C2,N]}(μ-Cl)]₂ (R = 4-(COH), 1; R = 5-(COH), 2) with bidentate phosphorus or arsenic diphosphines or diarsine ligands in 1:1 molar ratio gave the dinuclear complexes [{Pd[RC₆H₃C(H)NCy-C2,N](Cl)}₂{μ-(o-Tol)₂P(CH₂)₂P(o-Tol)₂}] (R = 4-(COH), 3; R = 5-(COH), 4), [{Pd[RC₆H₃C(H)NCy-C2,N](Cl)}₂{μ-Ph₂PC₄H₂(NH)CH₂PPh₂}] (R = 4-(COH), 5; R = 5-(COH), 6) and [{Pd[RC₆H₃C(H)NCy-C2,N](Cl)}₂{μ-Ph₂As(CH₂)₂AsPh₂}] (R = 4-(COH), 7; R = 5-(COH), 8) with the homobidentate [P,P] and [As,As] ligands in a bridging mode. Treatment of 1 and 2 with the aminophosphine Ph₂P(CH₂)₂NH₂ yields the dinuclear complexes [{Pd[RC₆H₃C(H)NCy-C2,N](Cl)}₂{μ-Ph₂P(CH₂)₂NH₂}] (R = 4-(COH), 9; R = 5-(COH), 10). The analogous reactions carried out in a 1:2 molar ratio, in the presence of NH₄PF₆ or NaClO₄, gave the mononuclear compounds [Pd{RC₆H₃C(H)NCy-C2,N}{(o-Tol)₂P(CH₂)₂P(o-Tol)₂-P,P}][PF₆] (R = 4-(COH), 11; R = 5-(COH), 12), [Pd{RC₆H₃C(H)NCy-C2,N}{Ph₂PC₄H₂(NH)CH₂PPh₂-P,P}][ClO₄] (R = 4-(COH), 13; R = 5-(COH), 14) and [Pd{RC₆H₃C(H)NCy-C2,N}{Ph₂As(CH₂)₂AsPh₂-As,As}][ClO₄](R = 4-(COH), 15; R = 5-(COH), 16), with the [P,P] and [As,As] ligands chelated to the palladium atom.Treatment of 2 with Ph₂P(CH₂)₃NH₂ in a 1:2 molar ratio in acetone in the presence of NH₄PF₆ afforded the mononuclear compound [Pd{5-(COH)C₆H₃C(H)NCy-C2,N}{Ph₂P(CH₂)₃N(Me₂)-P,N}][PF₆], 17, via intermolecular condensation between the aminophosphine and the solvent. Condensation was precluded using toluene as solvent to give [Pd{RC₆H₃C(H)NCy-C2,N}{Ph₂P(CH₂)_nNH₂-P,N}][PF₆], (n = 3, R = 5-(COH), 18; n = 2, R = 4-(COH), 19; n = 2, R = 5-(COH), 20). Treatment of 1 and 2 with Ph₂P(C₆H₄)CHO in a 1:2 molar ratio in the presence of NH₄PF₆ gave the mononuclear complexes [Pd{RC₆H₃C(H)NCy-C2,N}{2-(Ph₂P)C₆H₄CHO-P,O}][PF₆] (R = 4-(COH), 21; R = 5-(COH), 22) with the palladium atom bonded to four different atoms (C, N, P, O) and a chelating [P,O] ligand. The crystal structures of compounds 7, 11, 15 and 21 have been determined by X-ray crystallography.     

Study on hypochlorite degradation of aromatic polyamide reverse osmosis membrane

A serious limitation of most commercial polyamide reverse osmosis (RO) membranes is their sensitivity to chlorine attack. By studying the hypochlorite degradation of aromatic polyamide RO membrane, this work was to get some understandings in the prevention of membrane depreciation and develop membranes with improved chlorine resistance. Membrane performances, including water flux and salt rejection, were evaluated before and after hypochlorite exposure under different pH and concentration conditions. The results showed that chlorination destroyed hydrogen bonds in polyamide chains, causing a notable decline of membrane flux especially in acid environment; however, membrane performance was slightly improved after the treatment of alkaline hypochlorite solution for a certain time, which was probably due to the effect of amine groups in barrier layer. Based on the attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR) characterizations and performance measurements, the results indicated that N-chlorination reaction of aromatic polyamide was also reversible, in other words, the N-chlorinated intermediate could be regenerated to initial amide with the alkaline treatment before ring-chlorination reaction. This conclusion provided several relative suggestions for membrane cleaning procedures. Finally, a method adopting surface coating was proposed to develop membranes with good chlorine resistance, and the preliminary results showed its potential for applications.     

Effects of polyether–polyamide block copolymer coating on performance and fouling of reverse osmosis membranes

The effects of a water-permeable polymer coating on the performance and fouling of high-flux (ESPA1 and ESPA3) and low-flux (SWC4) polyamide reverse osmosis (RO) membranes were investigated. It was anticipated that the coating would create a smoother hydrophilic surface that would be less susceptible to fouling when challenged with a motor-oil/surfactant/water feed emulsion (used as a model foulant). AFM and FT-IR analyses confirm that a 1 wt.% polyether–polyamide (PEBAX^® 1657) solution applied to ESPA and SWC4 membranes produces a continuous polymer coating layer and, thereby, provides smoother membrane surfaces. However, pure-water permeation data combined with a series-resistance model analysis reveal that the coating does not only cover the surface of the polyamide membrane, but also penetrates into its porous ridge-and-valley structure. During a long-term (106-day) fouling test with an oil/surfactant/water emulsion, the rate of flux decline was slower for coated than for uncoated membranes. This improvement in fouling resistance compensated for the decrease in permeate flux for SWC4 over a period of approximately 40 days. However, the coating material is believed to penetrate more deeply into the polyamide surface layer of the high flux, high surface area ESPA membranes relative to the low-flux SWC4, resulting in significant water flux reduction.     

Mechanism in Brill transition of polyamide 66 studied by two-dimensional correlation infrared spectroscopy

The Brill transition of polyamide 66 was investigated by temperature-dependent infrared spectroscopy combined with moving-window two-dimensional (MW2D) correlation spectroscopy. The temperature range of the Brill transition determined by MW2D correlation spectroscopy was 90–170 °C. We employed generalized 2D correlation spectroscopy to study the sequential order of polyamide 66 chains with linear increment of temperature. The movement of the methylene segments near to NH is earlier than those on the CO sides. At the same time, the methylene which is close to NH varies before the inner methylene. Three kinds of NH groups in polyamide 66 were found. The sequential order of their motions is as follows. The free hydrogen-bonded NH groups change first, and then the disordered hydrogen-bonded NH groups. Finally, the ordered hydrogen-bonded NH groups start to change. We also found that the changes of the ordered hydrogen-bonded NH groups follow with the methylene groups.     

Conformational influences of the polymorphic forms on the CO and C–H stretching modes of five saturated monoacid triglycerides studied by Raman spectroscopy at various temperatures

A study of the vibrational behavior of five saturated monoacid triacylglycerides is performed by Raman spectroscopy at various temperatures in two separate spectral ranges: 1780–1700 and 3100–2650 cm⁻¹. The samples are studied in polycrystalline phase at room temperature, in isotropic liquid phase, and in polycrystalline phase after cooling from the isotropic liquid phase. The CO stretching mode of these triglycerides changes significantly according to the temperature: we observe three components, or an unresolved doublet, or a resolved doublet. The I(2845)/I(2880) ratios (in the C–H stretching spectral region) of the different saturated monoacid triglycerides vary also according to the temperature. The study of these two indicators (the CO stretching mode and the I(2845)/I(2880) ratio) has permitted us to determine the polymorphic forms of the studied triglycerides.     

Specific crystal structure of poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) thin films studied by infrared reflection–absorption spectroscopy

Infrared reflection–absorption (IR-RAS) and transmission spectra were measured for poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) (PHB) thin films to explore its specific crystal structure in the surface region. As IR-RAS is sensitive to the vibration mode of perpendicular orientation of the surface, differences between IR-RAS and transmission spectra indicate an orientation of the lamella structure in the surface of PHB thin films. The relative intensity of the crystalline CO stretching band in the IR-RAS spectrum is significantly weaker than that in the transmission spectrum. It may be concluded that the transient dipole moment of the CO stretching mode of the crystalline state is not oriented perpendicular but nearly parallel to the substrate surface. On the other hand, the relative intensity of the band at 3009 cm⁻¹ due to the C–H stretching mode of the C–HOC hydrogen bonding is similar between the IR-RAS and transmission spectra, suggesting that the C–H bond is oriented neither perpendicular nor parallel to the substrate surface but in an intermediate direction. Since the CO group of the C–HOC hydrogen bonding is oriented nearly parallel to the surface and its C–H group is in the intermediate direction, it is very likely that the C–HOC hydrogen bonding has a somewhat bent structure. These results are in good agreement with our previous conclusion that the C–HOC hydrogen bonding of PHB exists along the a-axis (not the b-axis) between the CH₃ group of one helix and the CO group of another helix.     

Effects of dipole interaction and solvation on the CO stretching band of N,N-dimethylacetamide in nonpolar solutions: Infrared, isotropic and anisotropic Raman measurements

The concentration dependence of the CO stretching (ν_CO) band of N,N-dimethylacetamide (NdMA) in cyclohexane, n-hexane, and CCl₄ has been investigated by infrared (IR) and polarized Raman spectroscopy. For the neat liquid of NdMA, the noncoincidence of the aniso- and isotropic Raman wavenumbers is evident. In the 0.47 M cyclohexane solution of NdMA, the noncoincidence effect almost disappears and the ν_CO envelopes in both the Raman and IR spectra are asymmetric to the low-wavenumber side. When the concentration of NdMA decreases from 0.33 to 0.023 M, the peak of these bands slightly shifts to a higher wavenumber and the band shape becomes symmetric. The shape of the ν_CO envelope does not show any significant change below 0.023 M. These results suggest that the asymmetric shape of the ν_CO band observed for the 0.33 M cyclohexane solution is associated with the intermolecular interaction among NdMA molecules, which vanishes at around 0.02 M. Spectral changes for the CCl₄ solution of NdMA show a similar tendency. However, the shape and peak wavenumber of the ν_CO band observed in a highly diluted CCl₄ solution (≤0.023 M) indicate that the solvation effect of CCl₄ is more complicated than those of cyclohexane and n-hexane. The analyses of the ν_CO band, which is sensitive to the intermolecular interaction between solutes and between solute and solvent for NdMA dissolved in nonpolar solvents, would serve to clarify the electronic property of the molecule in a solution.     

Intermolecular hydrogen bonding in the binary mixture [(C2H5)2CO + CH3OH] probed by polarized Raman measurements and DFT calculations

The Raman spectra of neat (C₂H₅)₂CO (pentanone) and its binary mixtures with hydrogen donor solvent (CH₃OH), [(C₂H₅)₂CO + CH₃OH] having different mole fractions of the reference system, (C₂H₅)₂CO in the range 0.1-0.9 at a regular interval of 0.1 were recorded in the CO stretching region. In neat liquid, the Raman peak appears asymmetric. The asymmetric nature of the peak has been attributed to the CO stretching mode of the two conformers of (C₂H₅)₂CO having C₂ and C_2v point groups and the corresponding bands at ∼1711 and ∼1718 cm⁻¹, respectively. A careful analysis of the I_iso (isotropic component of the Raman scattered intensity) at different concentrations reveals that upon dilution with methanol, at mole fraction C = 0.6, an additional peak in the CO stretching region is observed at ∼1703 cm⁻¹ which is attributed to the hydrogen bonding with methanol. A peculiar feature in this study is that upon dilution, the peak at ∼1718 cm⁻¹ shows a minimum at C = 0.6, but on further dilution it shows a blue shift. However, the other peak at ∼1711 cm⁻¹ shows a continuous red shift with dilution as well as a maximum at C = 0.7 in the linewidth vs. concentration plot, which is essentially due to competition between motional narrowing and diffusion phenomena. A significant amount of narrowing in the Raman band at ∼1718 cm⁻¹ can be understood in terms of caging effect of the reference molecule by the solvent molecules at high dilution. A density functional theoretic (DFT) calculation on optimized geometries and vibrational frequencies of two conformers of neat (C₂H₅)₂CO in C₂ ad C_2v forms and the complexes with one and two CH₃OH molecules with both the conformers was performed. The experimental results and theoretical calculations together indicate a co-existence of two conformers as well as hydrogen bonded complex with methanol in the binary mixture, [(C₂H₅)₂CO + CH₃OH] at intermediate concentrations.     

Optimization of a biocatalytic single-step alkene cleavage of aryl alkenes

The oxidative cleavage of a CC double bond adjacent to an aryl moiety was achieved in the presence of a protein preparation of Trametes hirsuta G FCC 047 to yield the corresponding aldehydes. Molecular oxygen was the only oxidant required. All positive substrates had a CC bond conjugated to an aromatic system, all other compounds tested not fulfilling this requirement were non-substrates. The optimum reaction conditions are 20 °C, pH 6-6.5, 15% v/v ethanol as co-solvent at an apparent oxygen pressure of 2 bar.