Membrane formation by isothermal precipitation in polyamide-formic acid-water systems I. Description of membrane morphology

Aliphatic polyamides (Nylon-66 and a Nylon-6, -66, -610 terpolymer) were isothermally precipitated from formic acid solution by immersing in an aqueous nonsolvent bath or a solvent/nonsolvent mixture. Depending on the composition of the polymer solution and nonsolvent bath, phase separation by nucleation and growth can be initiated for a liquid-liquid phase separation process, a crystallization process or a combined process. Under certain conditions, crystallization of Nylon-66 results in a membrane with a uniform skinless microporous structure that was rapidly wetted by water. In contrast, liquid-liquid phase separation produces a polyamide film with largely unconnected cellular voids that is as a result not wetted by water. © 1995 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

PVDF membrane formation by diffusion‐induced phase separation‐morphology prediction based on phase behavior and mass transfer modeling

The equilibrium phase behavior of water (nonsolvent)‐DMF (solvent)‐PVDF system at 25°C was investigated via both theoretical and experimental approaches. Using binary interaction parameters, χ_ij, obtained previously, the theoretical phase boundaries were computed and were found to match closely the measured binodal and crystallization‐induced gelation data. Membranes were prepared using the isothermal immersion‐precipitation processes in various dope and bath conditions. The formed membranes demonstrated a broad spectrum of morphologies: At one extreme, asymmetric structure was obtained featuring a continuous tight skin and a sublayer composed of parallel macrovoids and cellular pores; at the other limit, skinless microporous membrane was produced with spherical particles packed into a bi‐continuous structure. The crystalline characters of PVDF gels and membranes were examined by small angle light scattering, scanning electron microscopy, and differential scanning calorimetry techniques. In addition, diffusion trajectories and concentration profiles in the membrane solution before precipitation were calculated for the immersion process. These results predicted reasonably the various morphologies observed in the membranes. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci B: Polym Phys 37: 2079–2092, 1999     

Membrane formation by isothermal precipitation in polyamide-formic acid-water systems II. Precipitation dynamics

An analysis is presented, which describes the isothermal ternary diffusion process encountered in the formation of the aliphatic polyamide membranes such as Nylon-66 by direct immersion-precipitation of a polymeric solution in a nonsolvent bath. A material coordinate is employed to derive the mass transfer equations for the membrane solution. The convective mass transfer in the coagulation bath is taken into account by solving the hydrodynamic boundary layer equations. Diffusion coefficients were measured and used to deduce ternary phenomenological coefficients. The computed results are found to agree with measured precipitation times and with membrane morphologies observed by scanning electron photomicrographs. © 1995 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

An improved model for mass transfer during the formation of polymeric membranes by the immersion-precipitation process

An analysis is presented, which describes the isothermal ternary diffusion process encountered in the formation of a cellulose acetate polymeric membrane by a direct immersion-precipitation of polymeric solutions in a nonsolvent bath. A material coordinate was employed to derive the mass transfer equations for the membrane solution and the convective mass transfer in the coagulation bath was taken into account by solving the hydrodynamic boundary layer equations. Diffusion coefficients were measured and used to deduce ternary phenomenological coefficients. The computed results are found to agree with the experimental precipitation time and membrane morphologies observed in scanning electron photomicrographs. © 1994 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Mass transfer and thermodynamics during immersion precipitation for a two-polymer system: Evaluation with the system PES—PVP—NMP—water

An extended version of the mass transfer model by Reuvers et al. for a four-component system is evaluated, which is shown to be generally valid for short times. The thermodynamics under these circumstances are evaluated, together with the kinetics. Initial composition paths (concentration profiles) are calculated. It appears that delay of demixing is not possible when a polymeric additive is used, which is soluble in the nonsolvent, while the velocity of demixing decreases. The calculations are evaluated for the system poly(ether sulfone)—poly(vinylpyrrolidone)—N-methylpyrrolidone—water by means of light transmission measurements during immersion precipitation, for a wide range of compositions of the polymer solution and coagulation bath.     

Investigation of the dynamics of poly(ether sulfone) membrane formation by immersion precipitation

Cast‐leaching experiments were carried out to investigate the dynamics of membrane formation by immersion precipitation, with an emphasis on the outflow of the solvent from casting solutions during the phase‐separation process. The casting solutions, consisting of poly(ether sulfone) as the polymer, N‐methyl‐2‐pyrolidone as the solvent, and water (H₂O), isopropyl alcohol, 1‐butanol, and diethylene glycol as nonsolvent additives (NSAs), were immersed in a coagulation bath. Two thermodynamically vastly different coagulants? H₂O, a strong coagulant, and ethylene glycol, a weak coagulant—were used to study the effect of the coagulant on the dynamics of membrane formation. The results showed that the outflow of the solvent during the initial stage of membrane formation was controlled by Fickian diffusion within the extremely wide range of conditions studied, that is, polymer concentrations of 10–38%, approaching ratios of 0–0.95, and thermodynamically vastly different NSAs and coagulants. The role of the initial state of the membrane‐forming solution, especially the conformational state of macromolecules in the membrane‐forming process, was examined. In contrast to those works on the behavior of small molecules, an attempt was made to qualitatively interpret membrane formation from the viewpoint of macromolecules. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 43: 498–510, 2005     

Modeling of asymmetric membrane formation by dry-casting method

Many polymeric membranes are produced by phase inversion technique invented by Loeb and Sourirajan in 1962. The dry-casting method is one of the major phase inversion techniques in which a homogeneous polymer solution consisting of solvent(s) and nonsolvent(s) is cast on a support and then evaporation of the casting solution takes place under convective conditions. In this paper, we model membrane formation by the dry-casting method. The model takes into account film shrinkage, evaporative cooling, coupled heat, and mass transfer and incorporates practical and reliable diffusion theory as well as complex boundary conditions especially at the polymer solution/air interface. The predictions from the model provide composition paths, temperature, and thickness of the solution. By plotting the composition paths on the ternary phase diagram, we ascertain the general structural characteristics of the membranes prepared from particular casting conditions. The predictive ability of the model was evaluated by comparing the results with the experimental data obtained from gravimetric measurements for cellulose acetate (CA)–acetone–water system. In an attempt to illustrate the importance of diffusion formalism on the predictions, recently proposed multicomponent diffusion theory and its simplified forms were utilized in the model. The computational results show that the critical factor for capturing the accurate behavior of membrane formation is the diffusion formalism utilized in the model.     

常温下用直接沉淀法制备纳米硫化铜

在常温下以硫酸铜(CuSO4.5H2O)为铜源,硫化钠(Na2S.9H2O)为硫源,六偏磷酸钠(NaPO3)6为稳定剂,辛基酚聚氧乙烯醚(OP-10)为表面活性剂,采用沉淀法成功合成了硫化铜纳米晶体;利用X射线粉末衍射仪和高分辨透射电镜分析了产物的晶体结构和形貌,考察了反应体系的pH、温度、反应物浓度、稳定剂用量等对产物组成和结构的影响.此外,利用紫外-可见光谱仪、荧光光谱仪及傅立叶转换红外光谱仪分析了产物的光学性质.结果表明,产物为纯六方相的硫化铜;其颗粒呈不规则球型、椭球型、棒状,平均粒径约为37nm.产物在200～230nm波长范围内对紫外光有较强的吸收;用383nm的光激发,分别在440nm和486nm出现两个荧光发射峰,与常规硫化铜相比发生明显的蓝移.此外,产物具有良好的红外光透过率;反应体系的pH对产物的带隙能Eg和光致发光强度有明显的影响.     

Preparation of water and alkali durable porous glass membrane coated on porous alumina tubing by sol-gel method

Composite porous glass membranes were prepared by the sol-gel method. A thin porous glass layer, about 2 μm thick, was coated on the surface of the porous ceramic tubing (Al₂O₃:99.9 wt.%, pore diameter: 200 nm). The composition of the porous glass layer of the composite membrane was SiO₂-ZrO₂. Considering from the fact that the desalination ratio of the feed aqueous NaCl solution (NaCl 0.5 wt.%) was about 90% by use of these membranes, they were defect-free. The best composition of the porous glass layer was 70 SiO₂-30 ZrO₂ from the standpoint of preparing membranes. These membranes had a large water and alkali durability. These membranes can be expected to apply to recovering dyes and paints from organic solvents and to be used as a gas separation membrane.     

Membrane formation mechanism and permeation properties of a novel porous polyimide membrane

The transport properties of a novel porous fluorinated polyimide membrane fabricated by a wet phase inversion process were studied with a stirred dead‐end filtration cell. The porous membrane‐forming solvents were tetrahydrofuran (THF), acetone, N,N‐dimethylacetamide (DMAc), N‐methylpyrrolidone (NMP), N,N‐dimethylformamide (DMF), and dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO). The phase separation phenomena in a ternary system of polyimide/solvent/water were investigated from cloud point curves by a titration method and binary interaction parameters. Solvent–water demixing in the system has been found to play very important roles in determining the structure and surface morphology of the polyimide membrane. The porous fluorinated polyimide membranes showed pore sizes from 4 to 500 nm and permeation properties from ultrafiltration to a microfiltration range. In this study, we particularly focused on fouling of the polyimide membranes, because fouling decreases the flux and increases the resistance. Interestingly, the porous polyimide membrane showed excellent water flux recovery after water cleaning compared with that of the polyethersulfone (PSf) membrane, which suggest that for a 6FDA‐6FAP membrane, the protein–membrane and protein–protein interaction was not so strong compared with those in a PSf membrane. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Effect of compatibility on the structure of the microporous membrane prepared by selective dissolution of chitosan/synthetic polymer blend membrane

The method to prepare microporous chitosan membrane by selective dissolution of its blend was evaluated. Two synthetic polymers, e.g. polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PVP) and polyethylene glycol (PEG), were chosen to be the counterpart polymers. Results of Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) characterization, differential scanning calorimeter (DSC) analysis, wide angle X-ray diffraction (WAXD) measurements showed that there are special interactions between chitosan and the counterpart polymers. The pore structure induced by this method is controlled by the compatibility of the chitosan and the counterpart polymers. No pore structure was induced in the case of chitosan/polyvinyl pyrrolidone because of their molecule level miscibility and strong interaction. Highly porous structure was induced in the case of chitosan/polyethylene glycol because of their poor compatibility and multiphase structure.     

浸没凝胶相转化制备聚合物膜的孔结构及其形成机理

全面地综述了浸没凝胶相转化法制备的聚合物微孔膜的表面和膜中存在的各种孔的结构和形态,从制膜体系的热力学性质和成膜动力学角度解释了各种孔结构形态的形成和生长机理,即膜表面与膜中孔的结构形态由此时制膜体系发生的相分离类型决定,由此可推断出不同的膜层可能有不同的成膜机理。因此,只要掌握了各种膜孔结构形成的机理,通过改变膜的制备条件,控制体系的热力学性质与成膜时动力学扩散是可以实现相转化膜结构的控制。     

扩散致相转化法制备结晶性聚合物多孔膜

介绍了扩散致相转化法制备结晶性聚合物多孔膜的研究现状。其三元等温成膜体系的相图包含液-液分相和固-液分相两种相分离方式,是理解成膜过程的重要工具,总结了成膜机理和膜的结构形貌：单纯S-L相分离生成粒子状对称膜结构;单纯L-L相分离生成蜂窝状非对称膜结构;两种相分离方式竞争发生将生成多样的混合膜结构。铸膜液浓度、非溶剂种类、铸膜溶剂组成、凝胶浴组成、制膜温度是影响膜结构形貌的主要因素。     

膜流动电位测试中Ag-AgCl电极的制备及稳定性研究

膜的动电特性研究中,往往采用流动电位方法。该方法中,Ag-Ag Cl测试电极的质量是影响测试准确性的关键要素。本文采用正交试验设计和方差分析,着重考察电解法制备Ag-Ag Cl电极过程中,电流强度(I)、氯化时间(t)、电解质溶液浓度(CHCl)、电极来源(n)、烘烤温度(T)、活化电极溶液浓度(CKCl)等因素对Ag-Ag Cl电极稳定性的影响。得到Ag-Ag Cl电极的最优制备参数为:电流密度3.0m A/cm2,氯化时间50min,盐酸浓度0.1mol·L-1,烘烤温度120℃,活化电极溶液(KCl)浓度0.001mol·L-1;最显著影响因素为电极来源,显著影响因素为氯化时间和烘烤温度。对最优条件组合下制备的AgAg Cl电极,进行了稳定性实验,结果表明:制备的电极具有较好的稳定性,24h内电极电位漂移量小于0.10mv,7天内电极电位漂移量小于0.2mv;在聚偏氟乙烯中空纤维超滤膜流动电位测试中,流动电位与流动压差具有良好的线性和可重复性,回归曲线R20.99,变化规律符合Helmholtz-Smoluehowski公式,可以较好满足膜的流动电位测试要求。     

Asymmetric TPX membranes with high gas flux

Asymmetric poly(4-methyl-1-pentene) (TPX) membranes were prepared via a two-stage wet phase inversion method to improve their gas flux. The effects of solution and coagulant on the morphology of membranes were studied from the view point of thermodynamics and diffusion kinetics. It is also found that the surface tension and solubility parameters of second-bath media play important roles in determining the membrane morphology and the gas separation performance. In addition, the effect of milling temperature and the decline of gas flux with storage time are discussed.     

相转化法制备超滤和微滤膜的孔结构控制

综述了近期关于超滤和微滤膜孔结构控制的一些研究工作，介绍了相转化法制备聚合物膜过程中可能发生的液－液分相、固－液分相，凝胶化等相转变过程，并依此解析了超滤和微滤膜中常见的结构形态。最后从热力学与动力学两方面探讨了对超滤和微滤膜孔结构进行控制和方法。     

Polypyrrolones for membrane gas separations. I. Structural comparison of gas transport and sorption properties

Despite efforts by the membrane community to develop polymeric materials with improved O₂/N₂ separation performance, limited progress has occurred for almost a decade. Molecular sieving media, which can exhibit gas separation properties superior to polymers, tend to be brittle and uneconomical to produce for large‐scale membrane separation processes. Considering this, the polymer structures investigated in this work were designed to mimic aspects of the structure of molecular sieving media such as zeolites and carbon molecular sieves while maintaining the processability associated with polymers. Significantly attractive gas separation material properties were obtained using hyper rigid polypyrrolone copolymers with controlled packing disruptions between flat, packable segments. The gas transport properties in the materials changed dramatically as a result of different average interchain spacing. Moreover, all of the polypyrrolones studied in this work exhibited performance lying on or above the existing O₂/N₂ upper bound trade‐off line between permselectivity and permeability. These results, therefore, may point the way to a new cycle of membrane materials improvements for gas separations. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Polym Sci B: Polym Phys 37: 1235–1249, 1999     

PSF/TiO2杂化超滤膜形成过程的热力学和动力学研究

采用溶胶-凝胶法制备了不同纳米TiO₂含量的聚砜(PSF)/TiO₂杂化超滤膜, 研究了TiO₂浓度对聚砜铸膜液流变学及热力学性质的影响, 构建了计算成膜过程中表观扩散系数(D_a)的新方法, 求出不同TiO₂浓度及温度下的D_a值, 进而剖析了铸膜液流变学和热力学性质的变化对成膜动力学的影响. 并通过扫描电镜观察、杂化膜孔隙率和超滤性能的测试考察了表观扩散系数与膜结构和性能的关系. 结果表明, 加入TiO₂溶胶的PSF铸膜液由牛顿流体转变为非牛顿流体, 其粘度随TiO₂浓度增大而增大. TiO₂的加入减小了铸膜液对非溶剂的容纳能力, 加速铸膜液的液-液相分离, 同时TiO₂引起的热力学促进作用和流变学阻碍作用相互竞争, 共同影响D_a的变化. 实验得出, D_a随温度升高而增大, 随TiO₂浓度的增大有先增大后减小的趋势. 表观扩散系数D_a与膜的结构和性能具有很好的相关性并能直观地描述整个成膜过程.     

三醋酸纤维素/醋酸纤维素正渗透膜的制备工艺对性能的影响

通过相转变法制备了一系列三醋酸纤维素/醋酸纤维素正渗透膜,并探索了影响正渗透膜水通量的三个重要因素:膜厚度、凝胶时间、热处理过程。结果表明膜厚度为300mm、凝胶时间48 h,并经过热处理以后的正渗透膜水通量效果最佳,达到7.088 L/m~2·h。     

Porous membranes modified by hyperbranched polymers: I. Preparation and characterization of PVDF membrane using hyperbranched polyglycerol as additive

Porous membranes were prepared via phase inversion process from casting solution composed of poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF), N,N-dimethylacetamide (DMAc), and hyperbranched polyglycerol (HPG). The membranes were characterized in terms of surface and bulk chemical compositions, morphology, water contact angle, porosity, and water flux. The effects of HPG content on membrane structures and properties were investigated. The effect of HPG addition on the hydrophilicity was discussed as well when the compositions of coagulation bath were changed. To better understand the special effects of HPG on the structures and properties of the membranes, PVDF membranes prepared using HPG as the additive were compared with those prepared using polyethylene glycol (PEG) as the additive.