New type of nanofiltration membrane based on crosslinked hyperbranched polymers

Novel nanofiltration (NF) membrane was developed from hydroxyl-ended hyperbranched polyester (HPE) and trimesoyl chloride (TMC) by in situ interfacial polymerization process using ultrafiltration polysulfone membrane as porous support. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR-ATR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and water contact angle (CA) measurements were employed to characterize the resulting membranes. The results indicated that the crosslinked hyperbranched polyester produced a uniform, ultra-thin active layer atop polysulfone (PSf) membrane support. FTIR-ATR spectra indicated that TMC reacted sufficiently with HPE. Water permeability and salts rejection of the prepared NF membrane were measured under low trans-membrane pressures. The resulting NF membranes exhibited significantly enhanced water permeability while maintaining high rejection of salts. The salts rejection increase was accompanied with the flux decrease when TMC dosage was increased. The flux and rejection of NF 1 for Na₂SO₄ (1 g/L) reached to 79.1 l/m² h and 85.4% under 0.3 MPa. The results encourage further exploration of NF membrane preparation using hyperbranched polymers (HBPs) as the selective ultra-thin layer.     

界面聚合制备新型荷正电纳滤膜

以聚砜超滤膜为基膜,聚乙烯亚胺、均苯三甲酰氯为界面聚合单体,水和正己烷分别为两相溶剂,通过界面聚合方法制备荷正电纳滤膜。实验着重考察了Na2SO4-PEG400-H2O三元混合体系的分离情况,结果表明,该膜可有效地实现低分子量有机物与Na2SO4的分离;另外,随着Na2SO4或PEG400浓度的增大,膜对Na2SO4和PEG400的截留率有所降低。     

Polyamide Nanofiltration Membrane from Surfactant-assembly Regulated Interfacial Polymerization of 2-Methylpiperazine for Divalent Cations Removal

Removal of metal ions from water can not only alleviate the scaling problem of domestic and industrial water, but also solve the water safety problem caused by heavy metal ion pollution. Here, we fabricate a positively charged nanofiltration membrane via surfactant-assembly regulated interfacial polymerization(SARIP) of 2-methylpiperazine(MPIP) and trimesoyl chloride(TMC). Due to the existence of methyl substituent, MPIP has lower reactive activity than piperazine(PIP) but stronger affinity to hexane, resulting in a nanofiltration(NF) membrane with an opposite surface charge and a loose polyamide active layer. Interestingly, with the help of sodium dodecyl sulfate(SDS) assembly at the water/hexane, the reactivity between MPIP and TMC was obviously increased and caused in turn the formation of a positively charged polyamide active layer with a smaller pore size, as well as with a narrower pore size distribution. The resulting membrane shows a highly efficient removal of divalent cations from water, of which the rejections of MgCl₂, CoCl₂ and NiCl₂ are higher than 98.8%, 98.0% and 98.0%, respectively, which are better than those of most of other positively charged NF membranes reported in literatures.     

Novel thin-film composite membranes with improved water flux from sulfonated cardo poly(arylene ether sulfone) bearing pendant amino groups

A new class of polymeric amine, namely, sulfonated cardo poly(arylene ether sulfone) (SPES-NH₂) was synthesized and used for the preparation of thin-film composite membrane. The TFC membranes were prepared on a polysulfone supporting film through interfacial polymerization with trimesoyl chloride (TMC) solutions and amine solutions containing SPES-NH₂ and m-phenylenediamine (MPDA). The resultant membranes were characterized with water permeation performance, chemical structure, hydrophilicity of active layer and membrane morphology including top surface and cross-section. The membrane prepared under the optimum condition showed the salt rejection and water flux reached 97.3% and 51.2 L/m² h, respectively. The high salt rejection and water flux was attributed to the rigid polymer backbone and the presence of strong hydrophilic sulfonic groups.     

Effect of poly(ethylene glycol) 200 on the formation of a polyetherimide asymmetric membrane and its performance in aqueous solvent mixture permeation

To investigate the effect of poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) 200 on membrane performance, asymmetric polyetherimide (PEI) membranes with a small pore size were prepared by dry/wet-phase inversion from the casting solution containing N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone as a solvent and poly(ethylene glycol) 200 as an additive. Our experiment revealed that the addition of PEG 200 has an influence on the casting solution properties, permeation properties, and resulting membrane structures. Moreover, a drying process also affects the formation of a dense skin layer. Increasing the amount of PEG 200 drastically improved the solute rejection rate. The drying process improved the rejection rate. We also observed the effect of the mixed solvent (water/ethanol) on permeation through the membranes with various pore sizes. In the case of the membrane with a dense skin layer, the solvent permeation showed relationships with solution viscosity, surface tension, and membrane-solvent interaction.     

Polybenzimidazole (PBI) nanofiltration hollow fiber membranes applied in forward osmosis process

For the first time, the potential of polybenzimidazole (PBI) nanofiltration membrane as a forward osmosis membrane has been investigated. PBI was chosen mainly because of its unique nanofiltration characteristics, robust mechanical strength and excellent chemical stability. The MgCl₂ solutions with different concentrations and other different salt solutions were employed as draw solutions to test the water permeation flux through the PBI membrane during forward osmosis. High water permeation flux and excellent salt selectivity were achieved by using the PBI nanofiltration membrane which has a narrow pore size distribution. Effects of membrane morphology, operation conditions and flowing patterns of two feed streams within the membrane module on water transport performance have been investigated. It may conclude that PBI nanofiltration membrane is a promising candidate as a forward osmosis (FO) membrane.     

Influence of steric, electric, and dielectric effects on membrane potential

The membrane potential arising through nanofiltration membranes separating two aqueous solutions of the same electrolyte at identical hydrostatic pressures but different concentrations is investigated within the scope of the steric, electric, and dielectric exclusion model. The influence of the ion size and the so-called dielectric exclusion on the membrane potential arising through both neutral and electrically charged membranes is investigated. Dielectric phenomena have no influence on the membrane potential through neutral membranes, unlike ion size effects which increase the membrane potential value. For charged membranes, both steric and dielectric effects increase the membrane potential at a given concentration but the diffusion potential (that is the high-concentration limit of the membrane potential) is affected only by steric effects. It is therefore proposed that membrane potential measurements carried out at high salt concentrations could be used to determine the mean pore size of nanofiltration membranes. In practical cases, the membrane volume charge density and the dielectric constant inside pores depend on the physicochemical properties of both the membrane and the surrounding solutions (pH, concentration, and chemical nature of ions). It is shown that the Donnan and dielectric exclusions affect the membrane potential of charged membranes similarly; namely, a higher salt concentration is needed to screen the membrane fixed charge. The membrane volume charge density and the pore dielectric constant cannot then be determined unambiguously by means of membrane potential experiments, and additional independent measurements are in need. It is suggested to carry out rejection rate measurements (together with membrane potential measurements).     

Influence of rupture strength of interfacially polymerized thin-film structure on the performance of polyamide composite membranes

The permeation properties of a thin-film composite (TFC) membrane depend upon the material properties as well as the structural properties of the polymer forming the active layer. Membranes with the active layers prepared with 1,3,5-benzentricarbonyl chloride (TMC) and aliphatic diamines including dimethylenediamine (DMDA), 1,6-hexamethylenediamine (HMDA), and 1,9-nonamethylenediamine (NMDA) exhibit inferior performance compared to membranes with active layers composed of aromatic diamines including 1,3-benzendiamine (MPDA) and 1,4-benzendiamine (PPDA). It is also observed that the water flux for these membranes decreases as the length of the methylene chain increases due to decreasing hydrophilicity. Furthermore, because of the low rupture strength of the thin-films that form the active layer, the salt rejection also decreases with increasing methylene chain length. The membranes prepared with MPDA and various acyl chlorides including 1,6-hexamethylenedicarbonyl chloride (SC), 1,3-benzenedicarbonyl chloride (IPC), and 1,4-benzene dicarbonyl chloride (TPC) have low rupture strength and poor performance characteristics except for the membrane having network structure, TMC. It is observed that while hydrophilicity has a small effect on the permeation performance of the thin-films its effect of the rupture strength is large. Membranes with weak rupture strength evidence low salt rejection. Hence, the permeation performance of composite membranes with thin-films having weak mechanical strength at high operating pressures depends upon not only the physicochemical properties of the active material including the chemical properties, but also the mechanical strength of the polymer comprising the thin-film.     

Sub‐10 nm Polyamide Nanofiltration Membrane for Molecular Separation

To separate small molecules from the solvent with high permeability and selectivity, the membrane process is thought to be highly effective with much lower energy consumption when compared to the traditional thermal‐based separation process. To achieve high solvent permeance, a sub‐10 nm thick polyamide nanofiltration membrane was synthesized through interfacial polymerization of ethidium bromide (EtBr) and trimesoyl chloride (TMC). Thanks to the extremely low solubility of the EtBr monomer in the organic phase, the polymerization process was strictly limited at the interface of the water and hexane, leading to an ultrathin polyamide membrane with a thickness down to sub‐10 nm. When used in nanofiltration, these ultrathin membranes display ultrafast water permeation of 40 liter per square meter per hour per bar (L m^?2 h^?1 bar^?1), and a high Congo red rejection rate of 93 %. This work demonstrates a new route to synthesize ultrathin polyamide membranes by the traditional interfacial polymerization.     

Positively charged nanofiltration membranes: review of current fabrication methods and introduction of a novel approach

A review of the fabrication processes currently available to produce positively charged nanofiltration membranes has been conducted. The review highlights that there are few membranes and studies currently available. The preparation of a novel positively charged nanofiltration membrane is also described. This membrane was fabricated by surface modification of a prepared base membrane using polyethyleneimine followed by cross linking with butanedioldiglycidylether. The fabrication process uses standard organic solvents and avoids the need for hazardous materials, such as concentrated sulphuric acid, which significantly benefits the scale up potential of any future commercial manufacturing process. The new membrane was characterised using a number of state-of-the-art techniques, including a novel use of atomic force microscopy to determine pore size. Streaming potential measurements confirmed that this new membrane is indeed positively charged in the pH range below pH 9, which covers the majority of normal operating conditions. The performance characteristics for the new membrane were very favourable, with a pure water flux determined to be 20 LMH bar(-1) and a rejection of MgCl of 96%. Thus, this new membrane both adds to and complements the existing short supply of positively charged NF membranes and is suitable for applications such as the recovery of valuable cationic macromolecules in the bioprocess and pharmaceutical industries or removal of multi-valent cations such as dyes and heavy metals in the paper and pulp, textiles, nuclear, and automotive industries.     

HBPE-g-PVDF/PVDF blend nanofiltration membrane: preparation and characterization

Hyperbranched polyester-grafted poly(vinylidene fluoride) (HBPE-g-PVDF) was synthesized and used as additive in preparation of PVDF blend membranes. HBPE-g-PVDF copolymer was characterized with FTIR and TGA techniques. The prepared membranes were also characterized with SEM, AFM and contact angle measurement. The performance of prepared membranes as nanofiltration membrane was studied by pure water flux (PWF), salt rejection, dynamic and static fouling tests. The results showed that hydrophilicity of prepared membranes greatly increased after blending, and their pore size and pore size distribution and so PWF of blend membranes increased.     

单体结构对聚酰胺类复合膜分离性能的影响

采用间苯二甲酰氯、均苯三甲酰氯、均苯四甲酰氯分别与间苯二胺、乙二胺、哌嗪在耐高温杂萘联苯聚醚砜酮(PPESK)超滤膜表面进行界面聚合,制备了7种具有不同功能层结构的新型超薄复合膜.采用红外、X射线衍射、原子力显微镜等测试手段对复合膜结构进行表征,测试了7种复合膜对0·2%的Na2SO4水溶液,0·2%NaCl水溶液的分离性能,分析了单体结构与复合膜分离性能的关系.     

Fabrication and Performance of a Low Operating Pressure Nanofiltration Poly（vinyl chloride） Hollow Fiber Membrane

A low operating pressure nanofiltration membrane is prepared by interfacial polymerization between m-phenylenediamine(MPDA) and trimesoyl chloride(TMC) using PVC hollow fiber membrane as supporting.A series of PVC nanofiltration membranes with different molecular weight cutoff(MWCO) can be obtained by controlling preparation conditions.Chemical and morphological characterization of the membrane surface was carried out by FTIR-ATR and SEM.MWCO was characterized by filtration experiments.The preparation conditions were investigated in detail.At the optimized conditions(40 min air-dried time,aqueous phase containing 0.5% MPDA,0.05% SDS and 0.6% acid absorbent,oil phase containing 0.3% TMC,and 1 min reaction time),under 0.3 MPa,water flux of the gained nanofiltration membrane reaches 17.8 L/m2·h,and the rejection rates of methyl orange and MgSO4 are more than 90% and 60%,respectively.     

聚多巴胺/聚乙烯亚胺共沉积中间层增强薄膜复合正渗透膜性能

以聚多巴胺/聚乙烯亚胺(PDA/PEI)共沉积于三醋酸纤维素(CTA)多孔支撑膜表面形成中间层,再结合界面聚合法获得聚酰胺薄膜,构建了PDA/PEI共沉积中间层改性薄膜复合(TFC)正渗透(FO)膜.通过傅里叶变换衰减全反射红外光谱法、扫描电子显微镜、原子力显微镜、溶质截留法、水接触角仪等研究了PDA/PEI共沉积中间层对CTA膜和TFC膜的表面结构和性质的影响.研究结果表明,PDA/PEI共沉积使得CTA膜表面变得更为平滑,表面孔径减小至(30.0±4.1) nm,且表面孔径分布趋于均一.同时,在PDA/PEI共沉积改性CTA膜表面界面聚合得到的聚酰胺层呈现出更均匀的叶片状结构和优异的亲水性.基于此,具有PDA/PEI共沉积中间层的TFC正渗透膜显著提高了水通量(FO模式:(7.1±2.3) L/(m^2·h)),较空白TFC膜提升了57.6%.同时,中间层改性TFC膜具有更低的反向盐通量(FO模式:1.4±0.1 g/(m^2·h))和"净盐通量"(FO模式:(0.2±0.06) g/L),与空白TFC膜相比分别下降了83.9%和90.6%.说明PDA/PEI共沉积中间层不仅能有效提升TFC正渗透膜的水渗透性,而且大幅提升了膜的截盐性和渗透选择性.     

界面聚合法制备聚哌嗪酰胺复合纳滤膜

以聚醚砜超滤膜为基膜,哌嗪(PIP)为水相单体,均苯三甲酰氯(TMC)为有机相单体,采用界面聚合法制备了复合纳滤膜,扫描电镜、表层的红外分析结果表明在基膜表面聚合了一层聚酰胺膜,膜性能测定结果表明膜表面荷负电,对不同无机盐的截留率为Na2SO4MgSO4MgCl2NaCl。界面聚合条件对膜性能的影响表明,最佳聚合条件为:PIP浓度0.5%～2%,TMC浓度0.15wt%～0.75wt%,聚合时间≥1min,热处理温度60℃～80℃,时间15 min左右。     

Self‐Assembled Asymmetric Block Copolymer Membranes: Bridging the Gap from Ultra‐ to Nanofiltration

The self‐assembly of block copolymers is an emerging strategy to produce isoporous ultrafiltration membranes. However, thus far, it has not been possible to bridge the gap from ultra‐ to nanofiltration and decrease the pore size of self‐assembled block copolymer membranes to below 5 nm without post‐treatment. It is now reported that the self‐assembly of blends of two chemically interacting copolymers can lead to highly porous membranes with pore diameters as small as 1.5 nm. The membrane containing an ultraporous, 60 nm thin separation layer can fully reject solutes with molecular weights of 600 g mol^?1 in aqueous solutions with a water flux that is more than one order of magnitude higher than the permeance of commercial nanofiltration membranes. Simulations of the membrane formation process by dissipative particle dynamics (DPD) were used to explain the dramatic observed pore size reduction combined with an increase in water flux.     

Theory of pressure-driven transport of neutral solutes and ions in porous ceramic nanofiltration membranes

Hindered transport theory and homogeneous electro-transport theory are used to calculate the limiting, high volume flux, rejection of, respectively, neutral solutes and binary electrolytes by granular porous nanofiltration membranes. For ceramic membranes prepared from metal oxides it is proposed that the membrane structural and charge parameters entering into the theory, namely the effective pore size and membrane charge density, can be estimated from independent measurements: the pore radius from the measured hydraulic radius using a model of sintered granular membranes and the effective membrane charge density from the hydraulic radius and the electrophoretic mobility measurements on the ceramic powder used to prepare the membrane. The electro-transport theory adopted here is valid when the membrane surface charge density is low enough and the pore radius is small enough for there to be strong electrical double layer overlap in the pores. Within this approximation the filtration streaming potential is also derived for binary electrolytes.     

Fabrication and development of interfacial polymerized thin-film composite nanofiltration membrane using different surfactants in organic phase; study of morphology and performance

The effects of addition of cationic cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB), non-ionic (Triton X-100) and anionic sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) surfactants in organic phase for preparing the composite nanofiltration membranes were investigated. The interfacial polymerization technique was employed by applying trimesoyl chloride (TMC) and piperazine (PIP) as the reagents for the preparation of poly(piperazineamide) on a UF support. The obtained thin layer membranes were placed in oven for 2 min at 70 °C. Water permeation performance, salt rejection, membrane surface charge, chemical structure and membrane morphology including top surface and cross-section were investigated for characterization of the prepared membranes using IR-ATR, SEM, filtration and zeta potential measurement. The prepared membranes using SDS showed higher flux compared to the other membranes. SEM surface images demonstrate some defects and cracks on the thin layer surface of the membrane prepared with SDS. For membrane containing CTAB, the salt rejection increased in the order of Na₂SO₄ > NaCl > MgCl₂ with variation around 50–90%.     

Zwitterionic microgel based anti(-bio)fouling smart membranes for tunable water filtration and molecular separation

Tunable gating polymeric nanostructured membrane with excellent water permeability and precise molecular separation is highly advantageous for smart nanofiltration application. Polymeric nanostructures such as microgels with functionalizable cross-linkable moieties can be an excellent choice to construct membranes with a thin separation layer, functionality, and tunable transport properties. In the present work, we prepared switchable anti(bio)fouling membranes using zwitterionically functionalized antibacterial thermoresponsive aqueous core-shell microgels with a thin separation layer for controlled filtration and separation applications. The microgels were synthesized using a one-step graft copolymerization of poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) and polyethyleneimine (PEI) followed by zwitterionization of free amine groups of PEI chains with 1,3-propane sultone. Microgel synthesis and zwitterionization were confirmed by spectroscopic and elemntal analysis. The obtained microgels were thoroughly characterized to analyze their thermoresponsive behavior, morphology, charge, and antibacterial properties. After that, characterizations were performed to elucidate the surface properties, water permeation, rejection, and flux recovery of the microgel membranes prepared by suction filtration over a track-etched support. It was observed that zwitterionic membrane provides better hydrophilicity, lower bovine serum albumin (BSA) adsorption, and desirable antimicrobial activity. The pure water permeability was directly related to the microgel layer thickness, applied pressure, and temperature of the feed solution. The novel nanostructured membrane leads to an excellent water permeance with a high gating ratio, high flux recovery rate with low irreversible fouling, better rejection for various dyes, and foulant. Most importantly, the long-term performance of the membrane is appreciable as the microgel layer remains intact and provides excellent separation up to a longer period. Owing to easy preparation and well control over thickness, the zwitterionic microgel membranes constitute unique and interactive membranes for various pressure-driven separation and purification applications.     

Negatively charged poly(vinylidene fluoride) microfiltration membranes by sulfonation

Negatively charged PVDF microfiltration membranes were prepared using direct sulfonation with chlorosulfonic acid. The effect of sulfonation on the surface chemical properties, morphology, pore size distribution, hydrophilicity, water uptake, pure water flux, fouling and rejection were investigated. As the sulfonation reaction time was furthered, the degree of sulfonation and ion-exchange capacity increased and the membranes became more hydrophilic due to introduction of sulfonyl groups to the membrane surface. Using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, the composition of sulfonyl group with respect to sulfur concentration increased with time. From the SEM and porosity measurements, both the untreated and treated membranes did not reveal a substantial change in its morphology. The pure water flux increased significantly having a decreasing intrinsic resistance trend with degree of sulfonation. Both fouling phenomena and rejection were enhanced, with fouling of charged poly(styrene sulfonic acid) molecules on the surface-modified membrane decreased and rejection values increased with increasing degree of sulfonation mainly due to the effective electrostatic repulsion between the negatively charged PSSA and the negatively charged membrane.