A Biofouling Resistant Zwitterionic Polysulfone Membrane Prepared by a Dual-Bath Procedure.

Hana Nur Aini,Yung Chang,Ruth R Aquino,Irish Valerie B Maggay,Shuo-Hsi Tang,Antoine Venault,Mary Madelaine G Lagman

doi:10.3390/membranes12010069

Hana Nur Aini, Yung Chang + Show 5 more

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https://doi.org/10.3390/membranes12010069

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Journal: Membranes	Publication Date: Jan 4, 2022
Citations: 8	License type: CC BY 4.0

Affiliation: Chung Yuan Christian University, Mapúa University

Abstract

This study introduces a zwitterionic material to modify polysulfone (PSf) membranes formed by a dual bath procedure, in view of reducing their fouling propensity. The zwitterionic copolymer, derived from a random polymer of styrene and 4-vinylpyrridine and referred to as zP(S-r-4VP), was incorporated to the PSf solution without any supplementary pore-forming additive to study the effect of the sole copolymer on membrane-structuring, chemical, and arising properties. XPS and mapping FT-IR provided evidence of the modification. Macrovoids appeared and then disappeared as the copolymer content increased in the range 1–4 wt%. The copolymer has hydrophilic units and its addition increases the casting solution viscosity. Both effects play an opposite role on transfers, and so on the growth of macrovoids. Biofouling tests demonstrated the efficiency of the copolymer to mitigate biofouling with a reduction in bacterial and blood cell attachment by more than 85%. Filtration tests revealed that the permeability increased by a twofold factor, the flux recovery ratio was augmented from 40% to 63% after water/BSA cycles, and irreversible fouling was reduced by 1/3. Although improvements are needed, these zwitterionic PSf membranes could be used in biomedical applications where resistance to biofouling by cells is a requirement.

Highlights

Several membrane sheets were prepared for each formulation condition, from which samples were taken for further characterization
The light blue color indicates that the adsorption of bovine serum albumin (BSA) on the membrane surface is low according to the color-code
Polysulfone membranes, modified with a zwitterionic copolymer obtained after a reaction of iodopropionic acid with poly(styrene-co-4-vinylpyrridine), were prepared by a dual-bath procedure

Summary

Introduction

Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. Polysulfone (PSf) is one of the most commonly used materials in membrane technology [1]. Thermal, and mechanical resistance, combined with its excellent hydrolytic stability and relatively inexpensive production costs, make it ideal for widespread use in membrane fabrication. It has been employed as the main membrane matrix material in a wide range of applications including: ultrafiltration for water treatment [2], gas separation [3], desalination via membrane distillation [4], hemodialysis [5], etc. PSf membranes are commonly prepared by phase-inversion processes including wetimmersion [6–8], vapor-induced phase separation [4,9], or dry–wet phase inversion [10,11]

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