Abstract

Membrane fouling is one of the major obstacles for reaching a high flux over a prolonged period of ultrafiltration (UF) process. In this study, a sulfonated-polyethersulfone (SPES)/nano-TiO 2 composite UF membrane with good anti-fouling performance was fabricated by phase inversion and self-assembly methods. The TiO 2 nanoparticle self-assembly on the SPES membrane surface was confirmed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and FT-IR spectrometer. The morphology and hydrophilicity were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), atomic force microscopy (AFM) and contact angle goniometer, respectively. The anti-fouling mechanism of composite UF membrane was discussed through the analysis of the micro-structure and component of UF membrane surface. The results showed that the TiO 2 content and the micro-structure of the composite UF membrane surface had great influence on the separation and anti-fouling performance.

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