Abstract
Abstract A series of stimuli-responsive reverse (RO) membranes were prepared by tethering three stimuli-responsive polymers, poly (sulfobetaine methacrylate) (PSBMA), poly (4-(2-Sulfoethyl)-1-(4-vinyl-benzyl) pyridinium betain) (PSVBP) and poly (N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM) onto the surface of a commercial thin-film (TFC) RO membrane via surface-initiated graft polymerization. The membrane surface was characterized by ATR-FTIR, XPS, zeta potential, water contact angle (WCA), FESEM and AFM. Membrane characterization indicates successful grafting of these polymers, with more negatively-charged, smoother and more hydrophilic surfaces as a result. Long-term fouling-rinsing cycled experiments were conducted to evaluate fouling resistance and cleaning efficiency. With CaCO 3 as the foulant, the modified membranes showed better fouling resistance in the whole testing as long as 320 h; with BSA as the foulant, they only showed better antifouling performance in short term. However, the modified membranes showed much higher cleaning efficiency in both cases, with the PA-g-PSVBP membrane as the best one.
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