Graphene oxide-embedded thin-film composite reverse osmosis membrane with high flux, anti-biofouling, and chlorine resistance

Abstract

We demonstrated that a thin-film composite (TFC) membrane with graphene oxide (GO) embedded in its polyamide (PA) layer exhibited high water permeability, anti-biofouling property, and chlorine resistance without loss of salt rejection. The GO fabricated by chemical exfoliation was fractionated for size control, and then the fractionated GO was dispersed in an aqueous solution of m-phenylenediamine (MPD) before interfacial polymerization. The water permeability and anti-biofouling property of the GO-embedded TFC (GO-TFC) membrane were enhanced by approximately 80% and 98% (based on the biovolume), respectively, and high salt rejection was retained even at 48,000ppmh chlorination. Compared with the TFC membrane, the enhanced performances of the GO-TFC membrane were attributed to the change of hydrophilicity, surface charge, surface roughness, and thickness of the PA layer through the incorporation of GO. Both the size and the concentration of GO were the key factors in improving the performance of the GO-TFC membrane.