Abstract
A series of novel self-cleaning hybrid photocatalytic ultrafiltration (UF) membranes were fabricated to separate polyacrylamide, which is widely used as a commercial flocculant. To maximize the self-cleaning and anti-fouling properties of hybrid membranes, high surface area TiO2 nanotubes (TNTs) with excellent photocatalytic activity were homogeneously introduced into a poly(aryl ether sulfone) matrix by chemical bonds. The chemical structure, micromorphology, hydrophilicity, separation efficiency, fouling behavior, and self-cleaning property of the prepared hybrid membranes were well characterized and evaluated. For the optimal sample, the flux recovery ratio increased from ~40% to ~80% after simulated sunlight irradiation for 20 min, which was attributable to the homogeneous dispersion and efficient photocatalytic degradation ability of TNTs. Furthermore, the intelligent fabrication strategy enhanced the anti-aging ability of the hybrid membranes via the use of a fluorine-containing poly matrix. This work provided new insight into the fabrication of high-performance self-cleaning inorganic/organic hybrid membranes.
Highlights
Water scarcity and contamination due to the development of industrialization and population growth have gained extensive attention worldwide [1,2]
Based on the SEM and Ti-mapping energy dispersive spectrometer (EDS) images results, we found the compatibility of inorganic TiO2 nanotubes (TNTs) and of TNTs/PES-F-COOH hybrid UF membranes, see Figure 3B3 –D3
An efficient strategy to fabricate high-performance hybrid ultrafiltration was developed by the incorporation of TNTs with excellent self-cleaning photocatalytic activity into a membranes was poly(aryl developedether by the incorporation of TNTs withbonding
Summary
Water scarcity and contamination due to the development of industrialization and population growth have gained extensive attention worldwide [1,2]. Polymers 2019, 11, 555 like surface grafting with hydrophilic monomers [15], blending of amphiphilic polymer in the polymer matrix [16], polymer functionalization [17], and embedding inorganic nanomaterials into polymer matrices [18,19,20]. Among these methods, introducing inorganic photocatalytic nanomaterials into the polymer matrix to fabricate composite photocatalytic UF membranes has attracted enormous interests in recent years due to their unique properties, for example, anti-fouling, anti-microbial, self-cleaning, concurrent photocatalytic oxidation and separation, which could potentially overcome the drawbacks associated with conventional UF membranes. The results displayed that the water flux, fouling prevention, and mechanical capacity of the composite UF membranes were enhanced compared to pure PSF membranes
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