Abstract
Hollow fiber membranes (HFM) are fabricated from blend solutions of a polyethersulfone (PESU) with a sulfonated PESU (sPESU) or a sulfonated polyphenylenesulfone (sPPSU). The influence of different additives in the dope solution and different bore fluids on the HFM are studied. The addition of poly(sodium 4-styrene sulfonate) (PSSNa)/ethylene glycol (EG) to the dope solution results in an increased water flux of the HFM compared to its counterparts without this additive system. The morphology of the hollow fibers is examined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The inner surface of the hollow fibers is studied by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and it is found that water permeation through the hollow fiber membranes is facilitated due to the change in morphology upon the addition of the PSSNa/EG additive system, but not by the presence of hydrophilic sulfonic acid groups on the membrane surface.
Highlights
Polyethersulfone (PESU) is an extensively used material for membrane fabrication by non-solvent induced phase separation (NIPS) [1,2]
We investigated the effect of poly(sodium 4-styrene sulfonate) (PSSNa)/ethylene glycol (EG) addition on the PESU/sulfonated polymer blend hollow fiber membranes
PESU/sulfonated polymer blend hollow fiber membranes were evaluated in terms of their water permeance
Summary
Polyethersulfone (PESU) is an extensively used material for membrane fabrication by non-solvent induced phase separation (NIPS) [1,2]. There are several strategies to improve the hydrophilicity and anti-fouling properties of PESU [1,5]. Among them, blending sulfonated polymers into the membrane-formulating dope solution comes with some advantages, including an ease of membrane fabrication. Associating sulfonated polymers as one of the blend components in the membrane-forming solutions has been studied to increase hydrophilicity, to lower the fouling in ultrafiltration and nanofiltration membranes, and as the support layer for thin film composite membranes for forward osmosis [1,6,7,8]. Sulfonated polymers were reported as a support layer material to facilitate water transport or improve the interfacial adhesion in composite membranes [9,10] as well. The degree of sulfonation and the concentration of the sulfonated polymer in the dope solution affects the performance of a membrane [11]
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