Abstract
In this study, the polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) hollow fiber hemodialysis membranes were prepared by non-solvent induced phase separation (NIPS). The influences of PVDF membrane thickness and polyethylene glycol (PEG) content on membrane morphologies, pore size, mechanical and permeable performance were investigated. It was found that membrane thickness and PEG content affected both the structure and performance of hollow fiber membranes. The tensile strength and rejection of bovine serum albumin (BSA) increased with increasing membrane thickness, while the Ultrafiltration flux (UF) flux of pure water was the opposite. The tensile strength, porosity and rejection of BSA increased with increasing PEG content within a certain range. Compared with commercial F60S membrane, the PVDF hollow fiber membrane showed higher mechanical and permeable performance. It was proven that PVDF material had better hydrophilicity and lower BSA adsorption, which was more suitable for hemodialysis. All the results indicate that PVDF hollow fiber membrane is promising as a hemodialysis membrane.
Highlights
Hemodialysis (HD) is a relatively safe purification technique for curing renal failure
In the formation of hollow fiber membranes, the polymer solution extruded from the spinneret was immersed in a pure water bath
The mechanical properties and rejection of bovine serum albumin (BSA) increase while Ultrafiltration flux (UF) pure water flux decreases with increasing membrane thickness
Summary
Hemodialysis (HD) is a relatively safe purification technique for curing renal failure. Polyethersulfone (PES) and polysulfone (PSf) membranes are widely used in hemodialysis for their better biocompatibility and functional middle-molecular substance clearances [2]. The biocompatibility of these membranes is still not ideal and needs improvement [3,4]. Anticoagulants (such as hirudin or heparin) should be added during hemodialysis, owing to the poor anticoagulation property of commercial membranes [5]. Many works have been focused on the modification of current membranes for the purpose of enhancing their hemodialysis properties. The modification of the currently used materials is an effective way to improve the biocompatibility of hemodialysis membranes, it is far from being clinically applicable, owing to the complexity of the modification process. It is urgently needed to find new materials with promising biocompatibility and hemodialysis properties
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