Abstract
Organic fouling and biofouling pose a significant challenge to the membrane filtration process. Photocatalysis-membrane hybrid system is a novel idea for reducing these membranes fouling however, when <TEX>$TiO_2</TEX> photocatalyst nanoparticles are used in suspension, catalyst recovery is not only imposes an extra step on the process but also significantly contributes to increased membrane resistance and reduced permeate flux. In this study, <TEX>$TiO_2$</TEX> photocatalyst has been immobilized by coating on the microfiltration (MF) membrane surface to minimize organic and microbial fouling. Nano-sized <TEX>$TiO_2$</TEX> was first synthesized by a sol-gel method. The synthesized <TEX>$TiO_2$</TEX> was coated on a Poly Vinyl Difluoride (PVDF) membrane (MF) surface using spray coating and dip coating techniques to obtain hybrid functional composite membrane. The characteristics of the synthesized photocatalyst and a functional composite membrane were studied using numerous instruments in terms of physical, chemical and electrical properties. In comparison to the clean PVDF membrane, the <TEX>$TiO_2$</TEX> coated MF membrane was found more effective in removing methylene blue (20%) and E-coli (99%).
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