Influence of nanoparticle inclusions on the performance of reverse osmosis membranes

With the rising demand for sustainable production of fresh water from saline sources, various types of water desalination membranes have been reported. Recent papers have used nanomaterials to improve water flux and salt rejection. Herein, we report comparative studies about the performance of reverse osmosis membranes whose selective layers were modified by embedding two different types of hydrophilic filler particles for higher water permeability as well as coating the surface for better antifouling performance. To evaluate the influence of the fillers and coating on the membrane performance, seven different types of samples were prepared and tested by altering one parameter at a time for systematic studies. When zeolite and graphene oxide were embedded in the selective layer made of polyamide, the water permeability was greatly improved. Graphene oxide and polyethylene glycol layers coated on the selective layer resulted in better antifouling performances. We observed a water permeability of 13.2 L m−2 h−1 bar−1 at 96% salt rejection and 15.9 L m−2 h−1 bar−1 at 94.3% salt rejection, which are better than or comparable to those of the unmodified polyamide membranes and superior to many other advanced membranes in the literature. Our systematic and comparative studies identified the influence of each nanoparticle and its concentration on the membrane performances (water permeability and salt rejection) and characteristics (surface roughness and hydrophilicity), which will be of great help to select the nanomaterials and their concentrations for better membrane performances.

[1]  Aimin Li,et al.  Influence of surface properties of RO membrane on membrane fouling for treating textile secondary effluent , 2017, Environmental Science and Pollution Research.

[2]  Y. Hao,et al.  In situ formation of copper nanoparticles in carboxylated chitosan layer: Preparation and characterization of surface modified TFC membrane with protein fouling resistance and long-lasting antibacterial properties , 2017 .

[3]  Li-ping Zhu,et al.  Incorporating hyperbranched polyester into cross-linked polyamide layer to enhance both permeability and selectivity of nanofiltration membrane , 2016 .

[4]  Qian Liu,et al.  Graphene oxide (GO) as functional material in tailoring polyamide thin film composite (PA-TFC) reverse osmosis (RO) membranes , 2016 .

[5]  Kimberly L. Jones,et al.  Graphene oxide functionalized polyethersulfone membrane to reduce organic fouling , 2016 .

[6]  Chuyang Y. Tang,et al.  A thin-film nanocomposite nanofiltration membrane prepared on a support with in situ embedded zeolite nanoparticles , 2016 .

[7]  W. Yim,et al.  Ultrafiltration using graphene oxide surface-embedded polysulfone membranes , 2016 .

[8]  D. Markelov,et al.  Impact of fullerene loading on the structure and transport properties of polysulfone mixed-matrix membranes , 2016, Journal of Materials Science.

[9]  Lianjun Wang,et al.  Antifouling and High Flux Sulfonated Polyamide Thin-Film Composite Membrane for Nanofiltration , 2016 .

[10]  Cong-jie Gao,et al.  Enhancing the performance of aromatic polyamide reverse osmosis membrane by surface modification via covalent attachment of polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) , 2016 .

[11]  Rong Wang,et al.  Polyamide-imide hollow fiber membranes crosslinked with amine-appended inorganic networks for application in solvent-resistant nanofiltration under low operating pressure , 2016 .

[12]  K. Gleason,et al.  Reverse osmosis membranes surface-modified using an initiated chemical vapor deposition technique show resistance to alginate fouling under cross-flow conditions: Filtration & subsequent characterization , 2016 .

[13]  T. Xu,et al.  Second interfacial polymerization on polyamide surface using aliphatic diamine with improved performance of TFC FO membranes , 2016 .

[14]  Y. Mansourpanah,et al.  PEG-modified GO nanosheets, a desired additive to increase the rejection and antifouling characteristics of polyamide thin layer membranes , 2015 .

[15]  Jincheng Liu,et al.  Facile room-temperature synthesis of carboxylated graphene oxide-copper sulfide nanocomposite with high photodegradation and disinfection activities under solar light irradiation , 2015, Scientific Reports.

[16]  H. Shon,et al.  Graphene oxide incorporated polysulfone substrate for the fabrication of flat-sheet thin-film composite forward osmosis membranes , 2015 .

[17]  Vahid Vatanpour,et al.  Thin film nanocomposite reverse osmosis membrane modified by reduced graphene oxide/TiO2 with improved desalination performance , 2015 .

[18]  L. Kong,et al.  Promoted water transport across graphene oxide-poly(amide) thin film composite membranes and their antibacterial activity , 2015 .

[19]  L. You,et al.  Hydrophilic, bactericidal nanoheater-enabled reverse osmosis membranes to improve fouling resistance. , 2015, ACS applied materials & interfaces.

[20]  I. Pinnau,et al.  High-performance polyamide thin-film-nanocomposite reverse osmosis membranes containing hydrophobic zeolitic imidazolate framework-8 , 2015 .

[21]  H. Shon,et al.  Fouling and its control in membrane distillation-A review , 2015 .

[22]  Y. Cohen,et al.  Wettability of terminally anchored polymer brush layers on a polyamide surface. , 2014, Journal of colloid and interface science.

[23]  Bo Yang,et al.  Investigating the microstructures and surface features of seawater RO membranes and the dependencies of fouling resistance performances , 2014 .

[24]  S. Lepri,et al.  THE EVOLUTION OF 1 AU EQUATORIAL SOLAR WIND AND ITS ASSOCIATION WITH THE MORPHOLOGY OF THE HELIOSPHERIC CURRENT SHEET FROM SOLAR CYCLES 23 TO 24 , 2014 .

[25]  Jung-Hyun Lee,et al.  Layer-by-layer assembly of graphene oxide nanosheets on polyamide membranes for durable reverse-osmosis applications. , 2013, ACS applied materials & interfaces.

[26]  Y. Cohen,et al.  Biofouling and cleaning effectiveness of surface nanostructured reverse osmosis membranes , 2013 .

[27]  Lin Zhang,et al.  Role of NaA zeolites in the interfacial polymerization process towards a polyamide nanocomposite reverse osmosis membrane , 2013 .

[28]  Y. Mansourpanah,et al.  Preparation and modification of thin film PA membranes with improved antifouling property using acrylic acid and UV irradiation , 2013 .

[29]  Yan Jin,et al.  Understanding the dependence of contact angles of commercially RO membranes on external conditions and surface features , 2013 .

[30]  W. S. Winston Ho,et al.  High-flux reverse osmosis membranes incorporated with hydrophilic additives for brackish water desalination , 2013 .

[31]  T. Maruyama,et al.  Fouling reduction of reverse osmosis membrane by surface modification via layer-by-layer assembly , 2012 .

[32]  Yan Jin,et al.  Exploring the dependence of bulk properties on surface chemistries and microstructures of commercially composite RO membranes by novel characterization approaches , 2012 .

[33]  Yang Liu,et al.  Development of nanosilver and multi-walled carbon nanotubes thin-film nanocomposite membrane for enhanced water treatment , 2012 .

[34]  M. Elimelech,et al.  The Future of Seawater Desalination: Energy, Technology, and the Environment , 2011, Science.

[35]  Kimberly L. Jones,et al.  Polyelectrolyte modification of nanofiltration membrane for selective removal of monovalent anions , 2011 .

[36]  Ravi S Kane,et al.  Antifouling Coatings: Recent Developments in the Design of Surfaces That Prevent Fouling by Proteins, Bacteria, and Marine Organisms , 2011, Advanced materials.

[37]  Jingjing Xu,et al.  Surface-Tethered Zwitterionic Ultrathin Antifouling Coatings on Reverse Osmosis Membranes by Initiated Chemical Vapor Deposition , 2011 .

[38]  Amit Kumar,et al.  Understanding the toxicity of aggregated zero valent copper nanoparticles against Escherichia coli. , 2010, Journal of hazardous materials.

[39]  Benny D. Freeman,et al.  Water Purification by Membranes: The Role of Polymer Science , 2010 .

[40]  Qiang Sun,et al.  Preparation of protein-adsorption-resistant polyethersulfone ultrafiltration membranes through surface segregation of amphiphilic comb copolymer , 2007 .

[41]  I. Pinnau,et al.  Fouling of reverse osmosis membranes by biopolymers in wastewater secondary effluent: Role of membrane surface properties and initial permeate flux , 2007 .

[42]  Zhi-Kang Xu,et al.  Flux enhancement for polypropylene microporous membrane in a SMBR by the immobilization of poly(N-vinyl-2-pyrrolidone) on the membrane surface , 2006 .

[43]  In-Chul Kim,et al.  Preparation and characterization of fouling-resistant TiO2 self-assembled nanocomposite membranes , 2006 .

[44]  Jianqing Zhao,et al.  Hydrophilic modification of poly(ether sulfone) ultrafiltration membrane surface by self-assembly of TiO2 nanoparticles , 2005 .

[45]  Ming-Chien Yang,et al.  The preparation and characterization of silver‐loading cellulose acetate hollow fiber membrane for water treatment , 2005 .

[46]  A. Mohammed Farooque,et al.  Performance restoration and autopsy of NF membranes used in seawater pretreatment , 2005 .

[47]  Ming-Chien Yang,et al.  Characterization and inhibitory effect of antibacterial PAN-based hollow fiber loaded with silver nitrate , 2003 .

[48]  Tai Hyun Park,et al.  Design of TiO2 nanoparticle self-assembled aromatic polyamide thin-film-composite (TFC) membrane as an approach to solve biofouling problem , 2003 .

[49]  Robert H. Davis,et al.  A Novel Sequential Photoinduced Living Graft Polymerization , 2000 .

[50]  F. Digiano,et al.  Influence of NOM composition on nanofiltration , 1996 .

[51]  G. Belfort,et al.  Development of a novel photochemical technique for modifying poly (arylsulfone) ultrafiltration membranes , 1995 .

[52]  Menachem Elimelech,et al.  The search for a chlorine-resistant reverse osmosis membrane , 1994 .

[53]  J. M. Harris,et al.  Poly(Ethylene Glycol) Chemistry , 1992 .