Self-cleaning, antimicrobial ultrafiltration membranes are urgently needed to alleviate the low flux problems caused by membrane fouling in water treatment processes.
In this study, a Prussian blue analogue (PBA)-intercalated
magnesium
aluminum hydrotalcite (PBA–LDH) material was used to successfully
modify the membrane surface by layer-by-layer synthesis with an intermediate
layer inspired by dopamine polymerization (polydopamine (PDA)). The
PBA–LDH@PDA membrane was endowed with highly efficient peroxymonosulfate
(PMS) activation and superb antifouling properties. Quenching experiments
implied that SO4
•– mainly contributed
to the sulfadiazine (SDZ) degradation in the PBA–LDH@PDA membrane-activated
PMS system and performed well under various conditions. On the other
hand, the PBA–LDH@PDA membrane was confirmed to exhibit separation
by loose nanofiltration. The fouling performance of the membrane identified
an extremely low flux attenuation even when 60 mg/L bovine serum albumin
(BSA) was filtered. Multicycle filtration experiments demonstrated
extremely low fouling accumulation of the membrane. The loose nanofiltration
membrane with PMS activation properties possesses multiple advantages:
activation of PMS by the filtration process provides a space in which
the catalyst, oxidant, and foulant can completely react; the two goals
of fouling mitigation and target foulant removal can be mutually realized
by controlling the operating parameters (e.g., PMS
dosage and filtration pressure). Overall, this study provides a beneficial
strategy for improving the efficiency of membrane filtration and foulant
removal.
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