Effect of graphene oxide (GO) and polyvinylpyrollidone (PVP) additives on the hydrophilicity of composite polyethersulfone (PES) membrane

Abstract

Membrane based separation system is considered as a promising technology to purify water, owing to its simplicity and efficiency in operation. However, the application is limited by membrane fouling, which can lead to the declination of water flux and premature failure of membrane. The fouling can be controlled through membrane surface modification by blending hydrophilic materials during the casting solution preparation. Polyethersulfone (PES) membrane is naturally hydrophobic due to lack of oxygen functional group, which limits its application in the filtration of water. Therefore, modification of PES-based membranes is required. In this work, modification of the PES membrane was carried out by incorporating carbon-based nanomaterials (graphene oxide (GO)) and a well-known organic polymer (polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP)). The effect of each additive toward the hydrophilicity of composite PES membrane was then investigated. GO was synthesized using modified Hummers method due to its simpler and shorter process. Each additive was added during the casting solution preparation and the amount added was varied from 0.5 to 1.0 wt%. The resultant composite PES membranes were characterized using XRD, FTIR and TGA prior to hydrophilicity and pure water flux (PWF) measurement. It was observed that the additives (PVP and GO) have significantly affected the membranes hydrophilicity, resulting in lower contact angle and higher pure water flux. The highest value of PWF (230 L/m2.h) with lowest contact angle (42 °) were observed for PES-1.0GOPVP membrane due to high amount of GO and PVP. Improved PWF performance of composite PES-1.0GOPVP membrane was attributed to the better dispersibility of the PVP and GO and increased surface hydrophilicity of the modified composite membranes. This study indicated that PVP and GO are effective modifiers to enhance the performance of PES membrane

Treatment of Effluents from the Textile Industry through Polyethersulfone Membranes

“…According to Figure 3(b2,c2), the addition of clay led to a decrease in the filtering skin attached to the membrane porous support, increasing the porosity of the support as compared to the pure PES membranes. This phenomenon was also observed by the authors in [18][19][20]. The increase in porosity The addition of clay, which is hydrophilic, gives the membrane surface this characteristic [15,16].…”

PCL/Gelatin/Graphene Oxide Electrospun Nanofibers: Effect of Surface Functionalization on In Vitro and Antibacterial Response

“…These methods involve the oxidation of graphite by strong acids and oxidants such as phosphoric acid, sulfuric acid, nitric acid, potassium permanganate, and potassium chlorate [ 86 , 87 ]. The Hummers method is commonly used as it is fast, easy, and can produce GO with higher oxidation and hydrophilic properties [ 88 , 89 ].…”

Effect of Carbon Nanomaterials Concentration in Nanocomposite Membrane for Methyl Blue Dye Removal

“…This peak was attributed to the carboxyl group (C O) in GO nanoparticles which were incorporated into the membrane. Besides that, the spectrum also showed the two peaks with the wavelengths of 1250 cm -1 and 1101 cm -1 which indicated the presence of the epoxy (C-O-C) and alkoxy (C-O) group, respectively [30]. As the concentration of GO/MWCNTs carbon nanomaterials increased, the peak became more intense and apparent.…”