Effect of Polyphenylsulfone and Polysulfone Incompatibility on the Structure and Performance of Blend Membranes for Ultrafiltration

Abstract

This study deals with the modification of polyphenylsulfone ultrafiltration membranes by introduction of an incompatible polymer polysulfone to the polyphenylsulfone casting solution to improve the permeability. The correlation between properties of the blend polyphenylsulfone/polysulfone solutions and porous anisotropic membranes for ultrafiltration prepared from these solutions was revealed. The blend polyphenylsulfone/polysulfone solutions were investigated using a turbidity spectrum method, optical microscopy and measurements of dynamic viscosity and turbidity. The structure of the prepared blend flat sheet membranes was studied using scanning electron microscopy. Membrane separation performance was investigated in the process of ultrafiltration of human serum albumin buffered solutions. It was found that with the introduction of polysulfone to the polyphenylsulfone casting solution in N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone the size of supramolecular particles significantly increases with the maximum at (40–60):(60:40) polyphenylsulfone:polysulfone blend ratio from 76 nm to 196–354 nm. It was shown that polyphenylsulfone/polysulfone blend solutions, unlike the solutions of pristine polymers, are two-phase systems (emulsions) with the maximum droplet size and highest degree of polydispersity at polyphenylsulfone/polysulfone blend ratios (30–60):(70–40). Pure water flux of the blend membranes passes through a maximum in the region of the most heterogeneous structure of the casting solution, which is associated with the imposition of a polymer-polymer phase separation on the non-solvent induced phase separation upon membrane preparation. The application of polyphenylsulfone/polysulfone blends as membrane-forming polymers and polyethylene glycol (Mn = 400 g·mol−1) as a pore-forming agent to the casting solutions yields the formation of ultrafiltration membranes with high membrane pure water flux (270 L·m−2·h−1 at 0.1MPa) and human serum albumin rejection of 85%.

Removal of Inorganic and Organic Pollutants from Liquid Phase by Membrane Based on Carbonaceous Materials

“…Membrane processes represent one of the most popular methods for contaminant removal in chemical engineering. Membranes can be manufactured from a variety of polymers, including cellulose acetate, polyethersulfone, and polysulfone [7,8]. At the synthesis stage, membranes can be modified by the addition of a pore-generating agent (e.g.…”

Development and characterization of porous membranes based on PPSU/PES using polyethylene glycol as porogen: Application for cobalt removal by polyelectrolyte‐enhanced ultrafiltration

“…This is due to its high chemical and thermal stability, heat and chemical resistance, biofouling resistance and mechanical strength. 10,11 Actually, PPSU has been chosen as a key membrane material in the field of wastewater treatment, production of membranes for nanofiltration of organic solvents, 12 UF, 13,14 pervaporation, 15 surface and waste water treatment, 16 gas separation, 17 and for proton-conducting membranes for fuel cells. 18 Despite the advanced features of PPSU, the major drawbacks of this polymer are its low water permeability 19 and high fouling tendency.…”

Development of High Flux Nanocomposite Polyphenylsulfone/Oxidized Multiwalled Carbon Nanotubes Membranes for Ultrafiltration Using the Systems with Critical Solution Temperatures

“…Polyphenylsulfone (PPSU), being one of the polymers of the polysulfone group, is a chemical and physical resistant polymer with good mechanical properties, high hydrophobicity as well as relatively easy manufacturing methods [ 2 , 3 ]. It is known that PPSU features higher chemical resistance to alkaline cleaning and organic solvents, hydrolysis and operation temperature compared to polysulfone (PSf) and polyethersulfone (PES) [ 4 , 5 , 6 ]. These advantages result in using PPSU membranes in ultrafiltration [ 7 , 8 , 9 ], nanofiltration [ 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 ], forward osmosis [ 14 ], pervaporation [ 15 , 16 , 17 ], and gas separation [ 16 , 18 , 19 ], in membrane contactors [ 20 ] and proton exchange membrane fuel cells [ 21 ].…”