Microfiltration Membranes Modified with Silver Oxide by Plasma Treatment

Abstract

Microfiltration (MF) membranes have been widely used for the separation and concentration of various components in food processing, biotechnology and wastewater treatment. The deposition of components from the feed solution and accumulation of bacteria on the surface and in the membrane matrix greatly reduce the effectiveness of MF. This is due to a decrease in the separation efficiency of the membrane, which contributes to a significant increase in operating costs and the cost of exploitative parts. In recent years, significant interest has arisen in the field of membrane modifications to make their surfaces resistant to the deposition of components from the feed solution and the accumulation of bacteria. The aim of this work was to develop appropriate process parameters for the plasma surface deposition of silver oxide (AgO) on MF polyamide membranes, which enables the fabrication of filtration materials with high permeability and antibacterial properties.

Microfiltration Membranes Modified with Composition of Titanium Oxide and Silver Oxide by Magnetron Sputtering

“…For each TiO2 + AgO modified membranes the antibacterial activity of the membrane amounted to 100% compared to the no-coated membrane. These results were similar to those obtained in the previous study, where the AgO coated membranes with different power of magnetron source caused total growth inhibition of E. coli and B. subtilis [11]. The results of reduction (%) in CFU counts are presented in Figure 6.…”

“…The size of these particles was smaller than 100 nm for magnetron power P M-Ti = 1000 W. Research has shown that the magnetron power has effects on the percentage content for individual metallic elemental composition. The presence of AgO nanoparticles was related to the island nature of the AgO coating grown on a polymer substrate [11]. The antibacterial properties of TiO 2 + AgO coatings were determined for the two following bacteria: Escherichia coli and Bacillus subtilis.…”

“…Previous results evidenced an efficient modification of polymeric membrane surface by magnetron sputtering of metal oxide coatings that have the potential to prevent biofilm growth on the surface of the membranes [10,11]. This technology enables the production of thin coatings on the surface of the membrane providing various functional properties, which can improve the efficiency of membrane filtration and reduce the operating costs.…”

“…As observed in our previous work, the best solution is to dope titanium oxide (TiO 2 ) with silver oxide (AgO), mainly due to the strong bactericidal activity of this material. The work carried out by the authors showed, that by using AgO coating for the modification of polymer membranes resulted in a 100% reduction of bacteria on its surface [11]. Moreover, it has been proved that the Ag doping expands the light absorption of TiO 2 in the visible light region [22][23][24].…”

Fouling Prevention in Polymeric Membranes by Radiation Induced Graft Copolymerization

“…This is carried out by imparting hydrophilicity, roughness, and other characteristics to the membrane surface [ 3 ]. Membrane modifications can be performed by various methods including surface coating [ 12 ], blending, which introduces bulk modification [ 13 ], combining surface modification with blending [ 14 ], chemical treatment [ 15 ], interfacial polymerization [ 16 ], graft copolymerization [ 17 ], and incorporation of inorganic metal oxides additives such as titania [ 18 ], alumina [ 19 ], zirconia [ 20 ], and silica [ 21 ] in addition to nanoparticles, carbon nanotubes [ 22 ], graphene oxide [ 23 ], and immobilization of antimicrobial additives such as silver nanoparticles [ 24 ] occur during membrane fabrication.…”