Sustainable Modification of Polyethersulfone Membrane with Poly(Maleic Anhydride-Co-Glycerol) as Novel Copolymer

• Main Authors: Al-Baiati, M.N (Author), Alsalhy, Q.F (Author), Hachim, Z.S.A (Author), Majdi, H.S (Author), Ridha, A.M (Author)
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI 2022
• Subjects: bovine serum albumin; Bovine serum albumins; Contact angle; Contact-angle measurements; fouling; Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy; Glycerol; Hydrophilicity; Maleic anhydride; Mammals; membrane modification; Membrane modification; Membranes; Microporosity; Nanoadditives; Nano-composite membranes; Nanocomposites; Nanoparticles; Novel copolymers; Poly(ether sulfone); Poly(maleic anhydride-co-glycerol); Poly(Maleic Anhydride-Co-Glycerol); Polyether sulfone; polyethersulfone; Polyethersulfone membrane; Scanning electron microscopy; Synthesis (chemical)
• Online Access: View Fulltext in Publisher

 This work presented an endeavour to fabricate sustainable and eco-friendly polyethersulfone (PES) ultrafiltration membranes. A novel and graft copolymer (Poly(Maleic Anhydride-Co-Glycerol)) (PMG) have been synthesized via a facile and rapid route to impart their hydrophilic features onto the final PES membrane. A series of characterization tools, for both nanoadditives and nanocomposite membranes, have been harnessed to confirm their successful fabrication processes. These include Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM), and contact angle measurements (CA). Results disclosed the successful synthesis of PMG nanoparticles that manifested a smooth homogenous surface with an average molecular size of 88.07 nm. The nanocomposite membrane structure has witnessed a gradual development upon each increment in the nanoparticle content ratio along with relatively thicker pore walls. The size and shape of figure-like micropores exhibited critical visible structural changes following the nanoadditive incorporation into the PES polymeric matrix. For the nanocomposite membrane, the SEM imaging indicated that a thicker active layer and less finger-like micropores were formed at higher PMG NP content within the membrane matrix. Hydrophilicity measurements disclosed a reversible correlation with the NP content where the CA angle value was at a minimum at the higher PMG loading content. Compared to the pristine membrane, a considerable enhancement in the performance of the modified membranes was witnessed. The membrane prepared using 2.5 g PMGNPs showcased six times higher pure water flux than neat PES membrane and maintained the highest retention (98%) against BSA protein solution. Additionally, the nanocomposite revealed promising antifouling and self-cleaning characteristics. © 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.