Surface modification of a <scp>PVDF</scp> membrane by co‐grafting hydroxyl and zwitterionic polymers to enhance wettability and antifouling property

Polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) membranes have been widely applied in the separation of various organic matters owing to their excellent properties. However, they possess low wettability and undergo fouling because hydrophobic nature PVDF. In this study, poly (2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (PHEMA) (sulfobetaine (PSBMA) were co-introduced modify highly PVDF membrane surface via UV photo-irradiation. Facile photo-grafting was performed by irradiating pristine immersed a PHEMA/PSBMA mixture solution with light for 5 min. The performance as-prepared PHEMA/PSBMA-grafted compared that modified solely PHEMA or PSBMA. hydroxyl zwitterionic groups grafted enhanced increased flux. A tightly bound water layer formed wettability, significantly suppressing protein adsorption. initial flux bovine serum albumin (BSA) through 2861 LMH, which 3.1 times higher than obtained membrane. Furthermore, decline caused BSA 49% lower Finally, showed antifouling properties after three filtration cycles.