Polyethersulfone (PES)-based anion exchange blend membranes were prepared from quaternized-PES (Q-PES) and N-Methyl-2-pyrrolidone (NMP) casting solutions with water as coagulant via non-solvent induced phase inversion. The compatibility of the blend system was investigated through thermodynamic studies while membrane formation was determined using the cloud point techni...

Silver-impregnated membrane was facilely prepared by ex situ silver nanoparticles (NPs) blending method using polyethersulfone (PES) as the base polymer. A total of three membranes [F1(S0), F2(S0.5) and F3(S2.0)] were fabricated at different weight percentages of polymer and silver (Ag) loadings to compare their effects on membrane morphological and performance properties. All membrane types we...

Surface modification of flat sheet ultrafiltration membranes, polyethersulfone (PES), was investigated to improve the hydrophilicity of the membrane surface thereby reducing adsorption of the proteins onto the membrane. Grafting of hydrophilic polymers onto UV/ozone-treated PES was used to improve the hydrophilicity of the commercial PES membranes. Hydrophilic polymers, that is, poly(vinyl alco...

Membrane separation is an important processing technology used for separating food ingredients and fractionating value-added components from food processing byproducts. Long-term performance of polymeric membranes in food protein processing is impeded by the formation of fouled layers on the membrane surface as a result of protein adsorption onto the membrane surface. Surface modification of sy...

In the present study, mixed matrix PES/zeolite nanoparticles nanofiltration membranes were prepared via the solution casting technique. The effect of zeolite concentration on the PES membrane performance and its properties was studied. Cross-sectional scanning electron microscope (SEM) observations showed that the porosity in the membrane sub-layer was increased with addition of zeolite into th...

Graphene oxide/Ag nanoparticles (Ag/GO) was prepared and employed to synthesize antifouling polyethersulfone (PES) mixed matrix membranes. The performance of the membranes was evaluated in terms of flux, hydrophilicity and anti-biofouling properties. With increment of the Ag/GO from 0 to 0.1 wt.%, the pure water flux increased from 24.7 up to 54.1 kg/m2 h. The flux recovery ratio (FRR) of the m...

an innovative method based on the membrane bioreactor (mbr) technology was developed as a potential remedy for the water shortage. mbrs attracted much attention in the field of wastewater treatment and reuse. it is reported from many researchers that membrane bioreactor technology is feasible and an efficient method for the treatment of wastewater. however, mbrs are faced to membrane fouling whic...

In this work, 2,2’-azo-bis-butyronitrile (AIBN) was exploited as an initiator for the successful bulk heterogeneous functionalization of polyethersulfone (PES) using polymethacrylic acid (PMAA), for the first time. To this end, pH-responsive and exceptionally low fouling membranes of extremely low grafting degrees with low adhesion and high rejection of protein were fabricated. An added advanta...

   To fabricate a defect free and high performance mixed matrix membrane (MMM), one approach is the functionalization of inorganic nanofillers (as dispersed phase) in the organic polymer matrix (as continuous phase) to modify the interactions between two phases.  For this purpose,, raw multi-walled carbon nanotubes (rMWCNTs) were purified by acid mixture (HNO3/H2SO<sub...