FABRICATION OF POLYETHER SULPHONE-BASED THIN FILM COMPOSITE MEMBRANE INCORPORATED WITH GOETHITE NANOPARTICLES

Abstract

Water scarcity is a serious problem in many regions of the world as a result of rapid population growth and industrialization. Membrane technology is extensively employed as a cost-effective, sustainable solution to address global water scarcity. Osmotically driven process, one of the emerging desalination processes is currently generating a lot of interest due to its several advantages over other conventional desalination processes. However, a major limitation in the process includes a lack of membrane performance due to its reduced fouling behaviour. An increase in hydrophilicity along with alteration of the membrane surface chemistry can mitigate these issues. In this study, we fabricated a thin film composite membrane with improved hydrophilic behaviour utilizing polyether sulphone (PES) and poly (2-ethyl-2-oxazaline) (PEOx) modified with Goethite (GO) nanoparticles (NPs). Different concentrations of PES (20.0-32.5 wt%), PEOx (5.0 wt%, 5.5 wt%, 6.0 wt%, and 6.5 wt%), and Goethite NPs (0, 0.5 wt%, 1.0 wt%, and 1.5 wt%) were employed for the fabrication of membrane. The FTIR and XRD data confirmed the successful incorporation of PEOx and GO NPs into the PES polymeric substrate. Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) images revealed the porous nature of the as-prepared membrane layer. The addition of PEOx as 6.0 wt% improved the hydrophilicity leading to the reduction of contact angle from 58o for pristine PES to 38o for PEOx. An increase in the mechanical strength from 1.62 MPa for the PES-PEOx to 4.62 MPa was seen after the addition of GO NPs. Furthermore, the successful addition of a layer of polyamide over the fabricated support layer was confirmed by the SEM images. Overall, the membrane exhibited improved mechanical strength and can be utilized in the osmotically driven process, hence mitigating the conventional issues relating to the membrane.