Surface Modification of Membranes to Improve Fouling Resistance

Membrane technology is an important approach for water purification. One of the major problems of this technology is membrane fouling, which causes a decline in permeate flux and increase in transmembrane pressure drop. Membrane surface modification is one technique to improve fouling resistance of membranes. A bio-inspired material called “Polydopamine (PDOPA)” has been used to modify membrane surfaces and improve membrane fouling resistance based upon significantly enhanced permeate flux from oil-water emulsion filtration. This presentation focuses on studies to understand the modification mechanism and fundamental basis for improved fouling properties of membranes coated with PDOPA.

In this study, three surface modification protocol parameters have been studied using reverse osmosis membranes. The parameters are dopamine coating solution concentration, dopamine deposition time, and buffer solution pH. Constant transmembrane pressure difference crossflow filtration fouling studies were used to probe the influence of these parameters on fouling performance.