Thin fi lm composite membranes embedded with graphene oxide for water desalination

This work deals with thin film composite membranes prepared from m-phenylenediamine and 1,3,5benzenetricarbonyl chloride by interfacial polymerization on the surface of a polysulfone substrate, and graphene oxide was embedded into the membrane during membrane formation to improve the membrane performance. The desalination performance of the membranes was evaluated in terms of water flux and salt rejection, along with a baseline membrane containing no graphene oxide. The membrane morphology and surface properties were also studied using contact angle measurements, FT-IR, XRD and SEM. Incorporating a small amount of graphene oxide into the membrane was shown to improve the water flux, mechanical stability, and chlorine and fouling resistances of the membrane. At 15 bar, a water flux of 29.6 L/m2·h and a salt rejection of ≥97% were obtained for a saline solution (2000 ppm of NaCl) when the amine reactant contained 100 ppm of graphene oxide during membrane fabrication. The membranes were found to be stable in acidic and alkaline solutions. © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Thin film composite membranes were prepared via the interfacial polymerization technique, and graphene oxide was used as a modifier to improve the membrane properties. It was shown that incorporating GO into the membrane improved the hydrophilicity, water permeability, chlorine resistance and antifouling properties of the membrane. The membrane surface and morphology were also studied using contact angle measurements, FT-IR, XRD and SEM. Compared to a GO-free TFC membrane, a 39% increase in water flux was achieved when the amine reactant contained 100 ppm of GO during membrane formation. The thin film composite membranes embedded with GO were shown to be more resistant to chlorine attack and surface fouling than the membranes without GO. A higher water flux recovery was also achieved with the TFC/GO membrane after membrane cleaning. At 15 bar, a water flux of 29.6 L/m2·h and a salt rejection of ≥97% were obtained for a saline solution (2000 ppm of NaCl) when the amine reactant contained 100 ppm of graphene oxide during membrane fabrication. The membranes were found to be stable in acidic and alkaline solutions.