Preparation of hydrophilic polypropylene membrane by in situ synthesis of SiO2 nanoparticles

Fouling is a critical problem in membrane filtration processes. Creating membranes with antifoulingproperties is one of the practical strategies to reduce fouling. It is commonly accepted that a hydrophilic membranesurface provides better performance than a hydrophobic membrane surface against organic and biological foulingcaused by substances such as proteins, natural organic matters (NOM) and bacteria. To improve antifoulingperformance of polypropylene membrane we improve hydrophylicity of membrane by in situ synthesis of hydrophilicsilica nanoparticles on the surface of the membrane. Polypropylene (PP) membrane was fabricated via thermallyinduced phase separation (TIPS) method followed by pretreatment using Piranha solution to generate hydroxylfunctional group on the surface of the membrane. Then silica nanoparticles were synthesized on the surface of themembrane by sol‐gel method. Effect of pretreatment by Piranha solution, surface morphology and hydrophylicity ofmembranes were characterized by Fourier Transform InfraRed (FTIR), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and contactangle measurement, respectively. The results demonstrated successfully synthesis of silica nanoparticles on the surfaceof the membrane and contact angle decreasement from 121.8° to 57.8°.

کلیدواژه ها:

Polypropylene membrane ، hydrophilic property ، SiO2 nanoparticle ، sol‐gel process ، TIPS method