Fabrication and Modification of PVDF/PES-Based Nanofiltration Membranes by Zinc Oxide Nanoparticles

In this research, polyether sulfone (PES)/ polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) nanocomposite membranes were prepared form hydrophilic ZnO nanoparticles by phase inversion process. The effects of different concentrations of nanoparticles were investigated in terms of separation performance. In addition, the prepared membranes were characterized by SEM and AT-IR analysis. The results showed that the water content membranes increase from 77.96% in M1 (without nanoparticle) to 79.60% in M3 for 0.1 wt.% of ZnO, and the highest pure water flux was observed 19.97 L/m2h in 0.1 wt.%. Furthermore, the Na2SO4 rejection increased from 59% in M0 to 832% in M3. Thus, M3 showed the best performance separation among all prepared membranes. Ultimately, this study shows the potential PVDF-PES/ZnO membranes for application in wastewater treatment.