The aim of this research was to synthesize a polysulfone/Zinc oxide nanocomposite membrane (PSf/ZnO NCM) in order to mitigate membrane fouling. ZnO nanoparticles with an approximate size of 20 nm were blended with PSf matrix. To fabricate an efficient PSf/ZnO NCM, polyethylene glycol and polyvinyl pyrrolidone were used as pore former agent, based on which PEG-NCMs and PVP-NCMs were fabricated. The effect of the type of pore former and concentration of nanoparticles was evaluated on the structure and performance of nanocomposite membrane. According to SEM images, with the increase in the concentration of nanoparticles, membrane porosity grew as well. AFM analysis confirmed increased roughness with contact angle measurement showing enhanced hydrophilicity. The filtration performance implied that the presence of ZnO nanoparticles improves water flux. Moreover, ZnO nanoparticles elevated humic acid rejection up to 99.7% and 94.2% and decreased total filtration resistance up to 89% and 30% for PEG-NCMs and PVP-NCMs, respectively.

Nanocomposite Membrane ZnO Nanoparticle Polyethylene Glycol Poly Vinyl Pyrrolidone Humic Acid

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