The Composite Membranes Could Maintain a High Permeation Flux

A novel organic–inorganic composite membrane has been fabricated to enhance the hydrophilic and antifouling properties of polysulfone membranes, by doping with sulfated Y-doped zirconia particles. This composite membrane can be applied to the process of oil–water separation. When treated with sewage, polysulfone (PSF) membranes have a tendency to contamination because of their hydrophobicity, which limits large-scale applications. To enhance the hydrophilic and antifouling properties of PSF membranes, a Chinese team have prepared a novel organic–inorganic composite membrane. This was achieved by adding sulfated Y-doped nonstoichiometric zirconia (zirconia with defects, ZD) to PSF through a sol–gel process. The composite membranes were exposed to sewage containing oil, and the effects of the added amount of ZD, oil concentration, operating pressure, temperature, and time on the properties of the composite membrane were investigated. The optimum parameters are 15 wt% added ZD, 80 mg/L oil concentration, 0.15 MPa operating pressure, operating temperature between 22 and 30°C, and up to 5 h of operating time. At 80 mg/L sewage containing oil, the oil retention is 99.16% and the oil concentration in the permeate is 0.67 mg/L, which easily meets the requirement for discharge (less than 10 mg/L). After backflushing and chemical cleaning, the composite membranes could maintain a high permeation flux. Source: filtsep