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Improved fouling resistance of poly(vinylidene fluoride) membrane modified with poly(acryloyl morpholine)-based amphiphilic copolymer

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Abstract

An amphiphilic copolymer of poly(methyl methacrylate)-co-poly(N-acryloylmorpholine) (PMMA-co-PACMO) was synthesized via radical copolymerization. The copolymer was directly blended with poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) to prepare flat membranes using the phase inversion technology. During membrane formation, the hydrophilic PACMO chains were preferably segregated onto membrane surface, which endowed the PVDF/PMMA-co-PACMO membranes with the enhanced hydrophilicity. The prepared PVDF/PMMA-co-PACMO membranes showed lower protein adsorption than pristine PVDF membrane, due to the elimination of interaction force between membrane and protein. With the increase of copolymer concentration in the casting solution, the macrovoids were gradually formed at the cross section of the PVDF/PMMA-co-PACMO membranes. Filtration experiments indicated that the total and irreversible membrane fouling ratios were significantly suppressed via the incorporation of PMMA-co-PACMO. The flux recovery ratio of the PVDF/PMMA-co-PACMO membrane was as high as 98.4%. These results suggested that the hydrophilic modification by blending amphiphilic copolymer PMMA-co-PACMO was a feasible approach to improve anti-fouling property of PVDF membrane.

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Acknowledgments

The authors wish to acknowledge Prof. Li Chen and Prof. Yiping Zhao for membrane characterization at Tianjin Polytechnic University of China. This research is financially supported by Yunnan Applied Basic Research Projects of China (Grant No. 2015FD047) and Innovation Training Program of Chinese College Students (Grant No. 201610684007).

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  1. College of Chemistry and Environmental Science, Qujing Normal University, Qujing, 655011, China

    Xiang Shen, Tiande Xie, Jiangang Wang & Fan Wang

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  1. Xiang Shen
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Shen, X., Xie, T., Wang, J. et al. Improved fouling resistance of poly(vinylidene fluoride) membrane modified with poly(acryloyl morpholine)-based amphiphilic copolymer. Colloid Polym Sci 295, 1211–1221 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00396-017-4117-6

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