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Updated: Jul 2, 2026
07:32
Synthesis of Hydrogels with Antifouling Properties As Membranes for Water Purification
Published on: April 7, 2017
Affinity of functional groups for membrane surfaces: implications for physically irreversible fouling.
Hiroshi Yamamura1, Katsuki Kimura, Takaharu Okajima
1Division of Built Environment, Graduate School of Engineering, Hokkaido University, N13W8, Kita-ku, Sapporo 060-8628, Japan.
Environmental Science & Technology
|August 30, 2008
Summary
Hydrophilic carbohydrate-like substances strongly adhere to water treatment membranes via hydrogen bonds, contributing significantly to fouling. This affinity is stronger for PVDF than PE membranes and decreases over time due to fouling development.
Area of Science:
- Membrane science and technology
- Water treatment
- Surface chemistry
Background:
- Membrane fouling in water treatment is often caused by natural organic matter (NOM).
- Hydrophilic NOM fractions, like carbohydrate-like substances, are increasingly implicated in fouling, but their interactions with membranes are not well understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the physicochemical interactions between carbohydrate-like substances and microfiltration (MF) membranes.
- To quantify the adhesion forces between model carbohydrate-like substances and different MF membrane materials.
Main Methods:
- Utilized atomic force microscopy (AFM) with functionalized microspheres (hydroxyl- and carboxyl-coated) as surrogates for carbohydrate-like substances and humic acid.
- Measured adhesion forces between microspheres and polyvinylidenefluoride (PVDF) and polyethylene (PE) membranes at pH 6.8.
- Analyzed real-world membrane samples from a pilot water treatment plant.
Main Results:
- Hydroxyl groups exhibited strong adhesion to membranes, attributed to hydrogen bonding, while carboxyl groups showed weak adhesion.
- PVDF membranes demonstrated higher affinity for hydroxyl groups compared to PE membranes.
- Affinity of hydroxyl groups to membranes decreased over operational time due to fouling, but remained higher than that of carboxyl groups.
Conclusions:
- Hydrophilic carbohydrate-like substances, through strong hydrogen bonding, play a significant role in membrane fouling.
- The choice of membrane material (e.g., PVDF vs. PE) influences the adhesion of hydrophilic foulants.
- These findings help explain the dominance of hydrophilic NOM in membrane foulants during water treatment.
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