A Novel Polyvinylidene Fluoride Tree-Like Nanofiber Membrane for Microfiltration

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Chemical Engineering
• Nanotechnology

Background:

• Developing advanced membranes with enhanced performance is crucial for microfiltration.
• Polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) is a versatile polymer for membrane fabrication.
• Improving hydrophilicity and flux while maintaining high retention is a key challenge.

Purpose of the Study:

• To fabricate a novel polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) tree-like nanofiber membrane (PVDF-TLNM).
• To evaluate the structural, hydrophilic, and microfiltration properties of the fabricated membrane.

Main Methods:

• One-step electrospinning of PVDF solution with tetrabutylammonium chloride (TBAC).
• Characterization using field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), and pore size analysis.
• Evaluation of hydrophilic properties and microfiltration performance.

Main Results:

• Successfully fabricated PVDF-TLNM with tree-like nanofibers (trunk: 100-500 nm, branch: 5-100 nm).
• PVDF-TLNM exhibited significantly improved hydrophilicity and a smaller pore size (0.36 μm) compared to common nanofiber membranes (3.52 μm).
• The membrane demonstrated a high retention ratio (99.9% for 0.3 μm PS particles) and a pure water flux of 2.88 × 10⁴ L·m⁻²·h⁻¹ at 25 psi.

Conclusions:

• The novel PVDF tree-like nanofiber membrane shows excellent microfiltration performance.
• The unique tree-like structure enhances hydrophilicity and achieves high flux at low pressure.
• This PVDF-TLNM presents significant potential for applications in the membrane field.