Development of microfiltration membranes based on polysulfone and polyetherimide blends

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Environmental Engineering
• Water Treatment

Background:

• River water often requires treatment to become a safe drinking water source.
• Membrane technology offers a promising solution for water purification.
• Polysulfone (PSU) and polyetherimide (PEI) are polymers with potential for membrane fabrication.

Purpose of the Study:

• To fabricate and investigate the pollutant removal capabilities of membranes blended with PSU and PEI.
• To analyze the effect of PSU/PEI blending on membrane properties and performance.
• To assess the suitability of these membranes for treating river water.

Main Methods:

• Fabrication of PSU/PEI blended membranes in various ratios.
• Characterization of membrane morphology using scanning electron microscopy.
• Measurement of membrane properties including water content, porosity, contact angle, and pure water flux.
• Evaluation of pollutant removal efficiency for turbidity, chloride, alkalinity, conductivity, sulfate, iron, manganese, and total organic carbon.

Main Results:

• PSU membranes showed a dense layer; PEI addition resulted in a spongy substrate.
• Membrane properties varied: water content (5.37–22.42%), porosity (28.73–89.36%), contact angle (69.18–85.81°), and flux (257.25–375.32 L/m²h).
• High removal rates were achieved for turbidity (98.32%), chloride (92.28%), alkalinity (96.87%), conductivity (90.67%), sulfate (99.58%), iron (94.63%), manganese (97.48%), and TOC (79.11%).

Conclusions:

• Blending PSU with PEI enhances membrane hydrophilicity and improves filtration efficiency for river water.
• The optimized blended membranes offer a balance of permeability, selectivity, and mechanical strength.
• Simple, low-cost fabrication processes make these membranes viable for practical water treatment applications.