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Updated: Sep 13, 2025
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Synthesis of Hydrogels with Antifouling Properties As Membranes for Water Purification
Published on: April 7, 2017
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Composition-dependent pore structure and filtration performance of hydrogel-filled membranes
Vikrant Sharma1, Sarang P Gumfekar1
1Department of Chemical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Ropar, Rupnagar, 140001, Punjab, India.
Chemosphere
|July 31, 2025
Summary
Tailoring poly(methacrylic acid-glycidyl methacrylate) (p(MAA-GMA)) hydrogels within polyethersulfone (PES) microfiltration (MF) membranes significantly enhances water transport and wastewater treatment performance. Varying GMA concentration optimizes membrane permeability and separation capabilities.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Chemical Engineering
- Environmental Science
Background:
- Microfiltration (MF) membranes are crucial for separating large solutes (>0.1 μm).
- Modifying MF membrane pore structure with porous polymers can tailor solute rejection.
- Polyethersulfone (PES) membranes offer a robust platform for incorporating functional hydrogels.
Purpose of the Study:
- To synthesize and evaluate poly(methacrylic acid-glycidyl methacrylate) (p(MAA-GMA)) hydrogels within PES MF membrane pores.
- To investigate the impact of hydrophobic glycidyl methacrylate (GMA) concentration on membrane structure, water transport, and performance.
- To assess membrane performance in saline, oily, and real textile wastewater feeds.
Main Methods:
- Hydrogel synthesis within PES MF membrane pores using varying GMA concentrations.
- Quantification of gel permeabilities using Happel's permeability model.
- Evaluation of membrane performance using saline (CaCl2), oily water, and textile wastewater feeds.
- Analysis of water transport, salt retention, and flux using Spiegler-Kedem-Katchalsky (SKK) model.
Main Results:
- Increased GMA concentration in hydrogels led to a 30-fold increase in membrane permeability compared to p(MAA)-filled membranes.
- Hydrogels with 0.05 M GMA contributed significantly to water transport (22%), exceeding p(MAA)-filled membranes.
- GMA-containing membranes showed increased permeate flux under CaCl2 feed and effective salt retention.
- Textile wastewater filtration demonstrated 68% COD reduction and 10% TDS reduction, with gradual flux increase under high-salinity effluent.
Conclusions:
- Tailoring hydrogel composition within MF membrane pores is a viable strategy to enhance water transport and separation performance.
- The incorporation of GMA in p(MAA-GMA) hydrogels significantly improves membrane permeability and efficiency for diverse wastewater streams.
- These modified membranes show potential for industrial separation applications in both upstream and downstream processes.
