Super-hydrophilic TiO2-based coating of anion exchange membranes with improved antifouling performance

2021 
Abstract The fabrication of reliable anion exchange membranes (AEMs) with superior antifouling abilities is critical in applications of electrodialysis (ED) technology. Surface modification with hydrophilic nanoparticles to improve antifouling of the membrane is an effective method. In this study, the effect of hydrophilicity of the AEMs surface on their antifouling properties was studied in detail. Commercial AEMs were modified with super-hydrophilic titanium dioxide (TiO2) coating assisted by polydopamine (PDA) and poly (sodium 4-styrene sulfonate) (PSS). Owing to the strong adhesion of PDA, a stable TiO2 layer was constructed on the membrane surfaces and endowed them super-hydrophilic properties. These modified AEMs exhibited slightly increased membrane area resistance compared to the pristine membrane, while after 100-min fouling experiments with sodium dodecyl benzene sulfonate (SDBS) the resistance of the 0.75 g/L-DA modified membrane increased only marginally relative to 48 % of the pristine membrane. The feasibility of rapid cleaning during ED separation operated with SDBS as the foulant without ultraviolet (UV) irradiation was also investigated. Ascribed to the super-hydrophilicity of the TiO2 modified surface, the modified AEMs showed good fouling reversibility through simply water rinsing.
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