Polysulfone membranes decorated with Fe–Mn binary oxide nanoparticles and polydopamine for enhanced arsenate/arsenite adsorptive removal

Arsenic contamination of water is a global environmental concern, and membrane technology combined with nanotechnology contributes to more efficient removal of arsenic. In this study, Fe–Mn oxide (FM), Polydopamine (PDA), and PDA-modified FM (PFM) were incorporated into polysulfone (PSF) to prepare adsorption membranes (PFMP) for arsenic removal. The prepared nanoparticles and membranes were characterized using TEM, SEM, FTIR, TGA, contact angle, and pure water flux. The introduction of particles enhanced the hydrophilicity of the membranes and significantly enhanced the pure water flux of the membranes. Adsorption experiments indicated that the PFMP membrane exhibited the best arsenic removal performance, with maximum adsorption capacities for As(III) and As(V) were 11.57 mg/g and 12.39 mg/g, respectively. The Langmuir model fitted the adsorption isotherms well, and the kinetics followed the pseudo-second-order model. The filtration experiment revealed that the PFMP membrane was capable of reducing As(III) solution (915 L/m2) and As(V) solution (1075 L/m2) from a concentration of 100 μg/L to the safe limit of As (＜10 μg/L). The As-loaded membrane was regenerated using NaOH solution (pH = 11), and the filtration experiment was repeated. FTIR and XPS demonstrated that the mechanism of the reaction between the membrane and arsenic was ligand exchange, where the arsenic ions were bonded to the oxygen ions to form Mn–O–As and Fe–O–As. © 2024 Elsevier Ltd