Enhancement strategy of polyethersulfone (PES) membrane by introducing pluronic F127/graphene oxide and phytic acid/graphene oxide blended additives: preparation, characterization and wastewater filtration assessment

In this study hydrophilic modification of polyethersulfone (PES) membrane was achieved through the blending of pluronic F127 (PF-127)/graphene oxide (GO) and phytic acid (PA)/GO blended additives. The modified PES membranes were prepared using an immersion precipitation technique. The membrane's characteristics were evaluated using scanning electron microscopy, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy, water contact angle, tensile testing and dynamic test of oily wastewater treatment. The modification of GO by PF-127 and PA improved the dispersibility of GO in the PES polymer matrix, so it can highly affect the morphology, filtration performance and fouling mitigation of membrane. According to the results, a substantial increase in mechanical properties was observed for the (PF-127/GO; 6 wt.%)/PES and (PA/GO; 4 wt.%)/PES membranes. It was revealed that by adding modified GO, because of increasing surface hydrophilicity, the flux increased from 121.1 Lm(-2) h(-1) for neat PES membrane to 258.2, 303 Lm(-2) h(-1) for (PF-127/GO; 6 wt.%)/PES, (PA/GO; 4 wt.%)/PES membranes respectively. In addition, the results of the permeability recovery ratio showed that the anti-fouling properties of the modified PES membranes were improved due to the increase in membrane surface hydrophilicity.