Effect of different incorporation route on the properties of polyethersulfone-silver membrane

Silver-loading asymmetric polyethersulfone (PES) asymmetric membrane was prepared via the simple phase inversion technique. The homogeneous solution was prepared by dissolving AgNO3 and PES in N-Methyl-2-pyrrolidone (NMP) or N,N-dimethylformamide (DMF). The morphology of the resultant membrane was examined using a scanning electron microscope and the silver content in the membrane was measured using an Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy (EDS). Result shows that resultant membranes made of NMP solvent exhibit a finger-like structure while membranes prepared with DMF exhibit a mixture of finger-like and spongy structure with voids. The antibacterial activity of resultant membrane with the variation of silver content was measured using inhibition zone method. The results indicated that the PES-silver membranes made up with NMP solvent were antibacterial to both Gram-positive bacteria and Gram-negative bacteria. Resultant membranes with DMF exhibit the highest pure water permeation (PWP) without any antibacterial activities.