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The effect of ethanol pre-treatment upon the mechanical, structural and surface modification of ultrafiltration membranes

Iain S. Argyle, Christopher Wright Orcid Logo, Michael R. Bird

Separation Science and Technology

Swansea University Author: Christopher Wright Orcid Logo

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DOI (Published version): 10.1080/01496395.2017.1310234

Abstract

The in situ ethanol pre-treatment of commercially available polysulfone (PSU) ultrafiltration(UF) membranes resulted in a 3-fold increase in the pure water flux values achieved.Techniques that lead to an increase in flux are of both academic and commercial interest. It ispostulated that the mechanis...

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Published in: Separation Science and Technology
Published: 2017
URI: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa32516
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spelling 2017-08-04T09:33:36.7294490 v2 32516 2017-03-21 The effect of ethanol pre-treatment upon the mechanical, structural and surface modification of ultrafiltration membranes 235e125ac3463e2ee7fc98604bf879ce 0000-0003-2375-8159 Christopher Wright Christopher Wright true false 2017-03-21 MEDE The in situ ethanol pre-treatment of commercially available polysulfone (PSU) ultrafiltration(UF) membranes resulted in a 3-fold increase in the pure water flux values achieved.Techniques that lead to an increase in flux are of both academic and commercial interest. It ispostulated that the mechanisms for performance improvement can be attributed to swelling ofmembrane skin-layers, as demonstrated by changes in thickness measurements, and consideration ofpolymer solubility parameters, giving a degree of polymer plasticisation. The modification isaccompanied by a hydrophobicity increase – this parameter is linked to a greater fouling tendency.Increases in hydrophobicity contrast with the usual effect of ethanol contact, by enhancing the removalof membrane preservatives and polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP); a common pore-forming agent.Mechanical property changes were not readily detected, whilst the apparently unaltered sub-layermasked more subtle changes occurring within the dense skin-layer. Directing analysis specifically atthe skin layer using colloidal AFM probes allowed a decoupling of changes against the support,showing that the elastic modulus was reduced as a consequence of PVP removal and plasticisation.Moreover, regional elasticity probing allowed observation of spatial inhomogeneities in elasticity;occurring due to the removal of the previously unevenly distributed PVP and leading to pitting.Consequently, the effects of pre-treatment with ethanol are shown to offer advantages by maximisingthe performance of commercial membranes, though such methods must be used with caution.Elasticity changes that occur may be detrimental to performance if carried out at high transmembranepressures, where compaction could be assisted. Journal Article Separation Science and Technology 31 12 2017 2017-12-31 10.1080/01496395.2017.1310234 COLLEGE NANME Biomedical Engineering COLLEGE CODE MEDE Swansea University 2017-08-04T09:33:36.7294490 2017-03-21T15:46:55.2170820 Faculty of Science and Engineering School of Engineering and Applied Sciences - Biomedical Engineering Iain S. Argyle 1 Christopher Wright 0000-0003-2375-8159 2 Michael R. Bird 3
title The effect of ethanol pre-treatment upon the mechanical, structural and surface modification of ultrafiltration membranes
spellingShingle The effect of ethanol pre-treatment upon the mechanical, structural and surface modification of ultrafiltration membranes
Christopher Wright
title_short The effect of ethanol pre-treatment upon the mechanical, structural and surface modification of ultrafiltration membranes
title_full The effect of ethanol pre-treatment upon the mechanical, structural and surface modification of ultrafiltration membranes
title_fullStr The effect of ethanol pre-treatment upon the mechanical, structural and surface modification of ultrafiltration membranes
title_full_unstemmed The effect of ethanol pre-treatment upon the mechanical, structural and surface modification of ultrafiltration membranes
title_sort The effect of ethanol pre-treatment upon the mechanical, structural and surface modification of ultrafiltration membranes
author_id_str_mv 235e125ac3463e2ee7fc98604bf879ce
author_id_fullname_str_mv 235e125ac3463e2ee7fc98604bf879ce_***_Christopher Wright
author Christopher Wright
author2 Iain S. Argyle
Christopher Wright
Michael R. Bird
format Journal article
container_title Separation Science and Technology
publishDate 2017
institution Swansea University
doi_str_mv 10.1080/01496395.2017.1310234
college_str Faculty of Science and Engineering
hierarchytype
hierarchy_top_id facultyofscienceandengineering
hierarchy_top_title Faculty of Science and Engineering
hierarchy_parent_id facultyofscienceandengineering
hierarchy_parent_title Faculty of Science and Engineering
department_str School of Engineering and Applied Sciences - Biomedical Engineering{{{_:::_}}}Faculty of Science and Engineering{{{_:::_}}}School of Engineering and Applied Sciences - Biomedical Engineering
document_store_str 0
active_str 0
description The in situ ethanol pre-treatment of commercially available polysulfone (PSU) ultrafiltration(UF) membranes resulted in a 3-fold increase in the pure water flux values achieved.Techniques that lead to an increase in flux are of both academic and commercial interest. It ispostulated that the mechanisms for performance improvement can be attributed to swelling ofmembrane skin-layers, as demonstrated by changes in thickness measurements, and consideration ofpolymer solubility parameters, giving a degree of polymer plasticisation. The modification isaccompanied by a hydrophobicity increase – this parameter is linked to a greater fouling tendency.Increases in hydrophobicity contrast with the usual effect of ethanol contact, by enhancing the removalof membrane preservatives and polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP); a common pore-forming agent.Mechanical property changes were not readily detected, whilst the apparently unaltered sub-layermasked more subtle changes occurring within the dense skin-layer. Directing analysis specifically atthe skin layer using colloidal AFM probes allowed a decoupling of changes against the support,showing that the elastic modulus was reduced as a consequence of PVP removal and plasticisation.Moreover, regional elasticity probing allowed observation of spatial inhomogeneities in elasticity;occurring due to the removal of the previously unevenly distributed PVP and leading to pitting.Consequently, the effects of pre-treatment with ethanol are shown to offer advantages by maximisingthe performance of commercial membranes, though such methods must be used with caution.Elasticity changes that occur may be detrimental to performance if carried out at high transmembranepressures, where compaction could be assisted.
published_date 2017-12-31T03:39:50Z
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score 11.013148