Novel Hydrophilic Nylon 6,6 Supported Thin Film Composite Membranes Designed for Engineered

摘要

Recent studies show that Engineered Osmosis (EO) may be a viable technology for desalination, water and wastewater treatment, and power generation. However, the absence of a membrane designed for such processes is a significant obstacle hindering further advancements of this technology. Conventional thin film composite (TFC) reverse osmosis membranes yield poor water flux in EO due to their thick and hydrophobic polysulfone (PSu) support layers resulting in internal concentration polarization (ICP). In this study, a new class of thin film composite membranes based on hydrophilic nylon 6,6 supports has been designed for the first time. Two different support structures of nylon 6,6 have been employed: one is conventional phase-inversion casting microfiltration support provided by 3M~(TM), another is lab-made electrospun nanofiber mat. The ultra-thin polyamide (PA) selective layer has been built via in situ interfacial polymerization.