A polyamide thin-film composite membrane modified by Michael addition grafting of hyperbranched poly(amine ester)

In this work polyamide thin-film composite membrane (TFC) surface modified via Michael addition grafting of a hydrophilic hyperbranched poly(amine ester). For this purpose, amine-rich polyamide layer formed by interfacial polymerization on a polyethersulfone support, and then acrylated hyperbranched poly(amine ester) (AC-HBPAE) was used as grafting moiety. The membrane surface was characterized by attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR), atomic force microscopy (AFM) and water contact angle techniques. Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) was used to evaluate surface and cross-section morphology of samples. Filtration performances and bio-fouling resistance were also studied using a nanofiltration cell. Surface chemical composition and contact angle indicated the successful grafting of acrylated poly(amine ester) to the membrane surface. The results also indicated there is a solid relationship between acrylation percentage of hyperbranched polymer and membrane properties such as fouling resistance. A uniform and hydrophilic surface observed for TFC membrane modified with 5% acrylated hyperbranched poly(amine ester).