Fabrication and characterization of maleic anhydride grafted polypropylene membranes with high antifouling properties

ABSTRACT In this study, maleic anhydride grafted polypropylene microporous flat‐sheet membranes were prepared via a thermally induced phase separation method with a mixture of dibutyl phthalate and dioctyl phthalate as a diluent. The effects of the polymer composition and coagulation bath temperature on the morphology and performance of the fabricated membranes were investigated. The hydrophilicity results of the membranes demonstrated that membrane modification reduced the water contact angle by about 45°, whereas the pure water flux was enhanced about four times. The antifouling behavior of the fabricated membranes was also investigated in a membrane bioreactor. The results show that the pure water flux, membrane pore size, and porosity decreased, whereas the antifouling performance was improved with increasing polymer concentration and decreasing bath temperature. Finally, the results reveal that the removal efficiency of contaminates was independent on the membrane characterization and was done exclusively through biological removal. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2016, 133, 43857.