Macroporous membranes doped with micro-mesoporous β-cyclodextrin polymers for ultrafast removal of organic micropollutants from water

•Macroporous membranes doped with abundant β-CDPs were successfully developed.•β-CDP membranes removed >99.9% of BPA from water with ultrahigh water flux.•β-CDP membranes exhibited high adsorption capacity towards BPA, up to 220 mg g−1.•Not only single pollutant also their mixture can be removed by β-CDP membranes.•The membranes were easily regenerated by mild ethanol rinsing. Herein, we report novel macroporous membranes doped with micro-mesoporous β-cyclodextrin polymers (β-CDP), named β-CDP membranes, for water decontamination by the flow-through process. These membranes combine excellent adsorption behavior of β-CDP and the advantages of membranes filtration including low energy consumption and easy scale-up. Filtration adsorption results demonstrated that the optimal β-CDP membrane removed > 99.9% of bisphenol A with ultrahigh water flux (3000 L m−2 h−1) or high concentration (50 mg L−1). The dynamic adsorption capacity of the membrane was close to the static maximum adsorption capacity of membrane, suggesting the effective accessibility of adsorption sites. The outstanding adsorption performance was attributed to the synergistic effect of the fast adsorption of β-CDP, abundant β-CDP nanoparticles and large contact area offered by spongy pores. Furthermore, not only single other organic micropollutants but also mixture was completely removed by the β-CDP membranes. In addition, the membranes were easily regenerated by simple ethanol filtration.