Development of nonstoichiometric silica with multi-active groups/polysulfone composite membranes for wastewater containing oil

Polysulfone (PSF) membranes are broadly applied in many industrial fields owing to their good physicochemical stability, resistance to oxygen and chlorine. Nevertheless, they are easy contaminated by oil due to their hydrophobicity, which limits their application in larger scale. To further enhance the properties of PSF membrane, such as hydrophilic property, anti-compaction ability and tensile strength, nonstoichiometric silica with multi-active groups (NS-MAG) were added to the porous matrix of PSF and a novel composite membrane (NS-MAG/PSF) was prepared through a phase inversion process under optimum preparation conditions. Tensile strength, anti-compaction ability and contact angle were measured, and SEM was performed for the composite membranes; the mechanical strength and hydrophilicity of the novel membrane (NS-MAG/PSF) were higher when compared to PSF and other composite membranes. The interaction between PSF and NS-MAG particles was discussed and the transfer patterns of inner and surface of the NS-MAG/PSF membrane were also presented.