Potable water scarcity is becoming a critical global issue, and various membrane technologies are being actively investigated for water purification and reclamation. However, membrane fouling remains a vexing problem for most of these membrane processes. Here, we present a novel and facile approach for the fabrication of an anti-biofouling ultrafiltration membrane, involving <i>in situ</i> incorporation of graphene oxide (GO) flakes into bacterial nanocellulose (BNC) during its growth.  The anti-biofouling activity of these membranes is powered by the most abundant renewable energy source, sunlight: The localized photothermal effect of the embedded reduced GO (rGO) hinders microbial growth and biofilm formation on membranes. The RGO/BNC membrane also was highly stable under vigorous mechanical agitation and harsh chemical conditions, and it showed good water flux. Importantly, the membrane exhibited high bactericidal capability under solar illumination, obviating the need for any treatment of the feed water or for external energy. This novel design and method represent an important step towards a highly efficient and environmental-friendly membrane system for water purification.<br/>

Sunlight enables reduced graphene oxide/bacterial nanocellulose ultrafiltration membranes to resist biofouling

253rd National Meeting (2017)

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