Thin-film composite membranes (TFC) having a nanocomposite barrier layer based on functionalized cellulose nanofibers (CN) and polyamide matrix on top of polysulfone ultrafiltration (UF) support were fabricated for nanofilitration (NF) and reverse osmosis (RO) applications. The nanocomposite barrier layer of this membrane (termed CN-TFC) was prepared by the modified interfacial polymerization process, where an aqueous solution of m-phenylenediamine (MPD) containing functionalized cellulose nanofibers (CN) and an organic solution of trimesoyl chloride (TMC) were employed. Two types of nanocelluloses were used: TEMPO-mediated oxidized cellulose nanofibers having carboxyl groups (CN-COOH) and amino-functionalized cellulose nanofibers (CN-NH<sub>2</sub>), while both nanofibers and were characterized by means of TEM, FT-IR, solid-State C<sup>13</sup> NMR and elemental analysis. The filtration efficiency of the CN-TFC membranes for desalination of brackish water and seawater was evaluated, where the results indicated that the CN-TFC membrane showed up to two times higher flux than that of the conventional CFN membrane (without CN) while remaining the same rejection ratio. The flux increase can be explained by the formation of interconnected directed water channels between the interface of the CN scaffold and the polyamide matrix, where these channels can facilitate the pure water transport through the membrane while rejecting salt ions.

Highly permeable thin film composite membranes with nanocomposite barrier layer for desalination applications

253rd National Meeting (2017)

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