Novel high flux nanofibrous composite membrane based on polyphenylsulfone thin barrier layer on nanofibrous support

A novel thin film nanofibrous composite (TFNC) polyphenylsulfone (PPSU) membrane was fabricated by casting a thin PPSU barrier layer on the surface of the electrospun nanofibrous PPSU support. Polyethylene glycol (PEG) 400 was applied in the electrospinning solution to prevent the penetration of coating solution into the support. The membrane morphology and filtration performance were investigated via scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and filtration of canned beans production wastewater, respectively. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) was utilized to evaluate the surface roughness of the membranes. Furthermore, the mechanical strength and thermal stability of the membranes were determined via tensile test and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). Comparison of the TFNC membrane and the unsupported membrane prepared through the wet phase inversion method with almost equal rejection values indicated a 2.3 fold higher PWF using the former.