EVALUATION OF THIN FILM COMPOSITE FORWARD OSMOSIS MEMBRANES: EFFECT OF POLYMER TYPE

Abstract

In the forward osmosis (FO) processes, the semipermeable membranes are used. These membranes are prepared from several types of polymers. In this research, the characterizations of each polymer were studied to conversance the effect of polymer type on the efficiency of the forward osmosis process. The prepared membrane’s roughness was investigated using atomic force microscopy (AFM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) to compare the formation of the TFC polyamide selective layer on each polymer type. Also, SEM images showed the distribution of pores on the prepared membrane. Contact angle (CA) measurements explained the hydrophilic and hydrophobic properties of membrane types. Finally, Energy dispersion spectrometry (EDS) was tested to determine the type, amount, and distribution of atoms in the prepared membranes. All of these characterizations proved that the Polysulfone (PSU) polymer was the best choice in the FO process. It can be proved that by test results, the PSU membrane gave the optimal water flux and salt rejection.

Keywords

• forward-osmosis
• polyethersulfone
• polysulfone
• polyacrylonitrile
• interfacial polymerization
• poly-amide.