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The chemical structures of (a) PES and (b) SPSF.

The hydrophobicity of ultrafiltration membranes is the main cause of membrane fouling and reduced permeability, so it is necessary to improve the hydrophilicity and anti-fouling performance of ultrafiltration membrane materials. MoS2 nanoparticles that were modified with polydopamine (PDA) and polyethyleneimine (PEI), named MoS2-PDA-PEI, were added to fabricate a polyethersulfone ultrafiltration membrane (PES/MoS2-PDA-PEI) for the first time. The effects of modified MoS2 nanoparticles on membrane performance were clarified. The results indicated that the permeability, rejection, and anti-fouling capability of the hybrid PES/MoS2-PDA-PEI membrane have been improved compared with the pristine PES membrane. When the content of MoS2-PDA-PEI nanoparticles in the membrane is 0.5%, the pure water flux of the hybrid membrane reaches 364.03 L m−2 h−1, and the rejection rate of bovine serum albumin (BSA) and humic acid (HA) is 96.5% and 93.2% respectively. The flux recovery rate of HA reached 97.06%. As expected, the addition of MoS2-PDA-PEI nanoparticles promotes the formation of the porous structure and improves the hydrophilicity of the membrane, thereby improving its antifouling performance.

Sulfonated polysulfone (SPSF) with different sulfonation degrees (10%, 30%, and 50%) was added to polyethersulfone (PES) to improve the separation and antifouling performance of polyethersulfone ultrafiltration membranes. The PES/SPSF blend ultrafiltration membrane was prepared by the non-solvent induced phase inversion method (NIPS), and the effect of sulfonation degree on the ultrafiltration performance was studied. The compatibility of SPSF and PES was calculated by the group contribution method, and confirmed by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). The morphology and surface roughness of the membrane were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM), the chemical composition of the membrane was analyzed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and the permeability and anti-fouling performance of the blend membrane were studied through filtration experiments. The research shows that the flux and anti-fouling performance of the blend membrane have been improved after adding SPSF. When the sulfonation degree of the SPSF is 30%, the pure water flux of the blend membrane can reach 530 L m

The hydrophobicity of ultrafiltration membranes is the main cause of membrane fouling and reduced permeability, so it is necessary to improve the hydrophilicity and anti-fouling performance of ultrafiltration membrane materials. MoS