Hydrophilicity and antifouling property of membrane materials from cellulose acetate/polyethersulfone in DMAc

In this study, cellulose acetate (CA) was blended with polyethersulfone (PES) to endow the ultrafiltration membrane with the improved hydrophilicity and antifouling property by using N,N-dimethylacetamide (DMAc) as the solvent. The effects of blend composition and evaporation time on the mechanical strength and pure water flux were investigated. It was found that the optimal composition of the casting solution was: 18 wt% (PES), 4 wt% (Polyvinylpyrrolidone K30), 3 wt% (CA) and 20 s (Evaporation time). The characteristics of CA-PES blend membranes were investigated through the methods of contact angle goniometer, antifouling property, compatibility, thermo gravimetric analysis and SEM. The results showed that the hydrophilicity and antifouling property of CA-PES ultrafiltration membranes were enhanced in comparison with the pure PES membranes. The CA-PES membranes exhibited semi-compatibility and good thermal stability below 270 °C. This study provided a potential industrial application prospect of CA-PES membranes prepared in DMAc.