Journal article
Towards Enhanced Performance Thin-film Composite Membranes via Surface Plasma Modification
Rackel Reis, Ludovic F Dumee, Blaise L Tardy, Raymond Dagastine, John D Orbell, Jurg A Schutz, Mikel C Duke
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS | NATURE PUBLISHING GROUP | Published : 2016
DOI: 10.1038/srep29206
Abstract
Advancing the design of thin-film composite membrane surfaces is one of the most promising pathways to deal with treating varying water qualities and increase their long-term stability and permeability. Although plasma technologies have been explored for surface modification of bulk micro and ultrafiltration membrane materials, the modification of thin film composite membranes is yet to be systematically investigated. Here, the performance of commercial thin-film composite desalination membranes has been significantly enhanced by rapid and facile, low pressure, argon plasma activation. Pressure driven water desalination tests showed that at low power density, flux was improved by 22% without..
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Funding Acknowledgements
Rackel Reis (RR) would like to acknowledge PhD stipend and project funding from the Collaborative Research Network (CRN 2012) initiative of the Australian Department of Industry. RR also acknowledges the postgraduate top up scholarship from the National Centre of Excellence in Desalination Australia, funded by the Australian Government through the National Urban Water and Desalination Plan. Dr. Ludovic Dumee's Alfred Deakin Post-Doctoral Fellowship and Deakin University and the Institute for Frontier Materials. The Materials Characterization and Fabrication Platform (MCFP) at the Melbourne University for the AFM and Mr. Daniel Oldfield for XPS analysis from the Physics Department, School of Applied Sciences at RMIT University are acknowledged, while the authors thank Dr. Mary She for advice. The support of Deakin University Microscopy Unit is also acknowledged.