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Low temperature plasma treatment of polymeric membranes: a comparative review

Nistala Venkata Subrahmanyam, Jayadeekshitha M, Karthik Raj, Dipankar Pal

Abstract


This paper presents a comparative study of plasma surface modification of various polymeric membranes. Low temperature plasma treatment using pulsed direct current discharge of different gases was employed to enhance hydrophilicity of membranes. Radio frequency discharge of various gases was used to improve surface properties of different polymeric membranes. The enhancement of hydrophilicity of the plasma modified membrane surface was evaluated by measuring the contact angle. The membranes were characterized in terms of morphology, wettability, structure, and membrane performance. Surface chemistry and morphology of various membranes were investigated by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy. Plasma treatment of inert gases increases the pore size of the membranes due to surface etching. In some case of reactive plasma, the pore size remains same but the hydrophilicity is improved significantly. Oxygen and nitrogen functional groups were identified due to post plasma functionalization. It was found that the anti-fouling performance of membrane improved remarkably after plasma modification by enhancement of permeate flux without significant changes in solute rejection.

Keywords: Polymeric membrane; plasma treatment; hydrophilicity; surface chemistry; contact angle. 


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