Modification of polyethersulfone ultrafiltration membranes with phosphorylcholine copolymer can remarkably improve the antifouling and permeation properties

The synthesized phosphorylcholine copolymer composed of 2-methacryloyloxyethylphosphorylcholine (MPC) and n-butyl methacrylate (BMA), blended with polyethersulfone (PES), was used to fabricate antifouling ultrafiltration membranes. Water contact angle measurements confirmed that the hydrophilicity of the MPC-modified PES membranes was enhanced to certain extent. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) analysis verified the substantial enrichment of MPC at the surface of the MPC-modified PES membranes. The adsorption experiments indicated that the adsorption amounts of bovine serum albumin (BSA) on the MPC-modified PES membranes were dramatically decreased in comparison with the control PES membrane. Ultrafiltration experiments were carried out to investigate the effect of MPC modification on the antifouling and permeation properties of the PES membranes, it was found that the rejection ratio of BSA was decreased, the flux recovery ratio was remarkably increased, and the degree of irreversible fouling decreased from 0.46 to 0.09. In addition, the MPC-modified PES membranes could run several cycles without substantial flux loss.