Effects of PMMA‐PEG Copolymer on the Structure and Performance of PVC Membranes for Oily Wastewater Treatment

This study investigates the preparation and characterization of PVC blended with PMMA‐PEG copolymer to enhance the antifouling properties of PVC membranes for oily wastewater treatment. Membranes were fabricated via the non‐solvent‐induced phase separation (NIPS) method. The membrane was characterized by FTIR, DSC, FESEM, AFM, contact angle, water content, porosity, pure water flux (PWF), and mechanical strength analyses. The results of DSC analysis showed that all the membranes had single glass transition temperature indicating the compatibility between PVC and PMMA‐PEG. In addition, PVC/PMMA‐PEG membranes exhibited improved hydrophilicity, higher porosity, and enhanced antifouling properties compared to pure PVC membranes. PWF was increased from 395.4 L·m −2 ·h −1 for a neat PVC membrane to 891.2 L·m −2 ·h −1 for a 1.00 wt.% PMMA‐PEG embedded membrane due to the enhancement of hydrophilicity and the number of pores on the surface of nanocomposite membranes. Finally, performance of membranes was evaluated in filtration of 1000 ppm oily wastewater, and it was revealed that antifouling properties and oil rejection of membranes were enhanced with increasing PMMA‐PEG content up to 1.00 wt.%. This work demonstrates that PVC/PMMA‐PEG membranes have great potential for oily wastewater treatment, particularly at oil concentration (1000 ppm) compared to pristine PVC membranes due to their antifouling properties and high hydrophilicity as well as the excellent oil rejection by the prepared membranes (∼99.98% at oil concentrations of 1000 ppm and a transmembrane pressure (TMP) of 2 bar).