Novel Zwitterionic Polydopamine Nanofiller‐Reinforced Hybrid Membranes With Superior Antifouling Performance for Wastewater Treatment

Water treatment technologies continue to face challenges in removing organic pollutants, such as humic acid, from surface water and wastewater. This work develops high‐performance hybrid ultrafiltration membranes incorporating novel zwitterionic polydopamine nanofillers for efficient humic acid removal and wastewater treatment. Novel zwitterionic polydopamine nanofiller was first synthesized via in situ one‐pot mussel‐inspired polymerization of dopamine with hydrolyzed zwitterionic silica precursor, followed by condensation reaction. zwitterionic polydopamine nanofillers (1–8 wt.%) were then incorporated into poly(ether sulfone) membranes via a nonsolvent‐induced phase separation approach to produce high‐performance zwitterionic hybrid ultrafiltration membranes. Multiple characterization techniques confirmed the integration of zwitterionic polydopamine within the hybrid membranes, revealing notable enhancements in hydrophilicity, thermal stability, porosity, and surface morphology. The hybrid membrane with 4 wt.% zwitterionic polydopamine showed outstanding humic acid removal, achieving over 91% efficiency, along with superior antifouling performance during the filtration of humic acid solution. Additionally, this membrane effectively reduced total organic carbon and chemical oxygen demand in real municipal wastewater under optimized long‐term filtration conditions. Computational modeling revealed zwitterionic polydopamine forms the most thermodynamically favorable complex with humic acid (−6529.9 kJ mol −1 ), aligning perfectly with the membrane's performance data. The excellent dispersion and compatibility of zwitterionic polydopamine within the poly(ether sulfone) matrix resulted in high‐performance hybrid membranes with promising potential for removing humic acid from polluted water resources, thereby addressing critical challenges in water treatment technology.