Surface modification of polyethersulfone ultrafiltration membranes by corona air plasma for separation of oil/water emulsions

This study focuses on the surface modification of polyethersulfone (PES) ultrafiltration (UF) membranes using corona air plasma in order to reduce membrane fouling during separation of oil/water emulsions. The PES membranes were fabricated using polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) as a pore forming agent with various solvents including N,N-dimethylacetamide (DMAc), N,N-dimethyl-formamide (DMF), 1-methyl-2-pyrrolidone (NMP) and dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO)...