Characteristics and performance of new nanoporous PEEKWC films

This rapid communication reports a summary of the key findings of preparation and characterization of new polymeric membranes for nanofiltration of organic compounds. A series of nanoporous asymmetric membranes of PEEKWC, a modified poly(etheretherketone) was prepared by means of the dry-wet phase inversion method. In particular, the type and concentration of internal non-solvent were varied in order to obtain membranes for nanofiltration. The optimization of these factors led to reproducible membranes, which were characterized for hydrophobicity, roughness, morphology, surface charge. The performance was studied by doing dead-end filtration experiments with aqueous solutions of uncharged and charged organic compounds. The new polymeric films exhibited interesting performance compared to commercial nanofiltration membranes in terms of retention and relative flux for positively charged organic compounds. (C) 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.