Physicochemical aspects of polymer selection for ultrafiltration and microfiltration membranes

The concept of additivity of surface tension components has been used to predict the adsorptive fouling tendency of membranes. The calculated value for the free energy of adhesion Delta G(LWS) is taken as a measure for this fouling tendency. Delta G(LWS) values can be determined from the surface tension components of the solid and liquid. The determination of the surface tension components of the solid surfaces has been carried out using sessile drop contact angle measurements with water, glycerol and alpha-bromonaphthalene. Delta G(LWS) values have been determined for human serum albumin (HSA) and polyethyleneglycol (PEG) on ten different non-porous polymer surfaces and it has been calculated that cellulose acetate (CA) and polyacrylonitrile (PAN) showed the lowest fouling tendency, whereas polyethersulfone (PES) and polyvinylidenedifluoride (PVDF) showed the highest fouling tendencies. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science B.V.