Nasrul Arahman, Cut Meurah Rosnelly, Mukramah Yusuf, Rinal Diaul Haikal, Anupam Das, Mathias Ulbricht, Md Abul Kalam
Polyethersulfone (PES) membranes, while widely used in ultrafiltration, are hindered by their inherent hydrophobicity and susceptibility to fouling. This study investigates the incorporation of aluminum oxide hydroxide–tannic acid (AlOOH–TA) hybrid nanoparticles into PES membranes via phase inversion to enhance hydrophilicity and antifouling behavior. The AlOOH–TA hybrid introduces abundant hydroxyl and phenolic groups that promote hydration layer formation and reduce foulant adhesion, while alumina contributes structural reinforcement. The modified membranes were characterized using SEM, FTIR, contact angle, and porosity analyses to correlate surface and structural changes with filtration performance. The optimized membrane (M4) achieved a pure water flux of 37.71 L·m−2·h−1 and a contact angle of 56.7°, representing a 38.95% flux improvement and enhanced surface wettability compared to pristine PES. In humic acid filtration, M4 exhibited a rejection efficiency of 61.4% and a flux recovery ratio (FRR) of 99.72%, confirming its excellent antifouling and reusability performance. These findings demonstrate that AlOOH–TA hybrid incorporation effectively improves membrane hydrophilicity and antifouling resistance through synergistic chemical and structural modification. © 2026 Water Environment Federation.
Department of Chemical Engineering, Universitas Syiah Kuala, Banda Aceh, Indonesia; Graduate School of Environmental Management, Universitas Syiah Kuala, Banda Aceh, Indonesia; Research Center for Environmental and Natural Resources, Universitas Syiah Kuala, Banda Aceh, Indonesia; Lehrstuhl für Technische Chemie II, Universit¨ at Duisburg-Essen, Essen, Germany; Centre for Technology in Water and Wastewater, School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology, University of Technology Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia
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