Printing-Assisted Surface Modifications of Patterned Ultrafiltration Membranes

• Published in: ACS applied materials & interfaces Vol. 8; no. 44; pp. 30271 - 30280
• Main Authors: Wardrip, Nathaniel C, Dsouza, Melissa, Urgun-Demirtas, Meltem, Snyder, Seth W, Gilbert, Jack A, Arnusch, Christopher J
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States American Chemical Society 09.11.2016; American Chemical Society (ACS)
• Subjects: 3D printing; 60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES; fouling; maskless lithography; MATERIALS SCIENCE; microbial community analysis; ultrafiltration membranes; UV-initiated graft polymerization; maskless lithography; UV-initiated graft polymerization; fouling; microbial community analysis; ultrafiltration membranes; 3D printing
• ISSN: 1944-8244; 1944-8252
• DOI: 10.1021/acsami.6b11331

Understanding and restricting microbial surface attachment will enhance wastewater treatment with membranes. We report a maskless lithographic patterning technique for the generation of patterned polymer coatings on ultrafiltration membranes. Polyethylene glycol, zwitterionic, or negatively charged hydrophilic polymer compositions in parallel- or perpendicular-striped patterns with respect to feed flow were evaluated using wastewater. Membrane fouling was dependent on the orientation and chemical composition of the coatings. Modifications reduced alpha diversity in the attached microbial community (Shannon indices decreased from 2.63 to 1.89) which nevertheless increased with filtration time. Sphingomonas species, which condition membrane surfaces and facilitate cellular adhesion, were depleted in all modified membranes. Microbial community structure was significantly different between control, different patterns, and different chemistries. This study broadens the tools for surface modification of membranes with polymer coatings and for understanding and optimization of antifouling surfaces.