Abstract
Polyethersulfone (PES) Ni–SiO2 (NS) called PES-NS based composite membranes were prepared through the addition of different Ni–SiO2 ratios in polyether sulfone. The hybrid membranes were examined to test the NS impact on the morphology, porosity, hydrophilicity, water permeability, mechanical properties, bovine serum albumin (BSA) separation, and antibacterial features of nanocomposite cum stabilization of Ag NPs for pollutants degradation. The porosity of PES hybrid membranes was enhanced through NS inclusion (79%–87.35%) thus, membranes possessed reduced mechanical properties as compared to pristine PES membranes. Meanwhile, the hydrophilic behavior of hybrid PES membranes was increased through the addition of NS nanoparticles which causes a gradual decline in contact angle from 73.4° to 54.86°, respectively. In contrast, hybrid membranes display higher water permeability than pure PES with further increased properties through enhanced content of NS inside the PES hybrid membrane. A hybrid membrane having higher NS contents displayed a water flux of about 642.7 L/hm2 much higher than a pristine PES membrane which shows a flux of about 73.30 L/hm2). Additionally, the hybrid membrane showed stronger BSA rejection whereas the PES-NS4 membrane showed maximum rejection of BSA (92.2%). The NS nanoparticle incorporation improved the membrane’s antimicrobial activity which depends strongly on the nanoparticle’s content.
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•Synthesis and characterization of PES-NiSiO2 membranes.•Bovine Serum Albumin protein rejection studies.•Antibacterial characteristics of the membrane.•Stabilization of Ag NPs for pollutants remediation.