Highly selective heavy metal ions membranes combining sulfonated polyethersulfone and self-assembled manganese oxide nanosheets on positively functionalized graphene oxide nanosheets

Abstract This study presents the synthesis of a novel graphene oxide-manganese oxide (GO-MnO2) nanohybrid and its incorporation into sulfonated polyethersulfone (SPES) ultrafiltration (UF) membranes for wastewater treatment applications. The nanohybrid was first prepared by grafting ethylenediamine (ED) onto the edge of GO followed by direct mixing with the MnO2 nanosheets. The composite membranes were prepared via the phase inversion method and optimized by varying the concentration of the GO-MnO2 nanohybrid (0–6 wt%). The membranes were characterized using scanning electron microscopy, surface zeta potential, water flux, porosity, among others. The results showed that the pure water flux increased from 59.5 ± 2.5 L·m−2·h−1 in the pristine SPES membrane to 129.7 ± 4.1 L·m−2·h−1 in the SPGM4 (4 wt% GO-MnO2). Furthermore, the heavy metal ions rejection improved from 70.1, 49.1, and 55.8% for Cu2+, Zn2+, and Ni2+ ions, respectively, in the pristine SPES membrane to 81.1, 64.0, and 67.4% in the SPGM4 membrane. Also, the composite membranes revealed improvement in the anti-fouling properties over the pristine SPES membrane. For example, the SPGM4 membrane recovered 90.5 ± 2.9% of its initial flux compared to only 72.6 ± 3.1% in the pristine membrane after 4 cycles of heavy metal filtration and simple acid cleaning steps. Overall, the addition of GO-MnO2 nanohybrid enhanced the properties of the pristine SPES, creating new potential for such composite membranes in the wastewater treatment industry.