Influence of Ag/TiO2 nanoparticle on the surface hydrophilicity and visible-light response activity of polyvinylidene fluoride membrane

A novel polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) membrane, i.e. Ag/TiO2/PVDF composite membrane, was prepared via the blending/photo reduction combined method in this paper. And the influence of Ag/TiO2 embedment on the surface property of PVDF membrane was discussed, including the surface hydrophilicity and visible-light response activity. ATR/FTIR characterization certified that amount of hydroxyl group (OH) was formed on the PVDF membrane surface owing to the embedment of Ag/TiO2. The results suggested that the increased hydrophilicity of PVDF membrane can be achieved through the addition of Ag/TiO2 nanoparticles because the surface hydroxyl group (OH) had great contribution to membrane hydrophilicity. The increased hydrophilicity was also demonstrated by the contact angle measurement. In a word, Ag/TiO2 improved the surface hydrophilicity of PVDF membrane in contrast with virgin PVDF membrane. Besides, Ag/TiO2 nanoparticle provided PVDF membrane with an enhanced visible-light response activity. Ag/TiO2/PVDF composite membrane showed excellent activity on degradation of methylene blue (MB) and inactivation of bacterial under visible-light illumination. I hope this research can provide a new way for PVDF surface modification. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.