PREPARATION AND PROPERTIES OF NANO-SIZED SILICA/POLY (VINYL ALCOHOL) COMPOSITE ULTRAFILTRATION MEMBRANES

Nanodisperse silica particals were synthesized by a Stober method. They were uniformly dispersed in a solution of poly(vinyl alcohol)(PVA) in water. Nano sized silica/PVA composite ultrafiltration membranes were propared by the phase inversion process. The resulting membranes were analysised using the DSC. The mechanical properties of the resulting membranes were tested. The results show that both the glass transiton temperature( T g) and the mechanical properties of these membranes are apparently improved. The mechanism of nano sized silica for improving the strength of the resulting membranes was discussed. The performances of these membranes were assessed in ultrafiltration experiment.