PVDF/BNNSs nanocomposite membrane for simultaneous removal of Tetracycline and Ofloxacin from water

The existence of various pollutants such as antibiotics in water bodies has become a serious concern. Since a large portion of them are non-consumed in metabolism, they end up polluting surface and drinking water that may contain a combination of them. To this end, boron nitride nanosheets (BNNSs) have been synthesized in this study and incorporated in polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF)-based membranes using the phase inversion method. Futher, they have been tested for simultaneous removal of tetracycline (TC) and ofloxacin (OFL) from water. The synthesized membranes have been characterized by field emission electron microscopy (FESEM), Fourier transforms infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), contact angle measurements, porosity and pure water flux. The results of kinetic studies indicated that both TC and OFL obeyed the pseudo-second-order model. Further, monolayer adsorption was preferred on the membrane since the mixture followed the Langmuir model. The maximum adsorption capacity of the BNNSs-PVDF membrane has been found to be (470.4 mg g−1) for the TC and OFL mixture. The results of thermodynamic studies revealed favourability of the adsorption at high temperatures and the endothermic nature of the reaction. Moreover, the membrane was easily separable and exhibited good regeneration behaviour. These results demonstrate the potential of the synthesized membrane for simultaneous removal of TC and OFL from contaminated water.