Photocatalytic bio‐inspired PDA‐RGO/g‐C3N4 nanocomposite incorporated PES membrane for removal of environmental antibiotic pollutants

Abstract Background The direct operation method of membrane technology makes it more suitable for the treatment of environmental polluted organic wastewater. Membrane fouling is one of the major concerns in the commercial membrane, to overcome this issue, photocatalytic nanomaterials are embedded into the membrane to enhance its surface nature and reusability. In this investigation, polydopamine functionalized graphene oxide (PDA‐RGO), graphite carbon nitride (g‐C 3 N 4 ), and PDA‐RGO/g‐C 3 N 4 nanomaterials are incorporated within polyethersulfone membrane fabricated via phase inversion technique. These as‐prepared membranes functional group and surface morphology were investigated by Fourier transform spectroscopy (FT‐IR), atomic force microscopy (AFM) and field emission electron microscopy (FESEM). These as‐prepared membranes are investigated photocatalytic activity under visible‐light‐driven photodegradation by environmental pollutants such as Rhodamine B (RhB) and Norfloxacin (NOR). Results Compared with pristine PES membrane, the PDA‐RGO/g‐C 3 N 4 ‐PES nanocomposite membrane showed higher photocatalytic activity for Rhodamine B 94.6% and Norfloxacin 96.8%, also reached greater water flux 189 L m −2 h −1 . Therefore, the bio‐inspired nanocomposite‐modified PDA‐RGO/g‐C 3 N 4 photocatalytic membrane could have huge potential in processing environmentally polluted water treatment. Conclusions PDA‐RGO/g‐C 3 N 4 ‐PES nanocomposite membrane improved the membrane hydrophilicity, water flow, anti‐fouling performance, rejection studies, and photocatalytic degradation than the pristine membrane. The synergistic result of PDA‐RGO and g‐C 3 N 4 could exhibit better photodegradation efficiency of the membrane towards environmental pollutants. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.