Improvement of membrane-forming ability and separation performance of hydroxylated BN membrane by GO via π-π interaction

Two-dimensional hydroxylated boron nitride (OH-BN) nanosheets were prepared using a new approach of ball milling and monoethanolamine (MEA) assisted sonication. OH-BN/graphene oxide (GO) hybrid nanofiltration membranes were developed for the improvement of the membrane-forming ability of OH-BN nanosheets by π-π interaction between GO and OH-BN nanosheets. The membrane-forming ability of OH-BN nanosheets were improved significantly after the introduction of GO nanosheets, and typical layered structure and enhanced separation performances were achieved for OH-BN/GO hybrid membrane with 40 wt% of GO (OH-BN40GO). OH-BN40GO membrane with a thickness of 500 nm possessed a favorable water permeance of 162.3 L/m2·h·bar and a pleasant rejection rate of 97.7 % for Methyl Blue (MB). Moreover, OH-BN40GO hybrid membrane exhibited an excellent anti-swelling ability in aqueous solution, and kept almost unchanged after soaking in water for 3 months. The flux recovery ratio of OH-BN40GO membrane reached to 85.8 % after BSA contamination and NaClO solution rinse, revealing a suitable anti-fouling property of OH-BN40GO membrane.