Water recovery from the high salinity brine: Effect of the interlayer structure in the polyamide nanofiltration membrane

Water recovery by nanofiltration (NF) from the high salinity brine is emerging as a promising technology to alleviate the water shortage. Thin film composite membranes with polyamide (PA) selective layer are the mainstream in the field of NF. Nevertheless, the trade-off between permeance and retention as well as the structural stability of the mainstream PA membrane still restrict their widespread application. Herein, a novel interlayered thin-film nanocomposite (TFNi) nanofiltration membrane was fabricated based on the interfacial polymerization. The PDA@MXene hybrid was employed as the interlayer to modulate the adsorption and diffusion process of amine monomers, giving rise to the formation of thin and rough PA selective layer, which could accelerate the transport of water molecules. Moreover, PM-TFNi membrane demonstrated higher crosslinking degree and more negatively charged surface, significantly benefiting the repulsion of inorganic salt ions. In this context, PM-TFNi membrane rendered a competitive permselectivity with the water flux of 18.3 L m-2 h-1 bar-1 and the Na2SO4 rejection of 98.0%. In addition, PM-TFNi membrane exhibited distinguished long-term stability and pH resistance. Overall, this work would provide a paradigm shift in designing high-performance and robust NF membrane for the water treatment.