A pre-wetting induced superhydrophilic/superlipophilic micro-patterned electrospun membrane with self-cleaning property for on-demand emulsified oily wastewater separation

In this work, a pre-wetting induced superhydrophilic/superlipophilic micro-patterned membrane with surface-loaded BiVO4 nanoparticles (Bi/[email protected]) was successfully prepared by electrospinning and polydopamine (PDA) surface modification technology for highly efficient emulsified oily wastewater separation. The results showed that the as-prepared membranes exhibited micro hole-patterned structures and the BiVO4 nanoparticles were uniformly deposited on the surfaces of fibers to construct hierarchical porous structures by using PDA as an adhesive polymeric bridge. During the separation process of emulsified oily wastewater, the hierarchical porous structures in membranes significantly improved the separation flux, which was nearly 2–3 times than that of the non-patterned membranes. Based on the existence of PDA, the membranes exhibited prewetting-induced superoleophobicity under water and superhydrophobicity under oil, which made it possible for them to separate both water-in-oil and oil-in-water emulsified oily wastewater selectively and efficiently. Moreover, the BiVO4 nanoparticles loaded on the membranes could degrade the oily contaminants adsorbed on the membranes (nearly 100%) under visible light. All these attractive features demonstrate that the Bi/[email protected] membranes show a great potential for sustainable and efficient emulsified oily wastewater separation.