A review on dendrimers in preparation and modification of membranes: progress, applications, and challenges

Although membrane technologies have been used for different purposes because of their selective permeability and suitability for modifications, fouling is the most important limiting parameter. Intensive research is being conducted to solve the membrane fouling problem, and in this context, dendrimers, as a macromolecule, have attracted wide interest with their unique chemical and structural properties. This review provides a comprehensive overview of the production methods, challenges, and applications of dendrimer-modified membranes. Modification methods include grafting, coating, and addition of dendrimers as a hydrophilic additive. These modifications, especially using polyamidoamine dendrimers, have improved separation performance, selectivity, and antifouling properties in microfiltration, ultrafiltration, reverse osmosis, forward osmosis, nanofiltration, and gas separation membranes. We also highlight the use of various nanomaterials in membrane modifications along with dendrimers because of the different structures and properties they can offer. Finally, the development prospects and key challenges of the dendrimer-modified membranes are briefly discussed. • Dendrimer types and different preparation methods are explained. • Different dendrimer applications and effects on membrane performance are evaluated. • Effect of nanomaterials and dendrimer applications together on membrane performance. • Dendrimer modifications play important role in membrane performance improvements.