ABSTRACT
This chapter provides a comprehensive review on the role of advanced materials in improving surface properties of ultrafiltration membranes (UF), aiming to achieve greater antifouling resistance and water flux without sacrificing solute rejection rate and structural integrity. It addresses organic-based materials for membrane making and modification and inorganic materials for polymeric-based membrane modification. Amphiphilic copolymers are composed of both hydrophilic and hydrophobic segments in their organic structure and the properties of the copolymers vary in terms of their chemical nature, molecular interaction, and affinities in aqueous solvent. The most unique properties of the amphiphilic copolymer lie in its self-organizing behavior at polymer-water interfaces. The surface modification of polymeric UF membranes using inorganic-based materials is another way to achieve good compatibility between polymeric and inorganic materials. Surface coating is a technique that establishes a thin layer of colloidal solution on the top layer of the membrane surface via physical adsorption, interpenetration, or macroscopic entanglement of the functional group.
