Abstract In this study, PVDF electrospun nanofibers impregnated with bentonite nanoclay based highly hydrophilic thin-film nanocomposite (TFN) membranes were synthesized by interfacial polymerization of a polyamide selective layer for forward osmosis (FO) applications. It was revealed that the bentonite nanoclay can tune the properties of the PVDF nanofiber supported TFN membranes, including the key parameters, such as hydrophilicity, the β-phase fraction (polar phase), and its mechanical properties. The PVDF/bentonite nanoclay mixture resulted in a significant improvement in FO performance. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) analysis confirmed the successful integration of bentonite nanoclay into the electrospun nanofiber. The prepared TFN membranes showed higher hydrophilicity, mechanical strength and water permeability compared to the pristine PVDF electrospun nanofiber TFN membrane due to an increase in the β-phase fraction (hydrophilicity) by the synergetic effect of electrospinning and addition of bentonite nanoclay. A TFN membrane with the highest nanoclay content (2.0 wt%) showed an exceptionally high FO water flux of 40.64 L/m2 h at 1 M NaCl draw solution, without a considerable increase in reverse solute flux (RSF).

中文翻译：

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基于 PVDF/膨润土纳米纤维支撑的高性能薄膜纳米复合正向渗透膜

摘要 在这项研究中，通过聚酰胺选择性层的界面聚合合成了浸渍有膨润土纳米粘土基高亲水性薄膜纳米复合材料 (TFN) 膜的 PVDF 电纺纳米纤维，用于正向渗透 (FO) 应用。结果表明，膨润土纳米粘土可以调节 PVDF 纳米纤维负载的 TFN 膜的性能，包括关键参数，如亲水性、β 相分数（极性相）及其机械性能。PVDF/膨润土纳米粘土混合物显着提高了 FO 性能。X 射线光电子能谱 (XPS) 和能量色散 X 射线 (EDX) 分析证实了膨润土纳米粘土成功整合到电纺纳米纤维中。制备的 TFN 膜表现出更高的亲水性，由于通过静电纺丝和添加膨润土纳米粘土的协同作用增加了 β 相分数（亲水性），因此与原始 PVDF 静电纺纳米纤维 TFN 膜相比，机械强度和水渗透率有所提高。具有最高纳米粘土含量 (2.0 wt%) 的 TFN 膜在 1 M NaCl 汲取溶液中显示出 40.64 L/m2 h 的异常高 FO 水通量，而反向溶质通量 (RSF) 没有显着增加。