Zwitterionic materials have received a lot of interest in the field of membrane science and water treatment due to their excellent fouling resistance, super-hydrophilicity, and ionic strength response. However, they have typically been utilized for surface functionalization. In this study, we report the synthesis of zwitterionic poly(sulfobetaine methacrylate), p(SBMA), microgels, and demonstrate the effect of their ionic-strength responsive behavior on the extent and reversibility of fouling on ultrafiltration membranes using Bovine Serum Albumin (BSA) and Baker's yeast as model foulants. The microgels synthesized using inverse emulsion free radical polymerization showed ionic strength response with increasing hydrodynamic diameter from 208 ± 4 nm to 316 ± 7 nm with increasing NaCl concentration from 0 to 0.5 M. The size change upon changing ionic strength was utilized by two approaches: co-depositing microgels with the foulants, and pre-depositing microgels on the membrane. When the microgels were co-deposited with the foulants, there was a small improvement in fouling reversibility while when the microgels were first deposited on the membrane by filtering them through, there formed a stable, continuous layer of p(SBMA) on the surface which clearly increased the fouling reversibility.

两性离子材料由于其优异的抗污性，超亲水性和离子强度响应特性，在膜科学和水处理领域引起了广泛兴趣。但是，它们通常已用于表面功能化。在这项研究中，我们报告了两性离子聚（甲基丙烯酸磺基甜菜碱酯），p（SBMA），微凝胶的合成，并证明了其离子强度响应行为对使用牛血清白蛋白（BSA）在超滤膜上结垢的程度和可逆性的影响。 ）和贝克酵母作为模型污垢。使用反相乳液自由基聚合合成的微凝胶显示出离子强度响应，其流体动力学直径从208±4 nm增加到316±7 nm，NaCl浓度从0增加到0.5 M. 通过两种方法利用改变离子强度时的尺寸变化：将微凝胶与污垢物共沉积，以及将微凝胶预沉积在膜上。当微凝胶与污垢物共沉积时，污垢可逆性有小幅改善，而当微凝胶首先通过过滤而沉积在膜上时，在表面上形成稳定的连续p（SBMA）层。明显增加了结垢的可逆性。