In the current study, a phase inversion scheme was employed to fabricate hydroxyapatite (HA)/polysulfone (PSF)‐based asymmetric membranes using a film applicator with water as a solvent and nonsolvent exchanging medium. Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) and X‐ray diffraction (XRD) spectroscopic studies were conducted to confirm the bonding chemistry and purity of filler. The inherent thick nature of PSF generated sponge‐like shape while the instantaneous demixing process produced finger‐like pore networks in HA/PSF‐based asymmetric membranes as exhibited by scanning electron microscope (SEM) micrographs. The FTIR spectra confirmed noncovalent weak attractions toward the polymer surface. The leaching ratio was evaluated to observe the dispersion behavior of HA filler in membrane composition. Hydrophilicity, pore profile, pure water permeation (PWP) flux, and molecular weight cutoff (MWCO) values of all formulated membranes were also calculated. Antifouling results revealed that HA modified PSF membranes exhibited 43% less adhesion of bovine serum albumin (BSA) together with >86% recovery of flux. Membrane composition showed 74% total resistance, out of which 60% was reversible resistance. Biocompatibility evaluation revealed that the modified membranes exhibited prothrombin time (PT), and thrombin time (TT) comparable with typical blood plasma, whereas proliferation of living cells over membrane surface proved its nontoxic behavior toward biomedical application. The urea and creatinine showed effective adsorption aptitude toward HA loaded PSF membranes.

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The carbon dioxide (CO2) separation can be enhanced by using modified materials like a deep eutectic solvent (DES) modified mesoporous silica SBA-15 in polymeric support i.e polysulfone via mixed matrix membranes (MMMs). The pure SBA-15 and DES are potential candidates for the CO2 capturing and their combination has not been reported yet. In this work, a fresh DES was synthesized by combining equal concentrations of Decanoic acid and choline chloride by mass. MMMs were fabricated by DES functionalized SBA-15 (DES-SBA) filler. The DES-SBA-based polymeric MMMs of different compositions, from 5% to 20% with the difference of five each, were developed and subjected to the gas permeation analysis to evaluate relative selectivities and permeabilities of membranes. The DES-SBA-based MMMs were characterized by SEM and FTIR to obtain distribution analysis of filler in the polymer matrix as well as the cross-sectional and surface morphology and the structural analysis of membranes, respectively. The gas permeation evaluations have been utilized to mixed and pure gas samples and the findings of selectivities for CO2/N2 and CO2/CH4 and permeabilities of synthesized MMMs are being reported. The performance of the MMMs has been enhanced via functionalization of SBA-15 by DES as compared to the neat polysulfone (PSF) based simple membrane.

In this research, a novel DES (choline chloride + decanoic acid) was synthesized, and SBA-15 was functionalized by the DES to form a DES-SBA filler to fabricate MMMs. DES-SBA-based MMMs at 5%, 10%, 15%, and 20% were synthesized and evaluated. The DES-SBA-based MMMs were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). Gas permeation tests were applied to the pure and mixed gas samples, and the results of the permeability and selectivity (CO2/CH4, and CO2/N2) of the membranes are reported. DES modification of SBA-15 increased the efficiency of the synthesized MMMs in comparison with the pristine polysulfone membrane.