An intrinsically hydrophilic nanofibrous
membrane with chlorine
rechargeable biocidal and antifouling functions was prepared by using
a combination of chemically bonded N-halamine moieties
and zwitterionic polymers (PEI-S). The designed nanofibrous membrane,
named as PEI-S@BNF-2 h, can exhibit integrated features of reduced
bacterial adhesion, rechargeable biocidal activity, and easy release
of killed bacteria by using mild hydrodynamic forces. The representative
functional performances of the PEI-S@BNF-2 h membrane include high
active chlorine capacity (>4000 ppm), large specific surface area,
ease of chlorine rechargeability, long-term stability, and exceptional
biocidal activity (99.9999% via contact killing). More importantly,
the zwitterionic polymer moieties (PEI-S) brought robust antifouling
properties to this biocidal membrane, therefore reducing the biofouling-biofilm
effect and prolonging the lifetime of the filtration membrane. These
attributes enable the PEI-S@BNF-2 h nanofibrous membrane to effectively
disinfect the microbe-contaminated water with high fluxes (10,000
L m–2 h–1) and maintain itself
clean for a long-term application.