A study on the manufacture of Kevlar membrane modified by inorganic nanoparticles with universal applicability in separating diffident types of emulsions

Abstract With the rapid growth of economy, the situation of oil/ water pollutionhas been intensified to be solved urgently. A membrane for separating emulsions with opposite wettability is prepared by modified with FeOOH and ZnO nanoparticles. The membrane preforms properties of superoleophobicity under water and superhydrophobicityunder oil. The oil contact angleof hydrophilic side is 151.7° and water contactangle of hydrophobic is 153.6°. Due to the opposite wettability at the two sides, oil-in-water and water-in-oil emulsions can be separated by the membrane. This membrane shows a universal strategy to solve complex emulsion separation problem by using multifunctional materials.