We report a simple approach for tailoring the morphology of poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) membranes fabricated using a nonsolvent induced phase separation (NIPS) method that sustains both the hydrophilic and hydrophobic properties. Various membrane structures, i.e. skin layers and whole membrane structures as well, were obtained via an experimental method based on the obtained and computed ternary phase diagram. The nonsolvent interactions with polymer solution resulted in the different forms and properties of a surface layer of fabricated membranes that affected the overall transport of solvent and nonsolvent molecules inside and outside the bulk of the fabricated membranes. The resulting morphology and properties were confirmed using the 3D optical profiler, SEM, FT-IR and XRD methods. The effect of binary interaction parameters on the morphology of the fabricated membranes and on their separation performance was tested using water/oil mixture and gas separation. Both hydrophobic and hydrophilic properties of PVDF showed the excellent durable separation performance of the prepared membranes with 92% of oil separation and the maximum flux of 395 L h-1 m-2 along with 120 min of long-term stability. CO2 separation from H2, N2, CH4 and SF6 gases was performed to further support the effect of tuned PVDF membranes with different micro/nanostructured morphologies. The gas performance demonstrated ultrahigh permeability and a several-fold greater than the Knudsen separation factor. The results demonstrate a facile and inexpensive approach can be successfully applied for the tailoring of the PVDF membranes to predict and design the resulting membrane structure.

Department of Inorganic Chemistry University of Chemistry and Technology Prague Technická 5 16628 Prague 6 Czech Republic

Department of Physical Chemistry University of Chemistry and Technology Prague Technická 5 16628 Prague 6 Czech Republic

State Key Laboratory of Environmental Chemistry and Ecotoxicology Research Center for Eco Environmental Sciences Chinese Academy of Sciences Beijing 100085 China

University of Chinese Academy of Sciences Beijing 100049 China

University of South Bohemia in České Budějovice Faculty of Fisheries and Protection of Waters South Bohemian Research Center of Aquaculture and Biodiversity of Hydrocenoses Research Institute of Fish Culture and Hydrobiology Zátiší 728 2 389 25 Vodňany Czech Republic

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