Preparation and properties of cellulose membranes with graphene oxide addition

The paper presents results of research on the preparation of cellulose membranes with graphite oxide addition (GO/CEL). Initially, a cellulose (CEL) solution in 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazole acetate (EMIMAc) was obtained, to which graphene oxide (GO) dispersed in N,N-dimethylformamide (DMF) was added. From this solution, composite membranes were formed using phase inversion method. It was observed that the GO addition influences the physico-chemical properties of GO/CEL composite membranes, resulting in an increase in their mass per unit area, thickness and density, and a decrease in sorption properties. In addition, the study of transport properties has shown that GO/CEL membranes do not absorb BSA particles on their surface, which prevents the unfavorable phenomenon of fouling. An important feature of the obtained membranes is the specific permeate flux which reaches high values (~124 L/m²×h) at 3.8% of the GO addition to the cellulose matrix.