Polyurethane nanofibrous membranes decorated with reduced graphene oxide–TiO2 for photocatalytic templates in water purification

We hereby report a reduced graphene oxide–titanium dioxide (rGO–TiO2)-loaded polyurethane (PU) nanofibrous membrane having visible-light-responsive photocatalytic activity and antifouling property. The functionality is significantly augmented by the hybridization of rGO–TiO2 with nanofibrous membrane. This results in a synergistic combination of high surface area of nanofiber and unique photocatalytic activity of rGO–TiO2. 10 wt% rGO–TiO2-loaded membrane showed an average fiber diameter of 271.83 ± 11.38 nm. Both the thermal stability and mechanical stability of the membrane increase after rGO–TiO2 loading. The optimized PU/10rGO–TiO2 membrane exhibited a water flux of 12810 ± 49.65 Lm−2 h−1, oil rejection of 85.50%, and flux recovery ratio of 88.10%. Theoretical evaluation of fouling model suggests that all the membranes follow cake filtration model. The photocatalytic activity of nanofibrous membrane increases with an increase in rGO–TiO2 concentration in the membrane, and PU/10rGO–TiO2 nanofibrous membrane showed 95% of degradation against methylene blue dye. Thus, the prepared membrane can be suggested for an ideal candidate for antifouling and photocatalytic templates in water filtration systems.