LAUSR

Abstract To improve antifouling and antibacterial property of Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) flat microfiltration (MF) membrane, a novel and facile method was developed to modify the membrane via the polymer of Laccase-catalyzed self-polymerization of Gallic acid (GAL) and cross-linked to Chitosan (CS) using Citric acid (CA) as a cross-linker, and then surface micro/nanostructures treated by 3-Triethoxysilylpropylamine (KH550). The surface chemical composition, surface morphology, hydrophilicity, antifouling and antibacterial property of the PTFE flat membrane were investigated by ATR-FTIR, XPS, FESEM, water contact angle (WCA), bovine serum albumin (BSA) filtration and antibacterial measurements, respectively. After using this low-cost and simple modification method, the PTFE flat membranes were endowed with excellent hydrophilicity, antifouling and antibacterial properties. Finally, the surface stability of the modified membranes were studied and the modified membrane showed excellent stability under pH = 3–12.