Filler effect on properties of polymethyl methacrylate-based membranes for hemodialysis application

In this work, we present the synthesis of polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA)-zeolite composite membranes for hemodialysis applications, using the non-solvent induced phase separation (NIPS) technique. The thermodynamic behavior of the NIPS process was investigated by measuring the cloud points of the PMMA/DMF/water and PMMAZx /DMF/water ternary systems. Additionally, attenuated total reflectance-Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) were used to characterize the obtained materials. A staining method was also performed to observe the interaction between the membranes and electrolytes, followed by the measurement of the corresponding electrolyte flux. Subsequently, the membrane surface was modified using the Layer-by-Layer (LbL) assembly technique, with PDADMAC and heparin selected as the two electrolytes. The results demonstrate that PMMA-zeolite membranes exhibit new morphologies and improved properties compared to membranes made from a pure PMMA matrix.