US 12,465,894 B2
Method for cleaning a fouled water purification membrane
Umair Baig, Dhahran (SA); and Abdul Waheed, Dhahran (SA)
Assigned to KING FAHD UNIVERSITY OF PETROLEUM AND MINERALS, Dhahran (SA)
Filed by KING FAHD UNIVERSITY OF PETROLEUM AND MINERALS, Dhahran (SA)
Filed on Jun. 20, 2025, as Appl. No. 19/243,768.
Application 19/243,768 is a continuation of application No. 18/084,085, filed on Dec. 19, 2022, granted, now 12,343,688.
Prior Publication US 2025/0312753 A1, Oct. 9, 2025
Int. Cl. B01D 71/68 (2006.01); B01D 71/02 (2006.01); B01D 71/48 (2006.01); B82Y 30/00 (2011.01)
CPC B01D 71/68 (2013.01) [B01D 71/0211 (2022.08); B01D 71/481 (2022.08); B82Y 30/00 (2013.01)] 16 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method for cleaning a fouled water purification membrane, comprising:
irradiating the fouled water purification membrane with light having a wavelength of 400-700 nm to chemically degrade a pollutant present on the fouled water purification membrane and thereby form a photocatalytically active membrane;
wherein the photocatalytically active membrane comprises a polysulfone/polyethylene terephthalate (PSf/PET) support; and
an active layer on an outer surface of the PSf/PET support,
wherein the active layer comprises reacted units of:
a diacyl chloride compound;
a tetra-amine compound; and
a nanocomposite comprising a mixture of graphitic carbon nitride in the form of nanosheets and having triazine and heptazine rings and polypyrrole,
wherein the photocatalytically active membrane has pores with an average diameter of less than 1 nm.