Inhibition of membrane biofouling by grafting quorum sensing inhibitors onto ultrafiltration membranes

Quorum sensing inhibitors (QSIs) can inhibit biofilm formation by regulating the synthesis of extracellular polymeric substances (EPS), thus alleviating biofouling in the membrane filtration process. In this study, utilizing the adhesion ability of a mussel-inspired biomimetic material, polydopamine (PDA), natural quorum sensing inhibitors, vanillin and furanone, were modified on a commercial polyethersulfone (PES) ultrafiltration (UF) membrane to inhibit the formation of biofilm fouling. We proved that QSIs were successfully grafted onto the membrane surface without blocking the pore structure, and the pure water flux of the membrane was simultaneously improved due to hydrophilicity improvement. The vanillin-modified membrane significantly inhibited the biofilm formation of P. aeruginosa PAO1 (81.7% inhibition rate), while furanone had a certain inhibitory effect on E. coli MG1655 and PAO1. We also tested the modified membrane in the dynamic filtration of simulated wastewater, in which both modified membranes alleviated biofouling.