With the development of water purification technology, membrane method has attracted much attention due to its high separation efficiency. However, the low rejection rate and reduction of membrane flux caused by membrane fouling are still huge challenges for its practical application. Therefore, the surface modification of the membrane is widely used to improve the membrane method.

For example, traditional sol-gel coating methods usually use a functional top layer to prevent dirt accumulation/adsorption. This traditional method limits the precise design of the physical and chemical properties of the membrane, thereby hindering the improvement of membrane performance. An advanced method is atomic layer deposition, that is, a uniform layer of metal oxide is covered on the atomic layer. Due to its precise control of the thickness of the metal oxide layer, it is mainly used to adjust the pore structure and/or surface hydrophilicity of the membrane. Therefore, by designing the chemical structure of the membrane surface, the retention effect of the membrane can be improved and membrane fouling can be reduced. Electrospinning to prepare nanofibers is another way to change the physicochemical properties of membranes.

It designs the surface chemical structure of the membrane (for example, hydrophilicity/hydrophobicity and surface roughness) by integrating specific nanomaterials into electrospun nanofibers. Electrospinning can adjust the porosity by controlling the change of the preparation process. Although people have done a lot of research on the surface modification of membranes, there is a lack of literature review on the technical progress and challenges of these functionalization methods. This article reviews the following aspects: one is the introduction of nanomaterials (such as graphene-based nanomaterials, carbon nanotubes and titanium dioxide) and their surface modification methods; the other is the application of ALD and electrospinning in membrane water treatment Iii) Deeply understand the technical challenges and future prospects of applying it to the membrane industry.