Patent ID: 8801935

Claim:
A process for preparing a reverse osmosis membrane, comprising: (A) providing a polyamine, a polyfunctional acid halide, and a flux increasing additive consisting of Z + B − , where Z + is H + or has the formula R 1 R 2 R 3 R 4 N + , where R 1 , R 2 , R 3 , and R 4 , independently, are H, a C 1 -C 6 hydrocarbyl group, a benzyl group, or a phenyl group, and B − is a beta-diketonate; (B) combining the polyamine, polyfunctional acid halide, and flux increasing additive on the surface of a porous support membrane; and (C) interfacially polymerizing the polyamine and the polyfunctional acid halide, in the presence of the flux increasing additive on the surface of the porous support membrane to form a reverse osmosis membrane comprising (i) the porous support membrane and (ii) a discrimination layer comprising a polyamide, wherein the reverse osmosis membrane is characterized by a flux that is greater than the flux of the same membrane prepared in the absence of the flux increasing additive.