Fabrication of polyamide/zwitterion functionalized mesoporous silica nanofiltration membrane with highly enhanced antifouling performance

•The zwitterions and mesopores jointly optimize the membrane structure.•The water flux and salt rejection of membranes are strengthened simultaneously.•The hybrid membrane shows a high antifouling FRR of 95.5%.•Binding energies of zwitterion with water molecule are computed for the first time.