In this study, the poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) membrane was prepared via immersion precipitation technique and modified by UV photo-grafting of hydrophilic monomers on the top membrane surface. Acrylic acid (AA) and 2-hydroxyethylmethacrylate (HEMA) as acrylic monomers and 2,4-phenylenediamine (PDA) and ethylene diamine (EDA) as amino monomers were used at different concentrations to modify the membrane and improve the hydrophilicity with less fouling tendency. Moreover the presence of benzophenon as photo-initiator for grafting the hydrophilic monomers onto PVDF membrane surface was elucidated. The virgin and modified PVDF membranes were characterized by contact angle, ATR-FTIR, SEM and cross-flow filtration. The contact angle measurements demonstrated that the hydrophilicities of the membranes were significantly enhanced by UV photo-grafting of hydrophilic monomers onto the membrane surface. The ATR-FTIR confirmed the occurrence of modification on PVDF membrane by UV photo-grafting. The pure water flux of membranes was declined by UV photo-grafting but the milk water permeation and protein rejection were slightly improved. Moreover the antifouling properties and flux recovery of PVDF membrane were improved by UV photo-grafting of hydrophilic monomers. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.