Fouled membranes were imaged by CLSM (TCS SP5, Leica
Microsystems CMS GmbH, Germany). The membrane samples
were first analyzed in reflection mode, in order to determine the
position of z-axis corresponding to the membrane surface. Then,
the fouled membranes were analyzed using the fluorescence
mode. Excitation was performed using a 488 nm argon laser (blue,
100% power). Table 2 lists the detection ranges used during CLSM
analysis for five types of CdTe QDs. False colors are used to
represent the membrane microstructure measured in reflection
mode (red color) and QDs fluorescence emission (green color) in
the same image.