A porous polypropylene membrane was treated to deposit a thin superhydrophobic coating. Treatment conditions were optimised to maximise the contact angle. A high average static contact angle of 169 degrees was achieved through the creation of a porous and rough surface which is 42 degrees higher than that of an untreated polypropylene membrane and 30 degrees higher than that of a Teflon (R) membrane. This treatment promises to provide low cost, porous, hydrophobic membranes for use in membrane contacting processes. Crown Copyright (C) 2008 Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.