Membrane bioreactors are widely used for industrial wastewater treatment. However, membrane fouling is one of the critical problems in applying these systems. fouling mitigation is an essential issue since membrane fouling results in decreased permeability, increased energy consumption, and reduced membrane lifespan which should be addressed in industrial designs. In this study, our objective was to evaluate the filtration performance and fouling behavior of the blended polyvinyl chloride/polycarbonate (PVC/PC) and nanocomposite PVC/PC/modified silver nanoparticles (PVC/PC/MAg) hollow fiber membranes in continuous and intermittent (filtration with backwashing) filtration experiments at constant pressure. Additionally, an experimental module was designed for the backwashing process so that the fouling phenomenon could be investigated step-by-step for both membranes. The performance of the nanocomposite membrane was compared with that of the blended membrane after each backwashing step in terms of flux recovery and fouling resistances. Permeate flux of the blended and nanocomposite membranes at the end of the continuous filtration experiments compared with the initial flux declined by 61% and 48%, respectively. During the intermittent filtration experiments, the average flux of the blended and nanocomposite membranes in the last step decreased by about 16% and 7% in comparison with the first step, respectively. Flux recovery for the nanocomposite membrane at the end of each backwashing step in the intermittent filtration experiment was over 95% resulting in lower permeability decline over the filtration process. Moreover, the present study reveals that incorporating silver nanoparticles into the structure of the PVC/PC membrane results in an increase in permeability and enhancement of antifouling properties, as well as it increases the flux recovery during the backwashing process in MAg-filled nanocomposite membranes. Display omitted •The effect of the backwashing process on the fouling behavior of both membranes at each step was investigated.•The backwashing process showed better performance for nanocomposite membranes.•The presence of modified Ag nanoparticles in the blended membrane led to a change in the structure of EPS.•Fouling resistance assessment after each step of the backwashing process was conducted.•The rate of flux recovery in the nanocomposite membrane end of each backwashing step was higher than 95%.