Work

Thin-film composite (TFC) membranes incorporated with hydrophilic additives and layered double hydroxides (LDHs) for effective brackish water (BW) desalination

Year: 2024

Type: article

Abstract: To overcome the limited water permeability of thin-film nanocomposite (TFN) membranes for brackish water reverse osmosis (BWRO) processes, we have incorporated a few amine or hydroxyl group terminated hydrophilic additives during interfacial polymerization when fabricating RO membranes and found that the membrane comprising 1 wt% 2-(2-hydroxyethyl)pyridine (2-(2-pyridyl)ethylahydroxide, PEH) has the best BWRO performance. The membrane was subsequently infiltrated with layered double hydroxide (LDH) nanoparticles by a post ethanol activation and could deliver a water permeability of 4.18 LMH bar −1 which is 100 % more than the control membrane without much compromising the salt rejection. The newly developed process not only incorporates nanofillers with the advantages of simplicity and decoupling from the interfacial polymerization process, but also endows the TFN membranes with enhanced separation performance. The study may provide useful insights to incorporate nanofillers by the solvent activation approach for the fabrication of TFN membranes.

Source: Journal of Membrane Science

DOI: 10.1016/j.memsci.2024.123228

Authors: Jie Gao, Ji Wu, Shing Bor Chen, Tai-Shung Chung

Institutions: National University of Singapore, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ningbo Institute of Industrial Technology, National Taiwan University of Science and Technology

Language: English

Topic: Membrane Separation Technologies

Subfield: Water Science and Technology

Field: Environmental Science

Domain: Physical Sciences

SDG: Clean water and sanitation

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $4,890