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Recent Advances in Membrane Materials and Membrane Processes for Water...
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Recent Advances in Membrane Materials and Membrane Processes for Water and Wastewater Treatment

A special issue of Membranes (ISSN 2077-0375). This special issue belongs to the section "Membrane Processing and Engineering".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 July 2022) | Viewed by 22279

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Jaewoo Lee

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
1. Department of Polymer-Nano Science and Technology, Jeonbuk National University, Jeonju 54896, Korea
2. Department of Bionanotechnology and Bio-Convergence Engineering, Jeonbuk National University, Jeonju 54896, Korea
Interests: wastewater treatment; desalination; biogas recovery; membrane fabrication; antifouling; biofouling; quorum quenching; nanomaterials

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Nations across the globe have sought to develop environmental-friendly and sustainable economies through scientific and technological innovations. To move to a green economy, innovations in sustainable water management are vital, considering water is intricately linked to other essential resources while contributing to biodiversity. However, water shortage is becoming worse over time due to the short supply and the rapid increase in demand for clean water caused by the unprecedented climate change and an exploding population. As a result, clean water supply has come to the fore as a major issue. To address these issues, many researchers have made enormous efforts to develop novel membranes and membrane processes for water treatment.

This Special Issue aims to share recent advances in membrane materials and membrane processes for water and wastewater treatment. The topics include but are not limited to membrane fabrications using novel materials (e.g., mixed-matrix membranes (MMMs), metal–organic frameworks (MOFs), and nanofibers) and innovations in the existing membrane processes related to reverse and forward osmosis (RO and FO), pressure-retarded osmosis (PRO), membrane distillation (MD), wastewater treatment using membrane bioreactors (MBRs), biogas recovery using membrane contactors, and membrane capacitive deionization. All interested authors are invited to submit their original research papers, review papers, and perspectives on the topics.

Prof. Dr. Jaewoo Lee
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Membranes is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2200 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • Membrane
  • Mixed-matrix membranes (MMMs)
  • Metal–organic frameworks (MOFs)
  • Porous nanomaterials
  • Hollow-fiber membrane
  • Electrospin/electrospun
  • Nanofibers
  • Thin-film composite
  • Desalination
  • Reverse and forward osmosis
  • Pressure retarded osmosis
  • Membrane distillation
  • Wastewater treatment
  • Membrane bioreactor
  • Membrane fouling
  • Biogas recovery
  • Membrane contractor
  • Membrane capacitive deionization
  • Disinfection

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Published Papers (7 papers)

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Research

Jump to: Review

11 pages, 3138 KiB  
Communication
Zero Discharge of Dyes and Regeneration of a Washing Solution in Membrane-Based Dye Removal by Cold Plasma Treatment
by Hee-Jun Kim, Uje Lee, Hyun-Woo Kim, Min Cho and Jaewoo Lee
Membranes 2022, 12(6), 546; https://doi.org/10.3390/membranes12060546 - 25 May 2022
Cited by 10 | Viewed by 2458
Abstract
Although dye removal from wastewater streams has been investigated via several approaches using adsorbents, resins, or membranes, it is still hard to avoid the fact that dyes are persistently left in the adsorption materials or washing solutions used to regenerate the used adsorbents. [...] Read more.
Although dye removal from wastewater streams has been investigated via several approaches using adsorbents, resins, or membranes, it is still hard to avoid the fact that dyes are persistently left in the adsorption materials or washing solutions used to regenerate the used adsorbents. In particular, given that cleaning agents are composed of acid/base, organic solvents, or electrolytes, dye adsorption and adsorbent regeneration processes leave behind more hard-to-manage wastewater containing dyes. In this study, we demonstrated that cold plasma (CP) treatment, which is one of the advanced oxidation processes (AOPs), can be used for zero discharge of dyes and regeneration of a washing solution in a membrane-based dye removal process. Specifically, CP treatment was found to successfully remove dyes released from a washing process to regenerate a used membrane, thereby effectively recycling a cleaning solution. As a result, the regenerated washing solution was more favorable for the adsorbed dyes’ elution, leading to the successful regeneration of a used membrane without a significant loss of dye removal efficiency. This fact was evidenced by a comparative study on the effect of CP treatment on the reusability of membranes and washing solutions and the kinetic analysis of the AOP of the desorbed dyes. We hope that this study contributes to opening a new door for environmentally friendly and sustainable dye removal. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Membrane Materials and Membrane Processes for Water and Wastewater Treatment)
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23 pages, 2762 KiB  
Article
Ecological Risk Evaluation and Removal of Emerging Pollutants in Urban Wastewater by a Hollow Fiber Forward Osmosis Membrane
by Mónica Salamanca, Rebeca López-Serna, Laura Palacio, Antonio Hernandez, Pedro Prádanos and Mar Peña
Membranes 2022, 12(3), 293; https://doi.org/10.3390/membranes12030293 - 4 Mar 2022
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2786
Abstract
Forward osmosis (FO) is a promising technology for the treatment of urban wastewater. FO can produce high-quality effluents and preconcentrate urban wastewater for subsequent anaerobic treatment. This membrane technology makes it possible to eliminate the pollutants present in urban wastewater, which can cause [...] Read more.
Forward osmosis (FO) is a promising technology for the treatment of urban wastewater. FO can produce high-quality effluents and preconcentrate urban wastewater for subsequent anaerobic treatment. This membrane technology makes it possible to eliminate the pollutants present in urban wastewater, which can cause adverse effects in the ecosystem even at low concentrations. In this study, a 0.6 m2 hollow fiber aquaporin forward osmosis membrane was used for the treatment of urban wastewater from the Valladolid wastewater treatment plant (WWTP). A total of 51 Contaminants of Emerging Concern (CECs) were investigated, of which 18 were found in the target urban wastewater. They were quantified, and their ecotoxicological risk impact was evaluated. Different salts with different concentrations were tested as draw solutions to evaluate the membrane performances when working with pretreated urban wastewater. NaCl was found to be the most appropriate salt since it leads to higher permeate fluxes and lower reverse saline fluxes. The membrane can eliminate or significantly reduce the pollutants present in the studied urban wastewater, producing water without ecotoxicological risk or essentially free of pollutants. In all cases, good recovery was achieved, which increased with molecular weight, although chemical and electrostatic interactions also played a role. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Membrane Materials and Membrane Processes for Water and Wastewater Treatment)
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9 pages, 4678 KiB  
Communication
Mechanisms of Efficient Desalination by a Two-Dimensional Porous Nanosheet Prepared via Bottom-Up Assembly of Cucurbit[6]urils
by Feng Zhou, Jaewoo Lee, Rong Wang and Haibin Su
Membranes 2022, 12(3), 252; https://doi.org/10.3390/membranes12030252 - 23 Feb 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2476
Abstract
Many researchers have examined the desalination performance of various kinds of two-dimensional (2D) porous nanosheets prepared by top-down approaches such as forming pores on the plain based on molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. In contrast, it is rare to find MD simulations addressing the [...] Read more.
Many researchers have examined the desalination performance of various kinds of two-dimensional (2D) porous nanosheets prepared by top-down approaches such as forming pores on the plain based on molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. In contrast, it is rare to find MD simulations addressing the desalination performance of a 2D porous nanosheet prepared by bottom-up approaches. We investigated the desalination performance of a 2D porous nanosheet prepared by the assembly of cucurbit[6]uril (CB[6]) via MD simulation. The model 2D CB[6] nanosheet features CB[6] with the carbonyl-fringed portals of 3.9 Å and the interstitial space filled with hydrophobic linkers and dangling side chains. Our MD simulation demonstrated that the 2D porous CB[6] nanosheet possesses a 70 to 140 times higher water permeance than commercial reverse osmosis membranes while effectively preventing salt passage. The extremely high water permeance and perfect salt rejection stem from not only CB[6]’s nature (hydrophilicity, negative charge, and the right dimension for size exclusion) but also the hydrophobic and tightly filled interstitial space. We also double-checked that the extremely high water permeance was attributable to only CB[6]’s nature, not water leakage, by contrasting it with a 2D nanosheet comprising CB[6]-spermine complexes. Lastly, this paper provides a discussion on a better cucurbituril homologue to prepare a next-generation desalination membrane possessing great potential to such an extent to surpass the 2D porous CB[6] nanosheet based on quantum mechanics calculations. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Membrane Materials and Membrane Processes for Water and Wastewater Treatment)
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21 pages, 3096 KiB  
Article
Mixed Matrix Membranes Adsorbers (MMMAs) for the Removal of Uremic Toxins from Dialysate
by Matilde De Pascale, Maria Grazia De Angelis and Cristiana Boi
Membranes 2022, 12(2), 203; https://doi.org/10.3390/membranes12020203 - 9 Feb 2022
Cited by 13 | Viewed by 3293
Abstract
We developed Mixed Matrix Membrane Adsorbers (MMMAs) formed by cellulose acetate and various sorbent particles (activated carbon, zeolites ZSM-5 and clinoptilolite) for the removal of urea, creatinine and uric acid from aqueous solutions, to be used in the regeneration of spent dialysate water [...] Read more.
We developed Mixed Matrix Membrane Adsorbers (MMMAs) formed by cellulose acetate and various sorbent particles (activated carbon, zeolites ZSM-5 and clinoptilolite) for the removal of urea, creatinine and uric acid from aqueous solutions, to be used in the regeneration of spent dialysate water from Hemodialysis (HD). This process would allow reducing the disproportionate amount of water consumed and permits the development of closed-loop HD devices, such as wearable artificial kidneys. The strategy of MMMAs is to combine the high permeability of porous membranes with the toxin-capturing ability of embedded particles. The water permeability of the MMMAs ranges between 600 and 1500 L/(h m2 bar). The adsorption of urea, the limiting toxin, can be improved of about nine times with respect to the pure cellulose acetate membrane. Flow experiments demonstrate the feasibility of the process in a real HD therapy session. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Membrane Materials and Membrane Processes for Water and Wastewater Treatment)
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15 pages, 1617 KiB  
Article
Concentration of Municipal MBBR Effluent by FO for Resource Recovery: Batch Experiments in Side-Stream Configuration
by Willy Røstum Thelin, Edvard Sivertsen, Gema Raspati, Kamal Azrague and Herman Helness
Membranes 2021, 11(4), 278; https://doi.org/10.3390/membranes11040278 - 10 Apr 2021
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2103
Abstract
A novel approach for resource recovery includes forward osmosis (FO) as a concentration step in municipal wastewater treatment. The current study investigates different pre-treatment strategies including biological treatment with a moving-bed bioreactor (MBBR) at different loading rates and particle removal by filtration and [...] Read more.
A novel approach for resource recovery includes forward osmosis (FO) as a concentration step in municipal wastewater treatment. The current study investigates different pre-treatment strategies including biological treatment with a moving-bed bioreactor (MBBR) at different loading rates and particle removal by filtration and sedimentation. Membrane performance and recovery potential for energy and nutrients were investigated in laboratory-scale FO experiments in batch mode using pre-treated municipal wastewater as feed and 35 g/L NaCl as a draw solution. Initial water fluxes were in the range of 6.3 to 8.0 L/(m2·h). The baseline fluxes were modelled to account for flux decline due to concentration effects and to enable the prediction of flux decline due to membrane fouling. Fouling-related flux decline varied from 0 to 31%. Both organic fouling and precipitation of CaCO3 and CaHPO4 were identified by using SEM–EDS. High-rate flushing resulted in complete flux recovery under most conditions. Scaling could be avoided by lowering the pH. Two operation strategies were tested to achieve this: (1) applying a bioreactor with a low organic loading rate to achieve high nitrification, and (2) adding a strong acid. A low organic loading rate and the use of additional particle removal were efficient measures that reduced organic/particulate fouling. The recovery potentials for COD and phosphorous in FO concentrate were close to 100%. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Membrane Materials and Membrane Processes for Water and Wastewater Treatment)
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15 pages, 6086 KiB  
Article
Comprehensive Analysis of Foulants in an Ultrafiltration Membrane Used for the Treatment of Bleach Plant Effluent in a Sulfite Pulp Mill
by Gregor Rudolph, Basel Al-Rudainy, Johan Thuvander and Ann-Sofi Jönsson
Membranes 2021, 11(3), 201; https://doi.org/10.3390/membranes11030201 - 12 Mar 2021
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2723
Abstract
Fouling is a major obstacle in the introduction of membrane processes in new applications in the pulping industry. Due to the complex nature of the feed solutions, complementary analysis methods are usually needed to identify the substances involved. Four different methods were used [...] Read more.
Fouling is a major obstacle in the introduction of membrane processes in new applications in the pulping industry. Due to the complex nature of the feed solutions, complementary analysis methods are usually needed to identify the substances involved. Four different methods were used for the comprehensive analysis of a membrane removed from an ultrafiltration plant treating alkaline bleach plant effluent in a sulfite pulp mill to identify the substances causing fouling. Magnesium was detected both on the membrane surface and in the nonwoven membrane backing and a small amount of polysaccharides was detected after acid hydrolysis of the fouled membrane. This study provides information on foulants, which can be used to improve processing conditions and cleaning protocols and thus the membrane performance in pulp mill separation processes. It also provides an overview of the usefulness of various analytical methods. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Membrane Materials and Membrane Processes for Water and Wastewater Treatment)
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Review

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24 pages, 2724 KiB  
Review
Recent Advances of Pervaporation Separation in DMF/H2O Solutions: A Review
by Zongqi Zhang, Siquan Xu, Yuanfeng Wu, Shengbin Shi and Guomin Xiao
Membranes 2021, 11(6), 455; https://doi.org/10.3390/membranes11060455 - 20 Jun 2021
Cited by 16 | Viewed by 5345
Abstract
N,N-dimethylformamide (DMF) is a commonly-used solvent in industry and pharmaceutics for extracting acetylene and fabricating polyacrylonitrile fibers. It is also a starting material for a variety of intermediates such as esters, pyrimidines or chlordimeforms. However, after being used, DMF can be form 5–25% [...] Read more.
N,N-dimethylformamide (DMF) is a commonly-used solvent in industry and pharmaceutics for extracting acetylene and fabricating polyacrylonitrile fibers. It is also a starting material for a variety of intermediates such as esters, pyrimidines or chlordimeforms. However, after being used, DMF can be form 5–25% spent liquors (mass fraction) that are difficult to recycle with distillation. From the point of view of energy-efficiency and environment-friendliness, an emergent separation technology, pervaporation, is broadly applied in separation of azeotropic mixtures and organic–organic mixtures, dehydration of aqueous–organic mixtures and removal of trace volatile organic compounds from aqueous solutions. Since the advances in membrane technologies to separate N,N-dimethylformamide solutions have been rarely reviewed before, hence this review mainly discusses the research progress about various membranes in separating N,N-dimethylformamide aqueous solutions. The current state of available membranes in industry and academia, and their potential advantages, limitations and applications are also reviewed. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Recent Advances in Membrane Materials and Membrane Processes for Water and Wastewater Treatment)
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