Utilization of Nano-TiO
2 as an Influential Additive for Complementing Separation Performance of a Hybrid PVDF-PVP Hollow Fiber: Boron Removal from Leachate.
Polymers (Basel) 2020;
12:polym12112511. [PMID:
33126619 PMCID:
PMC7693612 DOI:
10.3390/polym12112511]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/25/2020] [Revised: 10/07/2020] [Accepted: 10/10/2020] [Indexed: 12/07/2022] Open
Abstract
The continuous increase in anthropogenic activities resulting in an increase in boron concentration in the environment is becoming a serious threat to public health and the ecosystem. In this regard, a hybrid polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF)-polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PVP) hollow fiber was synthesized with hydrophilic nano-titanium oxide (TiO2) at varied loadings of 0, 0.5, 1.0, 1.5, and 2.0 wt% using the phase inversion technique. The resultant membranes were characterized in terms of Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (EDX), contact angle, porosity, and zeta potential. The permeability flux was assessed using both pure water and leachate; also, rejection performance was evaluated based on boron removal from the leachate. The results revealed that the membrane with 1.0 wt% loading had the highest flux alongside an upturn in boron rejection percentage of 223 L/m2·h and 94.39%, respectively. In addition, the lowest contact angle of 50.01° was recorded with 1.0 wt% TiO2 loading, and this implies that it is the most hydrophilic. Throughout the experiment cycles, the fiber with 1.0 wt% TiO2 loading demonstrated a high flux recovery varying between 92.82% and 76.26% after 9 h filtration time. The physicochemical analysis of the permeate revealed that the boron concentration was significantly reduced to 0.43 mg/L, which is far lower than the discharge limit of 1.0 mg/L.
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