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Zhu H, Szymczyk A, Ghoufi A. Multiscale modelling of transport in polymer-based reverse-osmosis/nanofiltration membranes: present and future. DISCOVER NANO 2024; 19:91. [PMID: 38771417 PMCID: PMC11109084 DOI: 10.1186/s11671-024-04020-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2023] [Accepted: 04/22/2024] [Indexed: 05/22/2024]
Abstract
Nanofiltration (NF) and reverse osmosis (RO) processes are physical separation technologies used to remove contaminants from liquid streams by employing dense polymer-based membranes with nanometric voids that confine fluids at the nanoscale. At this level, physical properties such as solvent and solute permeabilities are intricately linked to molecular interactions. Initially, numerous studies focused on developing macroscopic transport models to gain insights into separation properties at the nanometer scale. However, continuum-based models have limitations in nanoconfined situations that can be overcome by force field molecular simulations. Continuum-based models heavily rely on bulk properties, often neglecting critical factors like liquid structuring, pore geometry, and molecular/chemical specifics. Molecular/mesoscale simulations, while encompassing these details, often face limitations in time and spatial scales. Therefore, achieving a comprehensive understanding of transport requires a synergistic integration of both approaches through a multiscale approach that effectively combines and merges both scales. This review aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the state-of-the-art in multiscale modeling of transport through NF/RO membranes, spanning from the nanoscale to continuum media.
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Affiliation(s)
- Haochen Zhu
- State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resources Reuse, Key Laboratory of Yangtze River Water Environment, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Tongji University, 1239 Siping Rd., Shanghai, 200092, China.
| | - Anthony Szymczyk
- CNRS, ISCR (Institut des Sciences Chimiques de Rennes) - UMR 6226, Univ Rennes, 35000, Rennes, France.
| | - Aziz Ghoufi
- CNRS, ICMPE (Institut de Chimie et des Matériaux Paris-Est) - UMR 7182, Univ Paris-East Creteil, 94320, Thiais, France.
- CNRS, IPR (Institut de Physique de Rennes) - UMR 6251, Univ Rennes, 35000, Rennes, France.
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2
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Xu C, Wang Z, Hu Y, Chen Y. Thin-Film Composite Membrane Compaction: Exploring the Interplay among Support Compressive Modulus, Structural Characteristics, and Overall Transport Efficiency. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 2024; 58:8587-8596. [PMID: 38683942 PMCID: PMC11097391 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.4c01639] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2024] [Revised: 04/16/2024] [Accepted: 04/17/2024] [Indexed: 05/02/2024]
Abstract
Water scarcity has driven the demand for water production from unconventional sources and the reuse of industrial wastewater. Pressure-driven membranes, notably thin-film composite (TFC) membranes, stand as energy-efficient alternatives to the water scarcity challenge and various wastewater treatments. While pressure drives solvent movement, it concurrently triggers membrane compaction and flux deterioration. This necessitates a profound comprehension of the intricate interplay among compressive modulus, structural properties, and transport efficacy amid the compaction process. In this study, we present an all-encompassing compaction model for TFC membranes, applying authentic structural and mechanical variables, achieved by coupling viscoelasticity with Monte Carlo flux calculations based on the resistance-in-series model. Through validation against experimental data for multiple commercial membranes, we evaluated the influence of diverse physical parameters. We find that support polymers with a higher compressive modulus (lower compliance), supports with higher densities of "finger-like" pores, and "sponge-like" pores with optimum void fractions will be preferred to mitigate compaction. More importantly, we uncover a trade-off correlation between steady-state permeability and the modulus for identical support polymers displaying varying porosities. This model holds the potential as a valuable guide in shaping the design and optimization for further TFC applications and extending its utility to biological scaffolds and hydrogels with thin-film coatings in tissue engineering.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chunyan Xu
- School
of Resources & Environmental Engineering, Anhui University, Hefei, Anhui 230012, China
- School
of Civil & Environmental Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia 30332-0100, United States
| | - Zhongzhen Wang
- School
of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia 30332-0100, United States
| | - Yuhang Hu
- School
of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia 30332-0100, United States
- Woodruff
School of Mechanical Engineering, Georgia
Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia 30332-0100, United States
| | - Yongsheng Chen
- School
of Civil & Environmental Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia 30332-0100, United States
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Al-Tayawi AN, Gulyás NS, Gergely G, Fazekas ÁF, Szegedi B, Hodúr C, Lennert JR, Kertész S. Enhancing ultrafiltration performance for dairy wastewater treatment using a 3D printed turbulence promoter. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND POLLUTION RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL 2023; 30:108907-108916. [PMID: 37759054 PMCID: PMC10622354 DOI: 10.1007/s11356-023-30027-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2023] [Accepted: 09/18/2023] [Indexed: 09/29/2023]
Abstract
Dairy factories annually generate an increasing amount of wastewater, which can cause eutrophication due to high concentrations of amino acids and lipids. To address this issue, membrane technology has emerged as a promising solution, but membrane fouling remains a significant challenge, since it can cause decreased flux, decrease membrane rejection performance, and increased energy demand. This study aimed to reduce membrane fouling by integrated a three-dimensional printed (3DP) turbulence promoter into an ultrafiltration dead-end cell and varying stirring speeds. Two mathematical models, Hermia and resistance-in-series, were used to analyze the fouling process. According to both models, the cake layer formation model indicated the most prevalent fouling mechanism. Specific energy demand, permeate flux, membrane rejection, and membrane reversible and irreversible resistances were measured, calculated, and compared. The results suggest that the combination of an integrated 3DP turbulence promoter and high stirring speeds can effectively reduce membrane fouling in a dairy wastewater treatment module.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aws N Al-Tayawi
- Doctoral School of Environmental Sciences, University of Szeged, Szeged, H-6725, Hungary
- Department of Environmental Technology, Faculty of Environmental Science and Technology, University of Mosul, Mosul, 41002, Iraq
| | - Nikolett Sz Gulyás
- Doctoral School of Environmental Sciences, University of Szeged, Szeged, H-6725, Hungary
- Department of Food Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Szeged, Szeged, H-6725, Hungary
| | - Gréta Gergely
- Department of Biosystems Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Szeged, Szeged, H-6725, Hungary
| | - Ákos Ferenc Fazekas
- Doctoral School of Environmental Sciences, University of Szeged, Szeged, H-6725, Hungary
- Department of Biosystems Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Szeged, Szeged, H-6725, Hungary
| | - Balázs Szegedi
- Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Szeged, Szeged, H-6725, Hungary
| | - Cecilia Hodúr
- Department of Biosystems Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Szeged, Szeged, H-6725, Hungary
| | - József Richárd Lennert
- Department of Power Electronics and E-Drives, Audi Hungaria Faculty of Automotive Engineering, Széchenyi István University, Győr, H-9026, Hungary
| | - Szabolcs Kertész
- Department of Biosystems Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Szeged, Szeged, H-6725, Hungary.
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Kertész S, Al-Tayawi AN, Gergely G, Ott B, Gulyás NS, Jákói Z, Beszédes S, Hodúr C, Szabó T, László Z. Investigation of Different Pre-Treatment Techniques and 3D Printed Turbulence Promoter to Mitigate Membrane Fouling in Dairy Wastewater Module. MATERIALS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2023; 16:3117. [PMID: 37109952 PMCID: PMC10146657 DOI: 10.3390/ma16083117] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2023] [Revised: 04/04/2023] [Accepted: 04/13/2023] [Indexed: 06/19/2023]
Abstract
This study investigates the enhancement of dairy wastewater treatment using chemical and physical pre-treatments coupled with membrane separation techniques to reduce membrane fouling. Two mathematical models, namely the Hermia and resistance-in-series module, were utilized to comprehend the mechanisms of ultrafiltration (UF) membrane fouling. The predominant fouling mechanism was identified by fitting experimental data into four models. The study calculated and compared permeate flux, membrane rejection, and membrane reversible and irreversible resistance values. The gas formation was also evaluated as a post-treatment. The results showed that the pre-treatments improved UF efficiency for flux, retention, and resistance values compared to the control. Chemical pre-treatment was identified as the most effective approach to improve filtration efficiency. Physical treatments after microfiltration (MF) and UF showed better fluxes, retention, and resistance results than ultrasonic pre-treatment followed by UF. The efficacy of a three-dimensionally printed (3DP) turbulence promoter was also examined to mitigate membrane fouling. The integration of the 3DP turbulence promoter enhanced hydrodynamic conditions and increased the shear rate on the membrane surface, shortening filtration time and increasing permeate flux values. This study provides valuable insights into optimizing dairy wastewater treatment and membrane separation techniques, which can have significant implications for sustainable water resource management. The present outcomes clearly recommend the application of hybrid pre-, main- and post-treatments coupled with module-integrated turbulence promoters in dairy wastewater ultrafiltration membrane modules to increase membrane separation efficiencies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Szabolcs Kertész
- Department of Biosystems Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Szeged, Moszkvai Krt. 9, H-6725 Szeged, Hungary
| | - Aws N. Al-Tayawi
- Doctoral School of Environmental Sciences, University of Szeged, Tisza Lajos Krt. 103, H-6725 Szeged, Hungary
- Faculty of Environmental Science and Technology, University of Mosul, Al-Majmoa’a Street, Mosul 41002, Iraq
| | - Gréta Gergely
- Department of Biosystems Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Szeged, Moszkvai Krt. 9, H-6725 Szeged, Hungary
| | - Bence Ott
- Department of Biosystems Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Szeged, Moszkvai Krt. 9, H-6725 Szeged, Hungary
| | - Nikolett Sz. Gulyás
- Doctoral School of Environmental Sciences, University of Szeged, Tisza Lajos Krt. 103, H-6725 Szeged, Hungary
| | - Zoltán Jákói
- Department of Biosystems Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Szeged, Moszkvai Krt. 9, H-6725 Szeged, Hungary
- Doctoral School of Environmental Sciences, University of Szeged, Tisza Lajos Krt. 103, H-6725 Szeged, Hungary
| | - Sándor Beszédes
- Department of Biosystems Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Szeged, Moszkvai Krt. 9, H-6725 Szeged, Hungary
| | - Cecilia Hodúr
- Department of Biosystems Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Szeged, Moszkvai Krt. 9, H-6725 Szeged, Hungary
| | - Tamás Szabó
- Department of Physical Chemistry and Materials Science, University of Szeged, Rerrich Béla Tér. 1, H-6720 Szeged, Hungary
| | - Zsuzsanna László
- Department of Biosystems Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, University of Szeged, Moszkvai Krt. 9, H-6725 Szeged, Hungary
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Wang Z, Xu C, Fu Q, Nair S. Transport Properties of Graphene Oxide Nanofiltration Membranes: Electrokinetic Modeling and Experimental Validation. AIChE J 2022. [DOI: 10.1002/aic.17865] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Zhongzhen Wang
- School of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering Georgia Institute of Technology Atlanta GA USA
- Renewable Bioproducts Institute Georgia Institute of Technology Atlanta GA USA
| | - Chunyan Xu
- School of Civil and Environmental Engineering Georgia Institute of Technology Atlanta GA USA
| | - Qiang Fu
- School of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering Georgia Institute of Technology Atlanta GA USA
- Renewable Bioproducts Institute Georgia Institute of Technology Atlanta GA USA
| | - Sankar Nair
- School of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering Georgia Institute of Technology Atlanta GA USA
- Renewable Bioproducts Institute Georgia Institute of Technology Atlanta GA USA
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Hu P, Yuan B, Jason Niu Q, Wang N, Zhao S, Cui J, Jiang J. In situ assembled zeolite imidazolate framework nanocrystals hybrid thin film nanocomposite membranes for brackish water desalination. Sep Purif Technol 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.seppur.2022.121134] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/30/2023]
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Xue Q, Zhang K. The Preparation of High-Performance and Stable MXene Nanofiltration Membranes with MXene Embedded in the Organic Phase. MEMBRANES 2021; 12:2. [PMID: 35054527 PMCID: PMC8778054 DOI: 10.3390/membranes12010002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/20/2021] [Revised: 12/19/2021] [Accepted: 12/20/2021] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Nanomaterials embedded in nanofiltration membranes have become a promising modification technology to improve separation performance. As a novel representation of two-dimensional (2D) nanomaterials, MXene has nice features with a strong negative charge and excellent hydrophilicity. Our previous research showed that MXene nanosheets were added in the aqueous phase, which enhanced the permeselectivity of the membrane and achieved persistent desalination performance. Embedding the nanomaterials into the polyamide layer through the organic phase can locate the nanomaterials on the upper surface of the polyamide layer, and also prevent the water layer around the hydrophilic nanomaterials from hindering the interfacial polymerization reaction. We supposed that if MXene nanosheets were added in the organic phase, MXene nanosheets would have more negative contact sites on the membrane surface and the crosslinking degree would increase. In this study, MXene were dispersed in the organic phase with the help of ultrasound, then MXene nanocomposite nanofiltration membranes were achieved. The prepared MXene membranes obtained enhanced negative charge and lower effective pore size. In the 28-day persistent desalination test, the Na2SO4 rejection of MXene membrane could reach 98.6%, which showed higher rejection compared with MXene embedded in aqueous phase. The results of a long-time water immersion test showed that MXene membrane could still maintain a high salt rejection after being soaked in water for up to 105 days, which indicated MXene on the membrane surface was stable. Besides MXene membrane showed high rejection for high-concentration brine and good mono/divalent salt separation performance in mono/divalent mixed salt solutions. As a part of the study of MXene in nanofiltration membranes, we hoped this research could provide a theoretical guidance for future research in screening different addition methods and different properties.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qiang Xue
- Key Laboratory of Urban Pollutant Conversion, Institute of Urban Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xiamen 361021, China;
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Kaisong Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Urban Pollutant Conversion, Institute of Urban Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xiamen 361021, China;
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