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Zhao R, Meng F, Wu Q, Zhong Z, Liu Y, Yang R, Li A, Liu H, Lu Y, Zhang Z, Li Q, Zhao H, Li J, Han L, Zuo K. Ultra-antiwetting Membrane for Hypersaline Water Crystallization in Membrane Distillation. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 2024; 58:14929-14939. [PMID: 39126388 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.4c05283] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 08/12/2024]
Abstract
Membrane distillation (MD) has great potential in the management of hypersaline water for zero liquid discharge (ZLD) due to its high salinity tolerance. However, the membrane wetting issue significantly restricts its practical application. In this study, a composite membrane tailored for extreme concentrations and even crystallization of hypersaline water is synthesized by coating a commercial hydrophobic porous membrane with a composite film containing a dense polyamide layer, a cation exchange layer (CEL), and an anion exchange layer (AEL). When used in direct contact MD for treating a 100 g L-1 NaCl hypersaline solution, the membrane achieves supersaturation of feed solution and a salt crystal yield of 38.0%, with the permeate concentration at <5 mg L-1. The composite membrane also demonstrates ultrahigh antiwetting stability in 360 h of long-term operation. Moreover, ion diffusion analysis reveals that the ultrahigh wetting resistance of the composite membrane is attributed to the bipolar AEL and CEL that eliminate ion crossover. The literature review elucidates that the composite membrane is superior to state-of-the-art membranes. This study demonstrates the great potential of the composite membrane for direct crystallization of hypersaline water, offering a promising approach to filling the gap between reverse osmosis and conventional thermal desalination processes for ZLD application.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ruixue Zhao
- The Key Laboratory of Water and Sediment Sciences, Ministry of Education, College of Environment Sciences and Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
- Key Laboratory of the Three Gorges Reservoir Region's Eco-Environment, Ministry of Education, College of Environment and Ecology, Chongqing University, Chongqing 400045, China
| | - Fanxu Meng
- The Key Laboratory of Water and Sediment Sciences, Ministry of Education, College of Environment Sciences and Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Qinghao Wu
- The Key Laboratory of Water and Sediment Sciences, Ministry of Education, College of Environment Sciences and Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Zihan Zhong
- The Key Laboratory of Water and Sediment Sciences, Ministry of Education, College of Environment Sciences and Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Yuanfeng Liu
- The Key Laboratory of Water and Sediment Sciences, Ministry of Education, College of Environment Sciences and Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Ruotong Yang
- The Key Laboratory of Water and Sediment Sciences, Ministry of Education, College of Environment Sciences and Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
- Pollution Prevention Biotechnology Laboratory of Hebei Province, College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Hebei University of Science and Technology, Shijiazhuang 050018, China
| | - Ao Li
- The Key Laboratory of Water and Sediment Sciences, Ministry of Education, College of Environment Sciences and Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
- College of Life and Environmental Sciences, Minzu University of China, Beijing 100081, China
| | - Huan Liu
- The Key Laboratory of Water and Sediment Sciences, Ministry of Education, College of Environment Sciences and Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
- Shanxi Laboratory for Yellow River, Institute of Resources and Environmental Engineering, Shanxi University, Taiyuan 030006, China
| | - Yanyu Lu
- The Key Laboratory of Water and Sediment Sciences, Ministry of Education, College of Environment Sciences and Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Zishuai Zhang
- The Key Laboratory of Water and Sediment Sciences, Ministry of Education, College of Environment Sciences and Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Qilin Li
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Rice University, MS 319, 6100 Main Street, Houston, Texas 77005, United States
- NSF Nanosystems Engineering Research Center for Nanotechnology-Enabled Water Treatment, Rice University, MS 6398, 6100 Main Street, Houston, Texas 77005, United States
| | - Huazhang Zhao
- The Key Laboratory of Water and Sediment Sciences, Ministry of Education, College of Environment Sciences and Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
| | - Jianfeng Li
- Shanxi Laboratory for Yellow River, Institute of Resources and Environmental Engineering, Shanxi University, Taiyuan 030006, China
| | - Le Han
- Key Laboratory of the Three Gorges Reservoir Region's Eco-Environment, Ministry of Education, College of Environment and Ecology, Chongqing University, Chongqing 400045, China
| | - Kuichang Zuo
- The Key Laboratory of Water and Sediment Sciences, Ministry of Education, College of Environment Sciences and Engineering, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
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Liu Z, Lu X, Wu C, Gu J, Wu Q. Exploiting the potential of a novel "in-situ latent heat recovery" in hollow-fiber vacuum membrane distillation process for simultaneously improved water production and energy efficiency. WATER RESEARCH 2024; 256:121586. [PMID: 38631240 DOI: 10.1016/j.watres.2024.121586] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/12/2023] [Revised: 03/26/2024] [Accepted: 04/07/2024] [Indexed: 04/19/2024]
Abstract
Thermal driven membrane distillation (MD) technology is a promising method for purifying & recovering various salty (especially high salty) or contaminated wastewaters with low-grade heat sources. However, the drawbacks of "high energy consumption" and "high cooling water consumption" pose special challenges for the future development of this technology. In this article, we report an innovative strategy called "in-situ heat transfer", which is based on the jacketed structure composed of hollow fiber membranes and capillary heat exchange tubes, to simplify the migration steps of condensation latent heat in MD heat recovery process. The results indicate that the novel heat recovery strategy exhibits higher growth rates both in the flux and gained output ratio (47.4 % and 173.1 %, respectively), and further reduces the system's dependence on cooling water. In sum, under the control of the "in-situ heat transfer" mechanism, the functional coupling of "vapor condensation (exothermic)" and "feed evaporation (endothermic)" in limited-domain space is an attractive alternative solution, because it eliminates the disadvantages of the imbalance between heat supply and demand in traditional heat recovery methods. Our research may facilitate the development of MD heat recovery modules for industrial applications, which will help to further achieve the goal of energy saving and emission reduction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ziqiang Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Separation Membranes and Membrane Processes, School of Material Science and Engineering, Tiangong University, Tianjin 300387, PR China
| | - Xiaolong Lu
- State Key Laboratory of Separation Membranes and Membrane Processes, School of Material Science and Engineering, Tiangong University, Tianjin 300387, PR China; State Key Laboratory of Membrane Materials and Membrane Applications, Tianjin Motimo Membrane Technology Co., Ltd., Tianjin 300457, PR China.
| | - Chunrui Wu
- State Key Laboratory of Separation Membranes and Membrane Processes, School of Material Science and Engineering, Tiangong University, Tianjin 300387, PR China
| | - Jie Gu
- State Key Laboratory of Separation Membranes and Membrane Processes, School of Material Science and Engineering, Tiangong University, Tianjin 300387, PR China
| | - Qiang Wu
- State Key Laboratory of Separation Membranes and Membrane Processes, School of Material Science and Engineering, Tiangong University, Tianjin 300387, PR China
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Ma Y, Yu Z, Fu X, Qiu T, Zhao N, Liu H, Huang Z, Liu K. High Breakthrough Pressure in Hydrogels Enabled Ultrastable Treatment of Hypersaline Wastewaters. NANO LETTERS 2024; 24:4202-4208. [PMID: 38547140 DOI: 10.1021/acs.nanolett.4c00219] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/11/2024]
Abstract
Surface effects of low-surface-tension contaminants accumulating at the evaporation surface easily induce wetting in membrane distillation, especially in hypersaline scenarios. Herein, we propose a novel strategy to eliminate the surface effect and redistribute contaminants at the evaporation interface simply by incorporating a layer of hydrogel. The as-fabricated composite membrane exhibits remarkable stability, even when exposed to solution with salt concentration of 5 M and surfactant concentration of 8 mM. Breakthrough pressure of the membrane reaches 20 bar in the presence of surfactants, surpassing commercial hydrophobic membranes by one to two magnitudes. Density functional theory and molecular dynamics simulations reveal the important role of the hydrogel-surfactant interaction in suppressing the surface effect. As a proof of concept, we demonstrate the membrane in stably processing synthetic wastewater containing 144 mg L-1 surfactants, 1 g L-1 mineral oils, and 192 g L-1 NaCl, showing its potential in addressing challenges of hypersaline water treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yanni Ma
- MOE Key Laboratory of Hydraulic Machinery Transients, School of Power and Mechanical Engineering, Wuhan University, Wuhan, Hubei 430072, China
| | - Zehua Yu
- MOE Key Laboratory of Hydraulic Machinery Transients, School of Power and Mechanical Engineering, Wuhan University, Wuhan, Hubei 430072, China
| | - Xifan Fu
- MOE Key Laboratory of Hydraulic Machinery Transients, School of Power and Mechanical Engineering, Wuhan University, Wuhan, Hubei 430072, China
| | - Tenghui Qiu
- MOE Key Laboratory of Hydraulic Machinery Transients, School of Power and Mechanical Engineering, Wuhan University, Wuhan, Hubei 430072, China
| | - Na Zhao
- MOE Key Laboratory of Hydraulic Machinery Transients, School of Power and Mechanical Engineering, Wuhan University, Wuhan, Hubei 430072, China
| | - Huidong Liu
- MOE Key Laboratory of Hydraulic Machinery Transients, School of Power and Mechanical Engineering, Wuhan University, Wuhan, Hubei 430072, China
| | - Zhi Huang
- MOE Key Laboratory of Hydraulic Machinery Transients, School of Power and Mechanical Engineering, Wuhan University, Wuhan, Hubei 430072, China
| | - Kang Liu
- MOE Key Laboratory of Hydraulic Machinery Transients, School of Power and Mechanical Engineering, Wuhan University, Wuhan, Hubei 430072, China
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Zhang J, Yuan S, Zhu X, Zhang N, Wang Z. Hypercrosslinked Hydrogel Composite Membranes Targeted for Removal of Volatile Organic Compounds via Selective Solution-Diffusion in Membrane Distillation. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 2024; 58:6039-6048. [PMID: 38507701 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.3c09320] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/22/2024]
Abstract
Membrane distillation (MD) has attracted considerable interest in hypersaline wastewater treatment. However, its practicability is severely impeded by the ineffective interception of volatile organic compounds (VOCs), which seriously affects the product water quality. Herein, a hypercrosslinked alginate (Alg)/aluminum (Al) hydrogel composite membrane is facilely fabricated via Alg pregel formation and ionic crosslinking for efficient VOC interception. The obtained MD membrane shows a sufficient phenol rejection of 99.52% at the phenol concentration of 100 ppm, which is the highest rejection among the reported MD membranes. Moreover, the hydrogel composite membrane maintains a high phenol interception (>99%), regardless of the feed temperature, initial phenol concentration, and operating time. Diffusion experiments and molecular dynamics simulation verify that the selective diffusion is the dominant mechanism for VOCs-water separation. Phenol experiences a higher energy barrier to pass through the dense hydrogel layer compared to water molecules as the stronger interaction between phenol-Alg compared with water-Alg. Benefited from the dense and hydratable Alg/Al hydrogel layer, the composite membrane also exhibits robust resistance to wetting and fouling during long-term operation. The superior VOCs removal efficiency and excellent durability endow the hydrogel composite membrane with a promising application for treating complex wastewater containing both volatile and nonvolatile contaminants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiaojiao Zhang
- Shandong Key Laboratory of Water Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Shandong University, Qingdao 266237, P. R. China
| | - Shideng Yuan
- Shandong Key Laboratory of Water Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Shandong University, Qingdao 266237, P. R. China
| | - Xiaohui Zhu
- Shandong Key Laboratory of Water Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Shandong University, Qingdao 266237, P. R. China
| | - Na Zhang
- Shandong Key Laboratory of Water Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Shandong University, Qingdao 266237, P. R. China
| | - Zhining Wang
- Shandong Key Laboratory of Water Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Shandong University, Qingdao 266237, P. R. China
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Yuan S, Yang X, Zhang N, Zhang J, Yuan S, Wang Z. Molecular insights into the adsorption and penetration of oil droplets on hydrophobic membrane in membrane distillation. WATER RESEARCH 2024; 253:121329. [PMID: 38387269 DOI: 10.1016/j.watres.2024.121329] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/17/2023] [Revised: 01/19/2024] [Accepted: 02/16/2024] [Indexed: 02/24/2024]
Abstract
Membrane fouling induced by oily substances significantly constrains membrane distillation performance in treating hypersaline oily wastewater. Overcoming this challenge necessitates a heightened fundamental understanding of the oil fouling phenomenon. Herein, the adsorption and penetration mechanism of oil droplets on hydrophobic membranes in membrane distillation process was investigated at the molecular level. Our results demonstrated that the adsorption and penetration of oil droplets were divided into four stages, including the free stage, contact stage, spreading stage, and equilibrium stage. Due to the extensive non-polar surface distribution of the polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) membrane (comprising 95.41 %), the interaction between oil molecules and PTFE was primarily governed by van der Waals interaction. Continuous oil droplet membrane fouling model revealed that the new oil droplet molecules preferred to penetrate into membrane pores where oil droplets already existed. The penetration of resin (a component of medium-quality oil droplets) onto PTFE membrane pores required the "pre-paving" of light crude oil. Finally, the ΔE quantitative structure-activity relationships (QSAR) models were developed to evaluate the penetration mechanism of pollutant molecules on the PTFE membrane. This research provides new insights for improving sustainable membrane distillation technologies in treating saline oily wastewater.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shideng Yuan
- Shandong Key Laboratory of Water Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Shandong University, Qingdao 266237, PR China
| | - Xin Yang
- Shandong Key Laboratory of Water Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Shandong University, Qingdao 266237, PR China
| | - Na Zhang
- Shandong Key Laboratory of Water Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Shandong University, Qingdao 266237, PR China
| | - Jiaojiao Zhang
- Shandong Key Laboratory of Water Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Shandong University, Qingdao 266237, PR China
| | - Shiling Yuan
- Key Lab of Colloid and Interface Chemistry, Shandong University, Jinan 250100, PR China
| | - Zhining Wang
- Shandong Key Laboratory of Water Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Shandong University, Qingdao 266237, PR China.
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Zhang N, Zhang J, Zhu X, Yuan S, Wang D, Xu H, Wang Z. Synergistic Effect of Ti 3C 2T x MXene Nanosheets and Tannic Acid-Fe 3+ Network in Constructing High-Performance Hydrogel Composite Membrane for Photothermal Membrane Distillation. NANO LETTERS 2024; 24:724-732. [PMID: 38166126 DOI: 10.1021/acs.nanolett.3c04159] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/04/2024]
Abstract
Photothermal membrane distillation (PMD) has emerged as a promising and sustainable approach for seawater desalination and wastewater purification. However, the wide application of the technique is severely impeded by low freshwater production and membrane fouling/wetting issues. Herein, we developed an advanced hydrogel-engineered membrane with simultaneously enhanced photothermal conversion capacity and desired fouling and wetting resistance for PMD. By the synergies of photothermal Ti3C2Tx MXene nanosheets and the tannic acid-Fe3+ network in the hydrogel, the membrane was endowed with excellent surface self-heating ability, yielding the highest freshwater production rate (1.71 kg m-2 h-1) and photothermal efficiency among the fabricated hydrogel composite membranes under 1 sun irradiation. Meanwhile, the PMD membrane could robustly resist oil-induced fouling and surfactant-induced wetting, significantly extending the membrane lifespan in treating contaminated saline water. Furthermore, when desalinating real seawater, the membrane exhibited superior durability with a stable vapor flux and excellent ion rejection (e.g., 99.24% for boron) for 100 h.
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Affiliation(s)
- Na Zhang
- Shandong Key Laboratory of Water Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Shandong University, Qingdao 266237, People's Republic of China
| | - Jiaojiao Zhang
- Shandong Key Laboratory of Water Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Shandong University, Qingdao 266237, People's Republic of China
| | - Xiaohui Zhu
- Shandong Key Laboratory of Water Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Shandong University, Qingdao 266237, People's Republic of China
| | - Shideng Yuan
- Shandong Key Laboratory of Water Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Shandong University, Qingdao 266237, People's Republic of China
| | - Dong Wang
- Shandong Key Laboratory of Water Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Shandong University, Qingdao 266237, People's Republic of China
| | - Haoran Xu
- Shandong Key Laboratory of Water Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Shandong University, Qingdao 266237, People's Republic of China
| | - Zhining Wang
- Shandong Key Laboratory of Water Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Shandong University, Qingdao 266237, People's Republic of China
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Yang X, Zhang N, Zhang J, Liu W, Zhao M, Lin S, Wang Z. Nanocomposite Hydrogel Engineered Janus Membrane for Membrane Distillation with Robust Fouling, Wetting, and Scaling Resistance. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 2023; 57:15725-15735. [PMID: 37787747 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.3c04540] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/04/2023]
Abstract
Membrane distillation (MD) is considered to be rather promising for high-salinity wastewater reclamation. However, its practical viability is seriously challenged by membrane wetting, fouling, and scaling issues arising from the complex components of hypersaline wastewater. It remains extremely difficult to overcome all three challenges at the same time. Herein, a nanocomposite hydrogel engineered Janus membrane has been facilely constructed for desired wetting/fouling/scaling-free properties, where a cellulose nanocrystal (CNC) composite hydrogel layer is formed in situ atop a microporous hydrophobic polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) substrate intermediated by an adhesive layer. By the synergies of the elevated membrane liquid entry pressure, inhibited surfactant diffusion, and highly hydratable surface imparted by the hydrogel/CNC (HC) layer, the resultant HC-PTFE membrane exhibits robust resistance to surfactant-induced wetting and oil fouling during 120 h of MD operation. Meanwhile, owing to the dense and hydroxyl-abundant surface, it is capable of mitigating gypsum scaling and scaling-induced wetting, resulting in a high normalized flux and low distillate conductivity at a concentration factor of 5.2. Importantly, the HC-PTFE membrane enables direct desalination of real hypersaline wastewater containing broad-spectrum foulants with stable vapor flux and robust salt rejection (99.90%) during long-term operation, demonstrating its great potential for wastewater management in industrial scenarios.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xin Yang
- Shandong Key Laboratory of Water Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Shandong University, Qingdao 266237, People's Republic of China
| | - Na Zhang
- Shandong Key Laboratory of Water Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Shandong University, Qingdao 266237, People's Republic of China
| | - Jiaojiao Zhang
- Shandong Key Laboratory of Water Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Shandong University, Qingdao 266237, People's Republic of China
| | - Weifan Liu
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee 37235-1831, United States
| | - Mingwei Zhao
- Key Laboratory of Unconventional Oil & Gas Development, Ministry of Education, School of Petroleum Engineering, China University of Petro1eum (East China), Qingdao 266580, People's Republic of China
| | - Shihong Lin
- Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee 37235-1831, United States
| | - Zhining Wang
- Shandong Key Laboratory of Water Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of Environmental Science and Engineering, Shandong University, Qingdao 266237, People's Republic of China
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