A review of nanomaterials based membranes for removal of contaminants from polluted waters

Abstract

Safe water has becoming a competitive resource in many parts of the world due to increasing population, prolonged droughts, climate change etc. The development of economical and stable materials and methods for providing the fresh water in adequate amounts is the need of the water industry. Nanomaterials have unique characteristics e.g., large surface areas, size, shape, and dimensions etc. that make them particularly attractive for removing various contaminants from polluted waters. Nanotechnology based multifunctional and highly efficient membrane processes are providing affordable solutions in the new era that do not rely on large infrastructures or centralizes systems. The objective of the current study is to review the possible applications of the membrane based nanomaterials/composites for the removal of various contaminations from polluted waters. The article will briefly overview the availability and practice of different nanomaterials based membranes for removal of bacteria and viruses, organic compounds and inorganic solutes etc. present in surface water, ground water, seawater and/or industrial water. Finally, recommendations are made based on the current practices of nanofiltration membranes in water industry for a stand-alone membrane filtration system in removing various types of contaminants from polluted waters.

Development of a treatment unit for removal of arsenic from groundwater

“…It is estimated that approximately 50 million to 60 million people of Pakistan use arsenic contaminated groundwater. This number is alarmingly high and demonstrates the urgent need for verification and testing of all drinking water wells in the Indus Plain, followed by appropriate mitigation measures (Podgorski et al, 2017;Amin and Alazba, 2014). The purpose of this study was to develop and analyze the performance of an arsenic removal unit for elimination of arsenic contaminants from groundwater using locally available costeffective materials.…”

Electrospun Environment Remediation Nanofibers Using Unspinnable Liquids as the Sheath Fluids: A Review

“…It is well-known that biomacromolecules have the potential to become fine adsorbents for the removal of heavy metals [47,48]. Particularly, protein molecules contain numerous groups with lone pairs of electrons and partial negative charges, and these groups allow protein molecules to absorb metal ions through electrostatic interaction and/or chelation.…”

Ultrafiltration Mixed Matrix Membranes Based on Mesoporous Silica (MCM-41, HMS)Embedded in Polysulfone

“…The hydrophobicity of polysulfone polymers often leads to severe membrane fouling and decline of permeability through membranes. One way to overcome this drawback may be achieved by improving of hydrophilicity of membranes by blending the polymeric matrix with porous or non-porou inorganic fillers [6][7][8][9][10][11]. Among numerous inorganic fillers, silica, SiO 2 , in form of nonporous (nano)particles or as mesoporous material, is extensively used due to its facile preparation, mild reactivity and wellknown chemical properties [8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24].…”

“…One way to overcome this drawback may be achieved by improving of hydrophilicity of membranes by blending the polymeric matrix with porous or non-porou inorganic fillers [6][7][8][9][10][11]. Among numerous inorganic fillers, silica, SiO 2 , in form of nonporous (nano)particles or as mesoporous material, is extensively used due to its facile preparation, mild reactivity and wellknown chemical properties [8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24]. Numerous examples of hybrid membranes incorporated with solid silica particles (SiO 2 ) have been reported and demonstrated that the addition of SiO 2 into polymer film is beneficial to membrane separation performance either in terms of membrane flux or selectivity [8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24].…”