Adsorptive Removal of Humic Acid by Zirconia Embedded in a Poly(ether sulfone) Membrane

Abstract

Presence of humic acid (HA) in ground water threatens aquatic life and human health and for the effective treatment of such pollutants an advanced/hybrid method is essential. In this work, zirconia embedded in polyethersulfone (ZrePES) mixed matrix membranes (MMMs) have been studied for the removal of HA. Chemical precipitation method was utilized to prepare nano zirconia (ZrO 2 ). The modified PES membrane with nano ZrO 2 of 2.5 and 5 wt% were studied.Contact angle measurement and protein rejection studies showed an enhanced hydrophilicity with increase in pore radius for ZrePES membranes. Also, the addition of nano ZrO 2 altered the membrane morphology and improved pure water permeability. Batch adsorption experiments revealed that HA adsorption efficiency was higher at pH 2 for ZrePES membranes. The HA uptake capacity of 50.5 mg/g was observed for the 5 wt% ZrePES membrane. Experimental adsorption results showed good agreement with adsorption kinetics model. Ultrafiltration studies showed HA rejection was up to 97% for 5 wt% ZrePES memebrane. Effects of natural substances and their impact on HA rejection in ZrePES membrane were also analyzed and discussed.

Concentration of whey protein from cheese whey effluent using ultrafiltration by combination of hydrophilic metal oxides and hydrophobic polymer

“…where K represents the dimensionless shape factor and its value is 0.9, λis the X‐ray wavelength and βis the full width at half maximum intensity of peak corresponding to 2θ. The preparation and characterization of nano titania and nano zirconia are discussed in earlier research studies. The chemical precipitation method and sol–gel method were adopted for the synthesis of nano titania and zirconia, respectively.…”

Preparation and characterization of TiO2-sulfonated polymer embedded polyetherimide membranes for effective desalination application

“…Recently, nanomaterials were incorporated extensively in polymer matrix to achieve the following characteristics; (i) alteration of required structure for the desired product separation [16], (ii) enhancement of hydrophilicity on membrane surface for fouling control [17,18] and (iii) provide better thermal and mechanical strength [19]. As compared to some of the nanomaterial like Al 2 O 3, ZrO 2 , ZnO and Fe 2 O 3 , titania (TiO 2 ) has numerous advantages such as super hydrophilic, higher specific surface area, photocatalytic nature, bactericidal, self-cleaning and resilient material in both thermal as well as chemical environment [20].…”

Influence of bentonite in polymer membranes for effective treatment of car wash effluent to protect the ecosystem

“…Adsorption is the phenomenon of solute accumulation on the membrane surface due to the preferential interaction (Thuyavan et al, 2014). The batch adsorption study was to compare the binding efficiency of effluent on both the modified membranes as well as commercial PES 10 kDa membranes.…”