Multi-dimensional parametric study for enhancing Brackish Water Reverse Osmosis membrane performance suited for desalination of low salinity feeds.

Reverse osmosis (RO) effectively provides clean drinking water. Different RO membrane types are tailored to treat saline water feeds with varying characteristics. In the context of low brackish water feeds, the objective is to remove only a minimal excess of salinity through the membrane. Our study introduces a method of membrane post-treatments capable of achieving controlled salt rejection while concurrently enhancing permeate flux, which is vital for achieving effective and energy-efficient desalination of low brackish water. The post-treatments were conducted on our in-house-developed membranes using aqueous solutions of N,N-Dimethylformamide and glycerol for different drying times at the coupon level. The process was scaled up at the module level, allowing us to assess its potential for commercial application. At the coupon level, the permeate flux increased significantly from 3.7 ± 0.9 to 10.6 ± 0.2 L/m2·h·bar, while the salt rejection decreased from 95.6 ± 1% to 70.5 ± 1% when measured with a feed of 2,000 ppm NaCl concentration. At the module level, we observed a higher flux of 12.8 L/m2·h·bar, alongside a salt rejection of 55.5% with a similar feed. Varying post-treatment parameters at the coupon level allowed us to attain the desired salt rejection and permeate flux values. Physical changes in both pristine and post-treated membranes, including polymer swelling, were observed without chemical alterations, enhancing our understanding of the post-treatment effect and its potential for broader commercial use. PRACTITIONER POINTS: Post-treatment of RO membranes enhances flux. Physical structuring through polymer swelling was observed with the chemical structure unaltered. Post-treatment of RO opens doors for broader energy-efficient desalination application.

An Ultrahydrophobic Fluorous Metal-Organic Framework Derived Recyclable Composite as a Promising Platform to Tackle Marine Oil Spills.

Derived from a strategically chosen hexafluorinated dicarboxylate linker aimed at the designed synthesis of a superhydrophobic metal-organic framework (MOF), the fluorine-rich nanospace of a water-stable MOF (UHMOF-100) exhibits excellent water-repellent features. It registered the highest water contact angle (≈176°) in the MOF domain, marking the first example of an ultrahydrophobic MOF. Various experimental and theoretical studies reinforce its distinctive water-repellent characteristics, and the conjugation of superoleophilicity and unparalleled hydrophobicity of a MOF material has been coherently exploited to achieve real-time oil/water separation in recyclable membrane form, with significant absorption capacity performance. This is also the first report of an oil/water separating fluorinated ultrahydrophobic MOF-based membrane material, with potential promise for tackling marine oil spillages.

Influence of hydrophilic silica nanoparticles to the conformation of hydrophilic polymer chain in dilute solution system.

We studied interaction of hydrophilic polymer chain and hydrophilic silica nanoparticles in a dilute aqueous system using an idealized model system comprised of a well characterized polyvinyl alcohol of 100 Å R(g) and hard spherical LUDOX® silica of 80 Å radii. Interaction among the polymer chains forming polymer clusters with collective polymer structure factor induced by the polymer-mediated potentials of mean force between the nanoparticles, was observed. However, Gaussian nature of individual polymer chain remains unaltered. The dilute system of polymer with low silica volume fraction has the scattering form which was appropriately modeled as the sum of the individual profiles of spherical silica particles and polymer cluster of interchain packing. With increasing silica volume fraction in the dilute solution, the spatial range parameter between the particles is reduced; hence there is a net increase in the mean potential force and consequently to stronger interaction between the silica and polymer. In the dilute systems of high silica with low polymer volume fraction, the polymer chain apparently attracted closer to the silica and concurrently absorbed to the silica hard surface and their scattering data were excellently fit with a model form factor as comprising of one unit forming the core of the spherical silica particles and the interacting polymer as the corona. This result of severe change in polymer interchain conformation in a dilute system corroborated with reduced polymer viscosity observed.

SANS study to probe nanoparticle dispersion in nanocomposite membranes of aromatic polyamide and functionalized silica nanoparticles.

Silica nanoparticles produced from organically functionalized silicon alkoxide precursors were incorporated into polyamide film to produce a silica-polyamide nanocomposite membrane with enhanced properties. The dispersion of the silica nanoparticles in the nanocomposite membrane was characterized by performing small-angle neutron scattering (SANS) measurements on dilute reactant systems and dilute solution suspensions of the final product. Clear scattering of monodisperse spherical particles of 10-18 A R(g) were observed from dilute solutions of the initial reactant system. These silica nanoparticles initially reacted with diamine monomers of polyamide and subsequently were transformed into polyamide-coated silica nanoparticles; finally nanoparticle aggregates of 27-45 A R(g) were formed. The nanoparticle dispersion of the membrane as the nanosized aggregates is in corroboration with ring- or chain-like assemblies of the nanoparticles dispersed in the bulk polyamide phase as observed by transmission electron microscopy. It is demonstrated that dispersions of silica nanoparticles as the nanosized aggregates in the polyamide phase could be achieved in the nanocomposite membrane with a silica content up to about 2 wt.%. Nanocomposite membranes with higher silica loading approximately 10 wt.% lead to the formation of large aggregates of sizes over 100 A R(g) in addition to the nanosized aggregates.

Characterization of physical structure of silica nanoparticles encapsulated in polymeric structure of polyamide films.

Polyamide nanocomposite films were prepared from nanometer sized silica particles and trimesoyl chloride-m-phenylene diamine based polyamides. The type of silica nanoparticles used is commercial LUDOX HS-40 and the particle size characterized by the radius of gyration (R(g)) is about 66 A. The immediately prepared films were easily broken into particles to form colloidal-like dilute suspension of the silica-polyamide composite particles in D(2)O-H(2)O solutions for SANS measurements, that in this dilute system SANS data the complication of scattering data from the interacting particles is minimized. At about 60% D(2)O of the sample solution, the silica is contrasted out, therefore the SANS profiles are predominantly from the organic polyamide scattering. The SANS profile of the sample solutions measured at 90% D(2)O clearly indicates scattering from both silica and polymer. The scattering heterogeneities for two-phase system were evident from the validity of the Debye-Bueche expression in case of the nanocomposite with high silica loading. At limited silica loading of the nanocomposite, interaction between the silica and polymer chains forming core-shell morphology was observed. The transport properties of the membranes made from the nanocomposite films were measured on a batch type test kit with an aqueous solution of 500 ppm dioxane concentration at pressures ranging from 50 to 200 psig, and correlated to their composite structure.

High surface area nanoporous amorphous silica prepared by dodecanol assisted silica formate sol-gel approach.

A simple polycondensation of monocarboxylic acids with silicon alkoxides led to transparent silica gels mainly comprised of silicate species of closed structures. This 'sol-gel formic acid' approach was modified by trapping an organic template (dodecanol) inside the silicate network during the polymerization process. Using this templating approach, porous silica of extremely high surface area, was produced in contrast to non-porous silica obtained by non-templating approach. The S(BET) surface areas of the template assisted samples resulting from the entire pores were found to be up to 725 m(2)/g. The total pore volumes of the samples were in the range of 0.40-0.74 cc/g in which micropore volumes were about 0.15-0.25 cc/g; the porosity depending on the reactants molar ratios of dodecanol, silicon alkoxide and formic acid.