Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

A pilot application of recycled discarded RO membranes for low strength gray water reclamation

Environmental Science and Pollution Research volume 28, pages 34042–34050 (2021)Cite this article

Abstract

Reuse of recycled RO membranes after oxidative treatment as ultrafiltration membranes promise to bring membrane filtration at par with conventional treatment processes in terms of cost-effectiveness. Although the treatment process in which discarded RO membranes are converted into ultrafiltration membranes is well documented, limited pilot data are available for their application in different filtration applications. This research gap is felt because most commercially available RO membranes are spiral, wound while the ultrafiltration membranes commonly used for water filtration applications are hollow fiber. Pilot-scale data will help to develop performance guidelines and predict fouling characteristics of different types of feed waters. In the current paper, converted RO membranes are subjected to filtration with domestic gray water as the feed source. The results show that the converted membranes performed at par with conventional filtration while also providing a consistent filtrate turbidity of < 1 NTU. The reduction in cost and physical footprints and recycling of membranes that would otherwise have ended up in landfills are added advantages that makes this an attractive proposition for gray water filtration applications.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution.

Access options

Buy single article

Instant access to the full article PDF.

USD 39.95

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6
Fig. 7
Fig. 8
Fig. 9
Fig. 10

Data availability

The datasets used and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

References

  • Ambrosi A, Tessaro IC (2013) Study on potassium permanganate chemical treatment of discarded reverse osmosis membranes aiming their reuse separation Sci Technol 48:1537–1543 doi:https://doi.org/10.1080/01496395.2012.745876

  • Antony A, Fudianto R, Cox S, Leslie G (2010) Assessing the oxidative degradation of polyamide reverse osmosis membrane—accelerated ageing with hypochlorite exposure. J Membr Sci 347:159–164

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Boyjoo Y, Pareek VK, Ang M (2013) A review of greywater characteristics and treatment processes. Water Sci Technol 67:1403–1424. https://doi.org/10.2166/wst.2013.675

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Chaillou K, Gérente C, Andrès Y, Wolbert D (2011) Bathroom greywater characterization and potential treatments for reuse. Water Air Soil Pollut 215:31–42

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Coutinho de Paula E, Amaral MCS (2017) Extending the life-cycle of reverse osmosis membranes: a review. Waste Manag Res 35:456–470. https://doi.org/10.1177/0734242X16684383

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Coutinho de Paula E, Martins PV, Ferreira ICdM, Amaral MCS (2018) Bench and pilot scale performance assessment of recycled membrane converted from old nanofiltration membranes Environmental technology:1–13

  • Crittenden JC, Trussell RR, Hand DW, Howe KJ, Tchobanoglous G (2012) MWH’s water treatment: principles and design. John Wiley & Sons,

  • Dupont-Water-Solutions (2019) FILMTEC™ Reverse osmosis membranes Technical Manual

  • García-Pacheco R, Landaburu-Aguirre J, Molina S, Rodríguez-Sáez L, Teli SB, García-Calvo E (2015) Transformation of end-of-life RO membranes into NF and UF membranes: evaluation of membrane performance. J Membr Sci 495:305–315

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • García-Pacheco R et al (2018) Validation of recycled membranes for treating brackish water at pilot scale. Desalination 433:199–208. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.desal.2017.12.034

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • García-Pacheco R, Landaburu-Aguirre J, Lejarazu-Larrañaga A, Rodríguez-Sáez L, Molina S, Ransome T, García-Calvo E (2019) Free chlorine exposure dose (ppm· h) and its impact on RO membranes ageing and recycling potential. Desalination 457:133–143

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gohil JM, Suresh AK (2017) Chlorine attack on reverse osmosis membranes: mechanisms and mitigation strategies. J Membr Sci 541:108–126

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Landaburu-Aguirre J, García-Pacheco R, Molina S, Rodríguez-Sáez L, Rabadán J, García-Calvo E (2016) Fouling prevention, preparing for re-use and membrane recycling towards circular economy in RO desalination. Desalination 393:16–30. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.desal.2016.04.002

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Lanxess-Lewabrane (2013) Membrane cleaning: equipment requirement and procedure. Köln

  • Lawler W (2015) Assessment of end-of-life opportunities for reverse osmosis membranes School of Chemical Engineering and Faculty of engineering

  • Lawler W, Wijaya T, Antony A, Leslie G, Le-Clech P (2011) Reuse of reverse osmosis desalination membranes. In: IDA World Congress. Perth convention and exhibition Centre Perth, Western Australia

  • Lawler W, Bradford-Hartke Z, Cran MJ, Duke M, Leslie G, Ladewig BP, Le-Clech P (2012) Towards new opportunities for reuse, recycling and disposal of used reverse osmosis membranes. Desalination 299:103–112

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Lawler W, Antony A, Cran M, Duke M, Leslie G, Le-Clech P (2013) Production and characterisation of UF membranes by chemical conversion of used RO membranes. J Membr Sci 447:203–211

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Molina S, Landaburu-Aguirre J, Rodríguez-Sáez L, García-Pacheco R, José G, García-Calvo E (2018) Effect of sodium hypochlorite exposure on polysulfone recycled UF membranes and their surface characterization. Polym Degrad Stab 150:46–56

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Pontié M (2015) Old RO membranes: solutions for reuse. Desalin Water Treat 53:1492–1498. https://doi.org/10.1080/19443994.2014.943060

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Prince C, Cran M, LeCleche P, Hoehn K, Duke M (2011) Reuse and recycling of used desalination membranes

  • Raval HD, Chauhan VR, Raval AH, Mishra S (2012) Rejuvenation of discarded RO membrane for new applications. Desalin Water Treat 48:349–359. https://doi.org/10.1080/19443994.2012.704727

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Rodríguez JJ, Jiménez V, Trujillo O, Veza J (2002) Reuse of reverse osmosis membranes in advanced wastewater treatment. Desalination 150:219–225. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0011-9164(02)00977-3

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Salahi A, Abbasi M, Mohammadi T (2010) Permeate flux decline during UF of oily wastewater: experimental and modeling. Desalination 251:153–160

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Shi X, Tal G, Hankins NP, Gitis V (2014) Fouling and cleaning of ultrafiltration membranes: a review. Journal of Water Process Engineering 1:121–138. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jwpe.2014.04.003

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Verbeke R, Gómez V, Vankelecom IF (2017) Chlorine-resistance of reverse osmosis (RO) polyamide membranes. Prog Polym Sci 72:1–15

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Veza JM, Rodriguez-Gonzalez JJ (2003) Second use for old reverse osmosis membranes: wastewater treatment. Desalination 157:65–72. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0011-9164(03)00384-9

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Virgili F, Pankratz T, Gasson J (2016) IDA desalination yearbook 2015–2016. Media Analytics Limited, Oxford

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Funding

The authors are thankful for the technical and financial support received from the Prime Chemicals Corporation (PCC) Pvt. Ltd., Karachi, through a joint R&D project with the National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST), Islamabad, Pakistan, under a joint memorandum of understanding (MOU) for this research study.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Environmental Sciences and Engineering (IESE), School of Civil and Environmental Engineering (SCEE), National University of Sciences and Technology (NUST), Islamabad, 44000, Pakistan

    Jawwad Ahmed & Yousuf Jamal

Authors
  1. Jawwad Ahmed
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Yousuf Jamal
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Contributions

All authors contributed to the study conception and design. Material preparation, data collection, and analysis were performed by Mr. Jawwad Ahmed under supervision of Dr. Yousuf Jamal. The first draft of the manuscript was written by Mr. Jawwad Ahmed, and all authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Yousuf Jamal.

Ethics declarations

Competing interest

The authors declare that they have no competing interest.

Ethics approval and consent to participate

Not applicable.

Consent for publication

Not applicable.

Additional information

Responsible Editor: Angeles Blanco

Publisher’s note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and Permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Ahmed, J., Jamal, Y. A pilot application of recycled discarded RO membranes for low strength gray water reclamation. Environ Sci Pollut Res 28, 34042–34050 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-020-11117-z

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-020-11117-z

Keywords

search

Navigation