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Enhancement of polysulfone membrane with integrated ZnO nanoparticles for the clarification of sweetwater

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Abstract

Clarification is one of the main steps in producing glycerin from glycerin–rich solution (namely sweetwater) in oleo-chemical industry. In this study, ZnO nanoparticles (9–12 nm in diameter) were incorporated into polysulfone (PSf) membranes to improve the membrane antifouling properties toward the fatty acids in sweetwater. The hybrid membranes were fabricated through wet phase inversion method. The modified membranes exhibited better water permeability, membrane surface hydrophilicity (improvement from 82° to 62.1°) and resistance toward fouling by fatty acids. In this study, the best membrane was obtained in the presence of 3% of ZnO nanoparticles, which showed good fouling resistance, high solution flux and a very high rejection of fatty acids (≥80%) in comparison with the pure PSf membranes, at the same experimental conditions. The enhanced membrane performances during the clarification of sweetwater were attributed to the unique properties of ZnO nanoparticles that were uniformly dispersed in the PSf structures.

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Acknowledgements

The Grant ICONIC-2014-002 is acknowledged for the financial support of this project.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemical and Process Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and Built Environment, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, 43600, Bangi, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia

    E. Mahmoudi, A. W. Mohammad, M. M. Ba-Abbad & Z. Razzaz

  2. Centre for Sustainable Process Technology (CESPRO), Faculty of Engineering and Built Environment, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, 43600, Bangi, Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia

    A. W. Mohammad

  3. Universiti Department of Chemical Engineering, Lee Kong Chian Faculty of Engineering and Science, Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman, Jalan Sungai Long, Bandar Sungai Long, Cheras, 43000, Kajang, Selangor, Malaysia

    L. Y. Ng

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  1. E. Mahmoudi
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  2. L. Y. Ng
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  3. A. W. Mohammad
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  4. M. M. Ba-Abbad
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  5. Z. Razzaz
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Correspondence to E. Mahmoudi.

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Editorial responsibility: Binbin Huang.

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Mahmoudi, E., Ng, L.Y., Mohammad, A.W. et al. Enhancement of polysulfone membrane with integrated ZnO nanoparticles for the clarification of sweetwater. Int. J. Environ. Sci. Technol. 15, 561–570 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13762-017-1413-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13762-017-1413-0

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