Development of novel nanocomposite membranes for hybrid forward osmosis processes

开发用于混合正向渗透过程的新型纳米复合膜

• 批准号: RGPIN-2021-03490
• 负责人: Kruczek, Boguslaw
• 金额: $ 2.4万
• 依托单位: University of Ottawa
• 依托单位国家: 加拿大
• 项目类别: Discovery Grants Program - Individual
• 财政年份: 2022
• 资助国家: 加拿大
• 起止时间: 2022-01-01 至 2023-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Details-Detailles_eng.asp?id=746795
• 关键词: Development; novel; nanocomposite; membranes; hybrid

Clean water is a scarce resource because only 2.5% of all the water present on Earth is suitable for direct human consumption. Simultaneously, the growing world population, industrialization, agriculture, and pollution have dramatically increased water demand. This has led to a water crisis, one of the grand challenges of the 21st century. Membrane processes, in particular reverse osmosis (RO), are now the primary separation technology used in seawater and brackish water desalination. RO is a pressure-driven process in which the feedwater is pumped at a pressure higher than the osmotic pressure difference between the feed and permeate, allowing pure water to permeate while salts are rejected. Water desalination by RO membranes is currently the best solution to tackle the water crisis. However, it is still an expensive technology, which is not affordable by many third world countries. In forward osmosis (FO), it is the difference in osmotic pressure (feed is at ambient pressure) that drives water permeation from feed (could be wastewater) to a more concentrated draw solution. If the draw solution is seawater, the FO process will dilute it, making subsequent RO less energy-intensive and less prone to fouling and scaling problems. FO cannot be a stand-alone desalination process. However, combining RO with FO into a hybrid process could significantly reduce pure water cost by membrane desalination. Unfortunately, despite the abundance of commercial RO membranes, currently available FO membranes are not adequate for such a hybrid process. The proposed research program addresses this challenge. This proposal's heart is the approach to a novel thin-film nanocomposite (TFN) FO membrane, optimized while simultaneously optimizing the RO membrane for the hybrid process. We will also introduce a new membrane characterization method based on dynamic FO tests to evaluate the osmotic membrane's structural parameter. The new method represents the fundamental shift in this research field. TFN membranes will utilize pure and functionalized cellulose nanocrystals, i.e., safe nanoparticles, which and abundant in Canada. Desalination of brackish water is vital for the oil sand industry. Another critical application of hybrid FO-RO processes in the Canadian context is removing heavy metals from wastewaters, vital for our mining, copper smelter and textile industries. Finally, students trained through this program will gain a unique combination of skills, strong fundamentals at the intersection of science and engineering, with hands-on practical experience. They will become leaders in the field, making Canada contributions to membrane separation technology recognizable and relevant.

清洁水是一种稀缺的资源，因为地球上所有水的所有水中只有2.5％适合直接人类消费。同时，不断增长的世界人口，工业化，农业和污染大大增加了水需求。这导致了水危机，这是21世纪的巨大挑战之一。 膜过程，尤其是反渗透（RO），现在是海水和咸水脱盐的主要分离技术。 RO是一个压力驱动的过程，其中馈电水的压力高于进料和渗透之间的渗透压差，从而使纯水渗透到盐时渗透。目前，RO膜的脱盐是应对水危机的最佳解决方案。但是，这仍然是一项昂贵的技术，许多第三世界国家都不能负担得起。在正向渗透（FO）中，正是渗透压的差异（进料处于环境压力下），从而将水渗透到饲料（可能是废水）到更浓缩的抽取溶液。如果抽签溶液是海水，则FO过程将稀释它，从而使RO的能源密集型较低，并且易于结垢和缩放问题。 FO不能成为独立的淡化过程。但是，将RO与FO结合到混合过程中可以大大降低膜的淡淡水成本。不幸的是，尽管商业RO​​膜丰富，但目前可用的FO膜不足以进行这种混合过程。拟议的研究计划解决了这一挑战。该提议的心脏是新型薄膜纳米复合材料（TFN）FO膜的方法，同时优化了混合过程的RO膜。我们还将基于动态FO检验引入一种新的膜表征方法，以评估渗透膜的结构参数。新方法代表了该研究领域的基本转变。 TFN膜将利用纯且功能化的纤维素纳米晶体，即安全的纳米颗粒，在加拿大且丰富。咸水的淡化对于油砂行业至关重要。在加拿大背景下，混合工艺过程的另一个关键应用是从废水中去除重金属，这对于我们的采矿，铜冶炼厂和纺织工业至关重要。最后，通过该计划进行培训的学生将获得独特的技能组合，在科学与工程的交汇处，具有实践经验。他们将成为该领域的领导者，为加拿大对膜分离技术的贡献可识别和相关。