Decoration of Cauliflower-Like TiO₂ on Nanofibrous PVDF Membranes: A Strategy for Wastewater Treatment

Abstract

Water resources have been significantly affected by the growth of the modern industry as well as regular marine oil spills, which has led people to develop cutting-edge technology or materials for the treatment of oily wastewater. Herein, we successfully decorated the surface of the electrospun nanofibrous (NF) PVDF membrane with a photocatalytic TiO2 nano cauliflower-like structure with a facile, cost-effective hydrothermal approach. Taking advantage of the surface’s micro/nano structure, the NF TiO2@PVDF nano cauliflower-like membrane shows magnificent surface wettability, photocatalytic degradability, and robustness. It can separate both water-in-oil mixture and surfactant-stabilized water-in-oil emulsions with a high degree of separation efficiency because of the wetting behavior of the membrane. Moreover, taking advantage of the photocatalytic nature of the TiO2, the resultant NF TiO2@PVDF nano cauliflower-like membrane can also be used in degrading pharmaceutical and organic pollutants to address wastewater treatment. Given the distinctive supremacy of the aforementioned modified NF PVDF membrane, the technique can encourage the widespread development of multifunctional superwetting materials presenting an appealing potential for complex oily wastewater treatment.

Highly Moisture-Resistant Flexible Thin-Film-Based Triboelectric Nanogenerator for Environmental Energy Harvesting and Self-Powered Tactile Sensing

“…However, after the addition of PVC and TiO 2 nanoparticles, the characteristic peaks of TiO 2 can be clearly identified in the PVDF–HFP/PVC/TiO 2 composite film. Among them, the peaks at 2θ = 25.4, 37.8, 48.1, and 62.68° correspond to the (101), (004), (200), and (204) crystal planes of TiO 2 , respectively Figure a presents the chemical composition of the PVDF–HFP/PVC/TiO 2 composite film through XPS analysis, with clear peaks identified for the elements C, O, Cl, and F. It is noted that after incorporating TiO 2 into PVDF–HFP/PVC, TiO 2 might be coated by the polymer PVDF–HFP and PVC, and the peak of Ti element is not obvious because of its uniform distribution and no obvious agglomeration.…”

Superhydrophilic Photothermal-Responsive CuO@MXene Nanofibrous Membrane with Inherent Biofouling Resistance for Treating Complex Oily Wastewater

“…where C feed and C permeate are the content of oil in the feed and permeate emulsions. 35 The content of oil in both the feed and permeate emulsions was determined by analyzing the absorbance spectra measured with a UV−vis spectrophotometer. The water permeance (WP) was also calculated by measuring the time required to collect the filtrate over the NFM's effective surface area.…”

“…Consequently, this process resulted in the collection of a clear filtrate. To quantify the separation ability of CuO@MX-PAN NFM, separation efficiency SE ff (%) was computed as follows: normalSE ff .25em ( % ) = ( C feed − C permeate C feed ) × 100 where C feed and C permeate are the content of oil in the feed and permeate emulsions . The content of oil in both the feed and permeate emulsions was determined by analyzing the absorbance spectra measured with a UV–vis spectrophotometer.…”

Hierarchical 0D CuO Wrapped by Petal-like 2D ZnO: A Strategic Approach of Superhydrophobic Melamine Sponge toward Wastewater Treatment

“…Particularly when dealing with substantial wastewater volumes, the sorption method stands out for its relatively simple operation and minimal generation of chemical waste or secondary environmental harm. , Recently, the spotlight has shifted toward hydrophobic porous materials with selective oil/water sorption, showcasing high separation performance . Examples include electro-spun materials with hydrophobic properties, hydrophobic filter membranes, and environmentally friendly porous adsorption materials, including sponges. − Among these evolving porous materials, three-dimensional (3D) sponges exhibit exceptional promise against their one-dimensional (1D) and two-dimensional (2D) counterparts. Specifically, 3D sponges with tailored wetting characteristics have demonstrated exceptional oil absorbency, offering broad prospects for further development .…”