Monoamine‐modified thin film composite nanofiltration membrane for permselective separation of fermentation bioproducts

Abstract

One process involved in biorefinery for generation of value-added products is fermentation. After fermentation, the downstream bioproduct purification process is conventionally performed by organic solvent extraction, which is environmentallyhazardous and costly. Membrane-based separation is a cost-efficient and environmentally-benign method for bioproduct separation and purification. In this study, a thin film composite (TFC) nanofiltration (NF) membrane was prepared and the pore size and charge of the polyamide layer were controlled by introducing iminodiacetic acid (IDA), a charged monoamine monomer, with piperazine (PIP) during interfacial polymerization (IP). The newly-developed NF membrane was found to have a molecular weight cut-off (MWCO) of 500 to 1350 Da, allowing the permeation of the fermentation product, while rejecting other higher molecular weight compounds. IDA addition in the aqueous amine solution during IP effectively engineered the MWCO values and pore sizes of TFC NF membranes for specific applications, such as separation of fermentation bioproducts. This study successfully showed that IDA reduced the diffusivity of PIP during IP, which negatively affected the polyamide formation and membrane performance. The optimal PIP:IDA concentration ratio was determined by MWCO and effective pore diameter for effective bioproduct separation and purification, which could not be performed by the current commercially-available NF membranes.

Improving dye removal ability and fouling resistance of thin‐film nanocomposite nanofiltration membranes using a new citric acid functionalized FSM‐16 mesoporous

“…As a result, NF is a potential and environmentally friendly separation technique to be employed in the biotechnology, pharmaceutical, food, and water industries, as well as in desalination, dye, and water pollution removal. [11][12][13] Energy-efficient NF membranes used for water treatment generally have a thin-film composite (TFC) structure. 14 Unfortunately, a permeability-selectivity trade-off known as the "upper bound" limits their separation performances.…”

“…NF membranes have higher penetration than reverse osmosis (RO) membranes and better rejection than ultrafiltration (UF) membranes, making NF an appealing membrane separation technology. As a result, NF is a potential and environmentally friendly separation technique to be employed in the biotechnology, pharmaceutical, food, and water industries, as well as in desalination, dye, and water pollution removal 11–13 …”