Thin-film composite membrane on a compacted woven backing fabric for pressure assisted osmosis

Abstract

TFC membrane supported on backing fabric was fabricated for PAO process.• RO and FO membrane casting methods were investigated. • PAO membrane had a higher S value compared to FO membranes. • PAO membrane had a higher water permeability compared to FO membranes. • Developed PAO membrane can sustain applied hydraulic pressure.The water flux in forward osmosis (FO) process declines substantially when the draw solution (DS) concentration reaches closer to the point of osmotic equilibrium with the feed solution (FS). Using external hydraulic pressure alongside the osmotic driving force in the pressure assisted osmosis (PAO) has been found effective in terms of enhancing water flux and even potentially diluting the DS beyond osmotic equilibrium. The net gain in water flux due to the applied pressure in the PAO process closely depends on the permeability of the FO membrane. The commercial flat sheet cellulose triacetate (CTA) FO membrane has low water permeability and hence the effective gain in water flux in the PAO process is low. In this study, a high performance thin film composite membrane was developed especially for the PAO process through casting polyethersulfone (PES) polymer solution on a compacted woven fabric mesh support followed by interfacial polymerisation for polyamide active layer. This PAO membrane possesses a water flux of 37 L m 2 h −1 using 0.5 M NaCl as DS and deionised water as the feed at an applied hydraulic pressure of 10 bar. Besides, the membrane was able to endure the external hydraulic pressure required for the PAO process owing to the embedded backing fabric support. While the membranes with low structural parameters are essential for higher water flux, this study shows that for PAO process, polymeric

Fabricating robust thin film composite membranes reinforced on woven mesh backing fabric support for pressure assisted and forward osmosis: A dataset

“…3 . This method has been chosen in commercial scale in order to limit the polymer solution bleeding through the woven mesh fabric in the CTA-FO membrane which otherwise leads to defect points across the FO membrane substrate due to trapped air bubbles [1] , [5] . In method 2, polymer solution first is casted on the rotating drum then the porous fabric will be pulled from the top whereas in RO style membrane fabrication (method 1) polymer solution directly is poured and casted on the nonwoven thick fabric.…”

“…Hydraulic pressure was applied on the FS side in the case of PAO tests. An adjustable pressure pump was used for the FS side [1] , [4] , [6] , [7] , [8] . The applied hydraulic pressure on the FS varies between 0 and 10 bars.…”

“… Experimental features The fabricated membranes were characterized and later assessed under forward and pressure assisted osmosis. Data source location University of Technology Sydney (UTS), Australia, Sydney Data accessibility With this article Related research article This data is presented as a companion paper to the original research article entitled: “Thin-film composite membrane on a compacted woven backing fabric for pressure assisted osmosis”, by S. Sahebi et al published in the Journal of Desalination [1] . …”

Optimization of the Forward Osmosis Process Using Aquaporin Membranes in Chromium Removal

“…Forward osmosis (FO) is a green emerging membrane technology in water and wastewater treatment processes which has advantages of low energy requirement, less membrane fouling, and low or no extra pressure, compared to the pressure-driven membrane processes [16][17][18]. In this process, a semi-permeable membrane separates the draw solution (DS) from the feed solution (FS).…”

Assessment of a Thermally Modified Cellulose Acetate Forward‐Osmosis Membrane Using Response Surface Methodology

“…The results showed that the substrate morphology in terms of sponge‐like or finger‐like structure has less impact on WF compared to the substrate hydrophilic property. Further, compaction of TFC‐FO membranes under the influence of hydraulic pressure has an effect on WF in the long term in pressure‐retarded osmosis (PRO) and pressure‐assisted osmosis (PAO) , . It could be concluded that the sponge‐like structure of membranes mainly provides better resistance to the membrane compaction compared to the finger‐like structure of membranes .…”