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Comparison studies in suspension and hybrid photocatalytic membrane reactor (HPMR) system was investigated by using Reactive Black 5 (RB5) as target pollutant under UVA light irradiation. To achieve this aim, hybrid TiO2/clinoptilolite (TCP) photocatalyst powder was prepared by solid-state dispersion (SSD) methods and embedded at the outer layer of dual layer hollow fiber (DLHF) membranes fabricated via single step co-spinning process. TiO2 and CP photocatalyst were also used as control samples. The samples were characterized by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Energy Dispersion of X-ray (EDX), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) analyses. The result shows that TCP was actively functioned as photocatalyst in suspension system and 86% of RB5 photocatalytic degradation achieved within 60 min; however the additional step is required to separate the catalyst with treated water. In the HPMR system, even though the RB5 photocatalytic degradation exhibits lower efficiency however the rejection of RB5 was achieved up to 95% under UV irradiation due to the properties of photocatalytic membranes. The well dispersed of TCP at the outer layer of DLHF membrane have improved the surface affinity of DL-TCP membrane towards water, exhibit the highest pure water flux of 41.72 L/m2.h compared to DL-TiO2 membrane. In general, CP can help on improving photocatalytic activity of TiO2 in suspension, increased the RB5 removal and the permeability of DLHF membrane in HPMR system as well.
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This work aims to optimise the factors that affect the adsorptive removal of ammonia by natural zeolite hollow fibre ceramic membrane (HFCM) in a continuous crossflow system using surface response methodology (RSM). The adsorptive HFCM was first characterised using the scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy prior to the adsorption process. A face-centred central composite design (CCD) was used to statistically visualise the interaction of the factors, namely feed pH, feed concentration, and HFCM dosage, with the response of water permeability and ammonia removal of the HFCM. The optimum conditions for the HFCM performance were feed pH of 7.04, feed concentration of 75.00 mg/L, and HFCM dosage of 0.35 g, with a desirability value of 0.953. The excellent ammonia removal performance (96.5%) reveals that the HFCM possesses great potential to be developed as a synergised system that combines the adsorption and filtration of water.
Oilfield-produced water (OPW) contains a complex mixture of toxic and hazardous organic and inorganic compounds. Refractory polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and polyaromatic hydrocarbons such as benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene (BTEX) chemical compounds present in OPW which result from hydrocarbon sources and chemicals added during the oil recovery process, have become a source of global concern. Their continuous presence in the OPW requires suitable technology to remove them before their discharge to the environment. When the OPW contains harmful pollutants combined with oil in minute size, the treatment performance of various water technologies appears insufficient due to the generation of secondary by-products, which are also recalcitrant and toxic. To consolidate scattered knowledge of OPW in the field of water pollution control, this article critically reviews and evaluates the technical feasibility of heterogeneous photocatalysis for OPW treatment, their bottlenecks in applications, and the way forward for the removal of recalcitrant hydrocarbon compounds from OPW. This work also presents the nature, composition, and health implications of these compounds in the OPW. Pertinent factors for effective photodegradation were presented. It also critically evaluates and discusses a variety of pilot and commercial-scale applications of photocatalysis in water treatment and its limitations. It was conclusively evident from 239 published articles (1988–2022) that heterogeneous photocatalytic degradation is a powerful approach for the removal of the hydrocarbon compounds such as PAHs, BTEX, and phenol with an average of over 80% of degradation efficiency. The photocatalytic process can be scaled up to the commercial scale with the proper design of photocatalytic reactors and the synthesis of advanced photocatalysts.
Nowadays, there is a huge demand of bendable/stretchable electronic devices because of their remarkable capabilities. With such an aim and inclination towards flexible spintronics devices, half-metallic nanocrystalline Fe3O4 thin films with various thicknesses are grown on flexible polycarbonate (PC) substrates by reactive sputtering at room temperature. The structural analysis reveals that as the deposition time increases from ∼165 s to ∼1335 s, the thickness of the film also increases from 50 nm to 400 nm with the size of the grain from ∼12 nm to ∼32 nm, respectively. The X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) shows that the films grown on PC substrates are the pure form of Fe3O4 nanostructures. The electrical and magnetic characteristics are studied to illustrate the furtherance of the original belongings of Fe3O4. The Verwey transition temperature (T v ) of ∼127 K, Ms value of ∼317 emu/cm3 and MR -8.3% under H ∥ Film plane below 60 kOe at 300 K for 200 nm thick Fe3O4 film on PC substrate were observed. Additionally, several bending experiments are executed to confirm the retention and adjustability of these properties for such heterostructures. These remarkable results show that Fe3O4/PC heterostructures can be a promising applicant for flexible spintronics.
The recently emerged severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) has become a significant and topmost global health challenge of today. SARS-CoV-2 can propagate through several direct or indirect means resulting in its exponential spread in short times. Consequently, finding new research based real-world and feasible solutions to interrupt the spread of pathogenic microorganisms is indispensable. It has been established that this virus can survive on a variety of available surfaces ranging from a few hours to a few days, which has increased the risk of COVID-19 spread to large populations. Currently, available surface disinfectant chemicals provide only a temporary solution and are not recommended to be used in the long run due to their toxicity and irritation. Apart from the urgent development of vaccine and antiviral drugs, there is also a need to design and develop surface disinfectant antiviral coatings for long-term applications even for new variants. The unique physicochemical properties of graphene-based nanomaterials (GBNs) have been widely investigated for antimicrobial applications. However, the research work for their use in antimicrobial surface coatings is minimal. This perspective enlightens the scope of using GBNs as antimicrobial/antiviral surface coatings to reduce the spread of transmittable microorganisms, precisely, SARS-CoV-2. This study attempts to demonstrate the synergistic effect of GBNs and metallic nanoparticles (MNPs), for their potential antiviral applications in the development of surface disinfectant coatings. Some proposed mechanisms for the antiviral activity of the graphene family against SARS-CoV-2 has also been explained. It is anticipated that this study will potentially lead to new insights and future trends to develop a framework for further investigation on this research area of pivotal importance to minimize the transmission of current and any future viral outbreaks.
Southeast Asia is vulnerable to climate change with over half of its population already being impacted by drought, flooding, and rise in sea levels recently. This work reviews the current water resource challenges in Indonesia, prone to the rising impacts of climate change. A baseline assessment of Indonesia's water and drinking water resources related to its original sources is presented. In response to a growing concern over chronic challenges that undermine water supply nationwide, this study analyses drinking water safety supervision. To accomplish this, a literature survey (100 studies published during the 2000–2023 period) was performed to identify regional groundwater resources sustainability and water security issues. Among the main findings of this study, only 10% of rainfall infiltrates to the groundwater, while 70% of its rivers are heavily polluted by domestic waste. During the study period, water availability decreased to 1,200 m3/year in 2020, with only 35% of the resources being economically feasible for reuse. The water supply deficit in Indonesia was estimated to be 5.5 hm3/year with roughly 67% of the population's water demand satisfied in 2021. Although this deficit might be fulfilled with private vendors, water supply/demand forecasts in 2030 suggest that the gap could not be closed by increasing water supply.
A composite membrane for direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) application was fabricated by blending sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone) (SPEEK) with boron orthophosphate (BPO4). The effects of the boron/phosphate (B/P) fraction of BPO4 and relative loading are discussed. These effects include membrane permeability to methanol and proton conductivity. The results showed that the proton conductivity of the composite membrane at room temperature increased with reduction of BPO4's B/P. However, the trade-off trend was exhibited in methanol permeability results. A 20wt.% of BPO4 enhanced proton conductivity which deteriorated suddenly upon further loading. In comparison with Nafion® 117, the composite membranes have demonstrated better methanol separator property. The highest proton conductivity value of the composite membrane was 3.35×10−3 S/cm, and this value is adequate for DMFC application even though slighlty lower than the proton conductivity of Nafion® 117 membrane.
Clean water resources are dwindling due to the rapid development of industrialization, population growth and long-term drought has become an issue worldwide. With this growing demand, various practical strategies and solutions have been adopted to yield more viable water resources. Over the last decades, a great deal of interest has been focused on the membrane and photocatalytic process of organic compounds present in water and wastewaters by using a catalyst in the form of nanoparticles or nanofibers. The paper presents an overview of the photocatalytic process and the application of using nanofibers in the process. Different modifications of photocatalyst are described. Advantages of the nanofiber application for photocatalytic process are discussed. Moreover a short introduction of producing the nanofibers using an electrospinning process is given.
