Ecological Risk Evaluation and Removal of Emerging Pollutants in Urban Wastewater by a Hollow Fiber Forward Osmosis Membrane

Mónica Salamanca,Antonio Hernandez,Rebeca López-Serna,Pedro Prádanos,Laura Palacio,Mar Peña

doi:10.3390/membranes12030293

Mónica Salamanca, Antonio Hernandez + Show 4 more

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https://doi.org/10.3390/membranes12030293

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Journal: Membranes	Publication Date: Mar 4, 2022
Citations: 6	License type: CC BY 4.0

Affiliation: University of Valladolid

Abstract

Forward osmosis (FO) is a promising technology for the treatment of urban wastewater. FO can produce high-quality effluents and preconcentrate urban wastewater for subsequent anaerobic treatment. This membrane technology makes it possible to eliminate the pollutants present in urban wastewater, which can cause adverse effects in the ecosystem even at low concentrations. In this study, a 0.6 m2 hollow fiber aquaporin forward osmosis membrane was used for the treatment of urban wastewater from the Valladolid wastewater treatment plant (WWTP). A total of 51 Contaminants of Emerging Concern (CECs) were investigated, of which 18 were found in the target urban wastewater. They were quantified, and their ecotoxicological risk impact was evaluated. Different salts with different concentrations were tested as draw solutions to evaluate the membrane performances when working with pretreated urban wastewater. NaCl was found to be the most appropriate salt since it leads to higher permeate fluxes and lower reverse saline fluxes. The membrane can eliminate or significantly reduce the pollutants present in the studied urban wastewater, producing water without ecotoxicological risk or essentially free of pollutants. In all cases, good recovery was achieved, which increased with molecular weight, although chemical and electrostatic interactions also played a role.

Highlights

Introduction published maps and institutional affilThe development of new technologies for urban wastewater treatment deserves more and more attention due to the growing environmental restrictions at a global level and the increasing need to adapt conventional plants to more robust and sustainable treatment systems, necessarily combining energy efficiency and low environmental impact [1].Currently, aerobic biological processes are the most widely used techniques for urban wastewater treatment
The pretreatment urban wastewater used as the feed solution (FS) has a direct effect on the efficiency The pretreatment urban wastewater used as the FS has a direct effect on the efficiency of the Forward osmosis (FO) procedure
The research carried out shows the importance of membrane fouling when urban wastewater is used and shows the need for the prior pretreatment of urban wastewater

Summary

Introduction

Aerobic biological processes are the most widely used techniques for urban wastewater treatment These procedures require a large amount of energy due to their high electricity demand, mainly for aeration, and produce excessive amounts of sewage sludge with the consequent environmental problem that this implies [2], increasing the cost of the treatment. In these aerobically activated sludge processes, not all the energy content present in the wastewater is utilized, since the carbon content (i.e., chemical energy) of the wastewater is converted into biomass and carbon dioxide. In these aerobically activated sludge processes, not all the energy content present in the wastewater is utilized, since the carbon content (i.e., chemical energy) of the wastewater is converted into biomass and carbon dioxide. iations.

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