High efficiency manganese cobalt spinel structure catalytic ozonation ceramic membrane for in situ BPA degradation and membrane fouling elimination

Abstract

In recent years, micropollutants contamination in aquatic environments has received increasing attention. Bisphenol A (BPA), an endocrine-disrupting compound, has emerged as a substantial threat to water safety owing to its widespread presence in various aquatic environments. To address this issue, this study focused on the development of ceramic membranes incorporating manganese-cobalt oxides (MCOs) to catalyze the ozone-based degradation of BPA. The catalytic layer was prepared by hydrothermal in-situ growth method, which enhanced BPA degradation during water treatment and improved the ceramic membrane’s resistance to contamination. Moreover this study investigated the synergistic effect of catalytic ozone oxidation in mitigating ceramic membrane pollution and degrading micropollutants. The catalytic mechanism and the contamination modeling were examined systematically to determine the mechanism of micropollutant contamination on ceramic membranes. The experimental results showed that the modified ceramic membrane exhibited a higher BPA removal efficiency (90.6%) and flux recovery (99.5%) than the unmodified membrane (64.2% and 79%, respectively). Furthermore, the MCOs-modified ceramic membrane (CCM) effectively enhanced the generation of hydroxyl radicals during ozonolysis. This enhancement resulted in better degradation of organic pollutants in water, thus improving the quality of the treated water. The combination of ceramic membrane catalytic separation with ozone oxidation technology offers a potential solution for the degradation of emerging pollutants and the mitigation of ceramic membrane pollution.