Abstract
In recent years, technology for the fabrication of mixed-matrix membranes has received significant research interest due to the widespread use of mixed-matrix membranes (MMMs) for various separation processes, as well as biomedical applications. MMMs possess a wide range of properties, including selectivity, good permeability of desired liquid or gas, antifouling behavior, and desired mechanical strength, which makes them preferable for research nowadays. However, these properties of MMMs are due to their tailored and designed structure, which is possible due to a fabrication process with controlled fabrication parameters and a choice of appropriate materials, such as a polymer matrix with dispersed nanoparticulates based on a typical application. Therefore, several conventional fabrication methods such as a phase-inversion process, interfacial polymerization, co-casting, coating, electrospinning, etc., have been implemented for MMM preparation, and there is a drive for continuous modification of advanced, easy, and economic MMM fabrication technology for industrial-, small-, and bulk-scale production. This review focuses on different MMM fabrication processes and the importance of various parameter controls and membrane efficiency, as well as tackling membrane fouling with the use of nanomaterials in MMMs. Finally, future challenges and outlooks are highlighted.
Highlights
Membranes can be described as films that act as selective barriers between two adjacent phases that allow the transportation of substances from one compartment to another [1]
Biocolloid-induced membrane fouling is called biofouling [22], and is caused by a range of bacteria like Aeromonas, Corynebacterium, Bacillus, Flavobacterium, Pseudomonas, and Arthrobacter, and by fungi like Trichoderma, Penicillium, and other eukaryote microorganisms [23]. This foulant layer affects the permeate flux in two different ways [24,25]: first by creating an additional hydraulic resistance that results in low water flux and membrane permeability at a fixed applied pressure, which can be overcome by applying higher pressure; and by the formation of a porous cake layer inside the unstirred cake layer, resulting in a higher concentration polarization, which leads to higher solute concentration on the membrane surface, as well as an increase in the osmotic pressure of the membrane surface and a decrease in the membrane flux
It is established that a higher mass per unit area of hydrophobic solute is adsorbed by membranes with high contact angles than that by the membranes with a lower contact angle [33]
Summary
Membranes can be described as films that act as selective barriers between two adjacent phases that allow the transportation of substances from one compartment to another [1]. Membranes are mostly polymer-based, which is adjusted by their synthesis process for the separation of specific substances, and results in efficient cost-effective separation technology with high performance. Mixed-matrix membranes (MMMs) are an important class of organic–inorganic nanocomposite membranes with dispersed nanoparticles in polymeric films. The use of mixed-matrix membranes (MMMs) is under development, in which nause of mixed-matrix membranes (MMMs)inisthe under development, in MMMs which nanoparticles noparticles are used as the filler materials polymeric matrix of [4] for appliare usedsuch as the in gas the polymeric of MMMs [4] forand applications such cations as filler watermaterials filtration, separation,matrix fuel-cell application, pervaporation as water filtration, application, and pervaporation [5,6,7]. As the effective use of MMMs is increasing on the membrane materials and their applications.
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