PVDF/Fe2O3 mixed matrix membrane for oily wastewater treatment

Abstract

Oily wastewater has been recognized as one of the most concerned environmental pollutions that comes from a variety of sources. The increasing of these uncontrollable oily wastewater discharges had consequently led to environmental problems. The current barrier in this situation is when dealing with finely emulsified oily wastewater streams with small droplet size (< 20 μm in diameter). To tackle this issue, it was found that the utilization of the membrane technology was most effective due to its highly effective separation process and its simplicity. Nevertheless, traditional filtration membranes are mostly afflicted with low flux and rejection rate as a consequence of easy fouling caused by the plugging of oil and surfactant. Thus, the wettability and antifouling properties of the membrane play an important role in dealing with this issue. The aim of this study is to evaluate the performance and operation of the membrane when treating oily wastewater. PVDF was chosen as the host polymer based on its outstanding properties and 0.2 wt% of Fe 2 O 3 loading was utilized to enhance the hydrophilicity of the membrane. The effect of mixed matrix membrane (MMM) and neat poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) membrane relating to their differences in the SEM images, water flux and oil rejection was studied. The presence of additive in the polymeric composition has helped to achieve 40 % higher flux increment with an oil removal efficacy of ~97 %, as compared to the unmodified PVDF membrane.