Contactor System Research Articles

Pilot-Scale Assessment of a Mobile Off-Grid Membrane Contactor System for the Recovery of Cyanide from Gold Processing Wastewater

Pilot-Scale Assessment of a Mobile Off-Grid Membrane Contactor System for the Recovery of Cyanide from Gold Processing Wastewater

Recovery of bio-based volatile fatty acids from anaerobically treated winery wastewater using a closed-loop liquid-liquid hydrophobic membrane contactor system

This research evaluated a closed-loop hydrophobic liquid–liquid membrane contactor (MC) for the recovery of volatile fatty acids (VFAs) from the effluent of an up-flow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB) bioreactor treating winery wastewater. Sodium bicarbonate was used as a stripping solution for its operational flexibility and compatibility with downstream bioprocesses. An electrochemical acidification cell (EAC) was tested to continuously adjust of pH of the feed solution to avoid the use of inorganic acids. VFA recovery was optimized under different flow rates and feed pH conditions using a synthetic VFA solution and validated with actual UASB effluent. Lower feed pH resulted in higher VFA recovery due to increased protonation of the acids. This effect was more pronounced when using synthetic VFA solutions compared to real UASB effluent. Specifically, the MC system recovered 16 ± 5 % of acetic acid at 0.3 ± 0.1 gCOD/m2h flux and 34 ± 4 % of butyric acid at 0.5 ± 0.1 gCOD/m2h flux at an unadjusted UASB effluent feed pH of 4.9, compared to 22 ± 3 % at 0.5 ± 0.1 gCOD/m2h flux and 46 ± 5 % at 0.7 ± 0.1 gCOD/m2h flux, respectively, at pH 2. The EAC effectively lowered the feed pH of UASB effluent to 3.9, achieving acetic acid recovery of 22 ± 3 % at a mass flux of 0.2 ± 0.1 gCOD/m2h, and butyric acid recovery of 45 ± 1 % at a mass flux of 0.6 ± 0.1 gCOD/m2h. These moderate recovery efficiencies are likely influenced by the lower pH gradient resulting from the use of sodium bicarbonate. However, the compatibility of sodium bicarbonate with bioprocesses offers the advantage that the proposed UASB-MC system can be seamlessly integrated with downstream bioprocesses to produce valuable end products for other markets, such as PHA for plastics and microbial proteins for animal feed.

Application of non-acid stripping solution in hydrophobic membrane process for high-purity ammonia recovery from high-strength ammonium wastewater

Recently, resource recovery from wastewater has been in the spotlight due to climate change and the energy crisis. Ammonia has significant value as a resource that serves as fertilizer or eco-friendly fuel, with a market value ranging from $0.4 to $1.0 per kg-N. In the membrane contactor (MC) process, an acid stripping solution such as H2SO4 is generally used for high ammonia recovery efficiency. However, the ammonia-recovered stripping solution often has limited applications as fertilizer due to the presence of anions, necessitating costly downstream processes like electrochemical treatments to separate ammonia from these contaminants. This study introduces a novel approach that dynamically compares various stripping solutions to reduce chemical consumption while achieving high-purity ammonia recovery. Notably, the recovered ammonia from the membrane contactor showed no detectable levels of nitrate, other ions, or organic carbon, all without the use of acidic solutions. Furthermore, the benefit-cost ratio of 1.42, derived from the dynamic comparison, highlights the cost-effectiveness and demonstrates the practicality of this method compared to traditional acidic stripping approaches.This innovative comparison underscores the membrane contactor system’s ability to recover high-purity ammonia, presenting a sustainable and economically viable solution for ammonia recovery in wastewater treatment. It achieves this without the need for additional chemical agents or expensive downstream processes, offering a more efficient alternative to conventional methods.

Optimization of hollow fiber membrane contactor system for CO2 mineralization using seawater brine: Comparative analysis of performance and transport mechanisms

Carbon mineralization is a promising approach for carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) but still faces technical and economic challenges. This study reports on CO2 mineralization using various hollow fiber membrane contactors (HFMCs) to optimize the system and understand the mass transport mechanism. We conducted a quantitative comparative assessment through theoretical and experimental approaches to evaluate the performance of three HFMC types with different morphological and chemical characteristics at various gas and liquid velocities. Results showed that the in-house developed highly porous hollow fiber (HF) membrane exhibited superior CO2 capture efficiency compared to commercial membranes. In contrast to other HFMCs showing a sharp decline in CO2 flux due to internal fouling caused by pore wetting and external fouling, the highly porous HF membrane with surface modification maintained stable performance during continuous operation due to its superhydrophobicity and surface roughness. The HF membrane also achieved the highest overall mass transfer coefficients, closely matching the theoretical non-wetted mode due to negligible partial wetting. We expect that this study will provide insights into optimizing HFMCs for enhanced carbon mineralization efficiency.

Evaluasi Sistem Proteksi Motor Induksi 3 Fasa sebagai Mesin Bubut di CV. Multi Teknik Perkasa (MTP)

Cv.Multi Teknik Perkasa (MTP) is an individual company which operates in the field of tools, commonly known as lathes. This company handles repair, cutting and scraping of working media such as iron, steel and others. CV. Multi Teknik Perkasa (MTP) uses a 3 phase induction motor for each production process. One of the lathe driving machines used is a 3 phase 380V induction motor with 6KVA power. This induction motor has a Mini Circuit Breaker (MCB), Contactor, and Thermal Overload Relay (TOR) protection system, which functions as an overload controller so that the electric motor is not easily burned or damaged due to overload. For Mini Circuit Breaker (MCB), which in accordance with the standards of the National Electrical Manufactures Association (NEMA). According to research results, the correct size is 25 A while the installed one is 20 A, which of course is not appropriate. For contactors, which are installed at 65 A while the analysis results are 12 A, the three-phase induction motor protection system must be updated or improved. Previously using DiazedFuse (fuse), replaced with a contactor with a current setting of 12 A, so that the motor can avoid being damaged or burned due to the load. Moreover, to find out the power requirements of the induction motor to carry out the turning process, you need the tools to do it, including amper pliers, thermogun, tachometer, so the motor power for turning without load is 5.5A while with a 0.5mm tire the motor power increases to 6A and the maximum load limit is 1mm turning motor power 12A.

Modeling, validation, and optimization of a rotating advanced oxidation contactor equipped with TiO2-zeolite composite sheets for sulfamethazine removal

The necessity to remove antibiotic residues such as sulfamethazine from veterinary/hospital wastewater is evident due to their widespread existence, challenges in treatment, and potential harm in aquatic ecosystems. This study focused on modeling, validating, and optimizing the removal of sulfamethazine (SMT) using two lab-scale rotating advanced oxidation contactor (RAOC) systems equipped with TiO2-zeolite composite sheets. Four key parameters—temperature, UV intensity, rotation speed, and sheet area by tank volume (A/V)—were investigated to understand their individual effects and interactions using the drum-RAOC system. The adsorption and decomposition processes of the RAOC systems were separately studied. In terms of the adsorption process, A/V was found to be the primary parameter influencing RAOC performance, with significant interaction observed between temperature and A/V. For the decomposition process, A/V and UV intensity were identified as the dominant parameters, with interactions affecting photocatalysis performance. Kinetic fitting was used to explore the underlying mechanisms, and liquid film thickness on the sheet surface was employed to support the explanations. Furthermore, validation experiments conducted using the disk-RAOC system confirmed the accuracy and applicability of these models. Through comprehensive optimization, the optimal parameter set was determined: temperature of 20°C, rotation speed of 5 rpm, UV intensity of 1.5 mW/cm2, and A/V of 200 cm2/L. Additionally, the current findings were compared with previous studies to illustrate the efficiency of RAOC systems. These results provide valuable guidelines for designing and operating RAOC systems and serve as a reference for balancing performance and consumption in immobilized photocatalysis systems.

Artificial intelligence modeling and simulation of membrane-based separation of water pollutants via ozone Process: Evaluation of separation

The present study offers a comparative examination of regression models that are utilized for the prediction of concentration (C) in a new hybrid ozone-membrane process for removal of water pollutants. The main focus is on the tracking ozone concentration in the feed side of a membrane contactor system. Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) was carried out to obtain data of ozone concentration (C) for developing some machine learning (ML) models. The models are based on input variables r (m) and z (m). The dataset comprises over 10,000 data, and three different models, namely Convolutional Neural Network (CNN), Support Vector Regression (SVR), and Orthogonal Matching Pursuit (OMP), are evaluated. The hyperparameters of these models are optimized using the Glowworm Swarm Optimization (GSO) technique. Prior to model training, preprocessing steps are applied. The findings suggest that SVR exhibited a noteworthy R2 score of 0.99698, surpassing CNN which obtained a R2 score of 0.98073, and OMP which obtained a R2 score of 0.8748. The aforementioned discoveries offer significant perspectives on the utilization of diverse machine learning models in the prognostication of C, demonstrating their efficacy and proficiency in this particular realm.

3D-CFD Modeling of Hollow-Fiber Membrane Contactor for CO2 Absorption Using MEA Solution.

Membrane technology is considered an innovative and promising approach due to its flexibility and low energy consumption. In this work, a comprehensive 3D-CFD model of the Hollow-Fiber Membrane Contactor (HFMC) system for CO2 capture into aqueous MEA solution, considering a counter-current fluid flow, was developed and validated with experimental data. Two different flow arrangements were considered for the gas mixture and liquid solution inside the HFMC module. The simulation results showed that the CO2 absorption efficiency was considerably higher when the gas mixture was channeled through the membranes and the liquid phase flowed externally between the membranes, across a wide range of gas and liquid flow rates. Sensitivity studies were performed in order to determine the optimal CO2 capture process parameters under different operating conditions (flow rates/flow velocities and concentrations) and HFMC geometrical characteristics (e.g., porosity, diameter, and thickness of membranes). It was found that increasing the membrane radius, while maintaining a constant thickness, positively influenced the efficiency of CO2 absorption due to the higher mass transfer area and residence time. Conversely, higher membrane thickness resulted in higher mass transfer resistance. The optimal membrane thickness was also investigated for various inner fiber diameters, resulting in a thickness of 0.2 mm as optimal for a fiber inner radius of 0.225 mm. Additionally, a significant improvement in CO2 capture efficiency was observed when increasing membrane porosity to values below 0.2, at which point the increase dampened considerably. The best HFMC configuration involved a combination of low porosity, moderate thickness, and large fiber inner diameter, with gas flow occurring within the fiber membranes.

Liquid-liquid extraction of phenolic wastewater through a surface modified poly(vinylidene fluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene) hollow fiber membrane contactor and process optimization

BackgroundStrict environmental regulations have been recognized for phenolic wastewater treatment due to toxicity of the phenolic compounds. In this study, solvent extraction of a phenolic wastewater was investigated via a liquid-liquid membrane contactor system. MethodsPorous poly(vinylidene fluoride-co-hexafluoropropylene) (PVDF-HFP) hollow fiber membranes were modified by coating an ultra-thin layer of hydrophobic surface modifying macromolecule (SMM). The membranes were characterized by various tests such as SEM-EDS, nitrogen permeation, overall porosity, contact angle and critical water entry pressure (CEPw). Significant findingsFrom SEM, an open structure with combination of finger-like and sponge-like structure was produced. The membrane exhibited high surface hydrophobicity (water contact angle of 109°) with good wetting resistance, overall porosity of 82% and mean pore size of 18 nm. From response surface methodology (RSM), the maximum phenol extraction flux of 2.02 × 10−3 kg/m2s was estimated by the model at the optimum process variables as phenol concentration of 448 mg/L, feed temperature of 42 °C, aqueous phase flowrate of 196 mL/min and organic phase flowrate of 117 mL/min. The coefficient of determination (R2) of 0.972 showed a close proximity between the model and the experimental data. The membrane showed a reasonable flux that can be a favorable alternative for industrial phenolic wastewater treatment.

Reusability of Discarded Tubular Ceramic Membranes for CO2 Removal: A Case Study for Membrane Circularity.

Discarded polymeric or ceramic membranes are currently in need of appropriate and sustainable management. In the present study, the direct reuse of discarded ceramic membranes in membrane contactor (MC) systems for CO2 removal was investigated for the first time. The hydrophobic surface modification of the discarded ceramic membrane was done by using macromolecule additive coating. The influence of operational parameters (absorbent liquid flow rate (QL), feed gas flow rate (Qg), and different NaOH concentrations) of the MC on CO2 removal was investigated to prove the technical feasibility of reused ceramic membranes. The CO2 absorption flux was 7.9 × 10-4 mol/m2 s at optimal conditions of 2 M NaOH, QL (20 mL/min), and Qg (300 mL/min) with a removal efficiency of 98%, which lasted for 8 h. This study demonstrates a potential alternative for the reuse of discarded ceramic membranes and avoids their disposal in landfills. The proposed approach will also bring membrane technology into the circular economy and achieve sustainability goals by reducing the amount of waste from discarded ceramic membranes in the future and combating global warming by absorbing CO2.

CO2 Capture and H2 Recovery Using a Hollow Fiber Membrane Contactor

In this study, hydrogen was recovered and purified by using a membrane contactor unit from CO2-rich gas without the use of any basic chemicals such as amines. The membrane operational parameters were adjusted to achieve high CO2 removal and H2 recovery. The effects of gas flow rate, pressure, gas composition (CO2/H2 ratio), pressure difference between liquid and gas, and gas/liquid ratio on CO2 removal and H2 recovery were investigated. Depending on the gas flow rate, the contact time between gas and liquid could be controlled, changing the absorption amounts of CO2 and H2. Regarding gas composition, an increase in the CO2/H2 ratio from 0.25 to 1 boosted H2 recovery. Furthermore, increasing the CO2/H2 ratio above 1 (from 1 to 3) generally reduced H2 recovery from 98.7% to 83%. Additionally, supplementation with the optimal amount of additive enhanced CO2 removal and H2 recovery. Thus, using a membrane contactor system results in high CO2 removal (82.7–93.5%) and H2 recovery (91.5–98.7%). Moreover, H2 production and separation can be performed in one system, implying that CO2 removal can be performed more efficiently by the membrane contactor. This study offers a new and promising route for producing high-purity H2 while removing CO2.

Fabrication and characterization of novel PES-based nanocomposite hollow fiber membranes for the hemodialysis process

In the hemodialysis process, membrane filtration is used to clean blood. Urea and creatinine are two significant substances that should be removed from the blood during hemodialysis, which takes a great deal of time. To decrease the hemodialysis process time, in this study, we fabricated novel polyethersulfone nanocomposite hollow fiber membranes with silica and amine-modified silica nanoparticles via the non-solvent induced phase separation (NIPS) method. Membranes have been evaluated in a membrane contactor system by two modes of contact with fresh sweeper fluid (retentate process) and recycled sweeper fluid (circulated process) to remove urea and creatinine from a synthetic blood-like solution. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) was carried out along with pure water flux, contact angle, mechanical strength, field emission electron microscope test (FESEM), and X-ray diffraction (EDX) to characterize the synthesized nanoparticles and fabricated membranes. The results revealed that modification of membranes by silica and amine-modified silica nanoparticles increased the urea and creatinine removal rate from the feed as the modified membranes’ separation mechanisms were adsorption and diffusion. Furthermore, removal of urea and creatinine were higher in the retentate process than the circulated process. The membrane samples containing 1.5% amine-modified silica nanoparticles had the highest urea and creatinine removal rate compared to the other modified membranes containing fewer or higher amine-modified silica and/or silica nanoparticles in the both retentate and circulated processes. The adsorption kinetics showed that the adsorption of urea and creatinine on the surface of the silica and amine-modified silica nanoparticles were consistent with the pseudo-second kinetic model, meaning rapid and possibly irreversible adsorption.

Ammonia recovery from municipal wastewater using hybrid NaOH closed-loop membrane contactor and ion exchange system

Water scarcity is affected by population growth and increasing nutrients pollution. This study evaluated the integration of ion exchange-natural activated clinoptilolite zeolite (IEX-NZ) and hollow-fibre liquid–liquid membrane contactor (HF-LLMC) as an innovative and sustainable hybrid technology for ammonia recovery from treated urban wastewaters. The process is based on NaOH closed-loop process to i) ensure the extracted concentration of ammonia from the loaded zeolites and ii) enhance the transport of NH3 through the HF-LLMC. Regeneration of the IEX-NZ provided recoveries up to around 92% using 8% NaOH solution with concentration factors between 30 and 60 and a residual ammonium stream below 1 mg NH4+-N/L. Recovery of NH3 from NaOH solutions was carried out by HF-LLMCs using two different membrane chemistries: polypropylene (PP) and poly (4-methyl-1-pentene) (PMP) (>95%). A 1-D model was developed and used to describe the time evolution of NH3 concentration during the recovery process, to determine its mass transfer coefficient (9.5·107 m3/m2·s) and to quantify the undesired water co-transport (5.0·105 m3/m2·s). In addition, the model was used to analyse the influence of operational parameters on the membrane's permeability to maximise the concentration of the ammonium salts recovered as fertilisers. In this case, the 1-D algorithm was used to identify the needed stages to achieve residual levels of NH3 on the treated streams that promoted the NaOH closed-loop recycling to secure economic feasibility.

An Innovative Waterwheel-Rotating Biological Contactor (WRBC) System for Rural Sewage Treatment

The treatment of rural sewage has become an important part of environmental protection. In this study, a novel waterwheel-rotating biological contactor (WRBC) system, with intensified biofilm and high-shock load resistance, was applied to treat rural sewage. When the COD concentration of actual sewage fluctuated between 79–530 mg/L, the COD removal efficiency was 41.3–94.5%, and the NH4+-N removal efficiency always reach 100% with actual sewage. The TN removal efficiency changed between 14.3–86.2%, which was greatly affected by the water intake. The effluent TN concentration ranged from 5 to 14 mg/L, which meets the emission requirements. It maintained an absolute effluent stability when the change rates of influent loads (N or COD) varied from −60% to 100%. The biofilm morphology and the composition of extracellular polymeric substances were evaluated based on SEM and FTIR spectra. The results showed that the -NH2 group content increased compared with the inoculated sludge, and the biofilm formed more uneven compact clusters after the treatment of actual sewage. Based on 16SrRNA high-throughput sequencing techniques, the bacterial diversity and microbial community structure of the WRBC system over time was revealed. This study may help guide optimization strategies for more effective pollutant removal in rural areas.

Preparation of OH/TiO2/PES composite membrane by a novel gas-phase hydrolysis method in gas-liquid membrane contactor to improve the separation efficiency of CO2 and CH4

Conventional gas separation methods are very limited for CO2 separation in terms of separation efficiency and cost. In this study, We obtained fluorinated TiO2/polyethersulfone (PES) composite membranes by gas-phase hydrolysis and compared the characterization results with the composite membranes prepared by the graft coating method. In the mixed gas separation experiment, we used diethanolamine (DEA) as the absorbent to test the separation performance of CO2/CH4 using the composite membranes prepared by gas phase hydrolysis in a gas-liquid membrane contactor (GLMC) system. DEA flow rate and concentration and feed gas flow were found to have a significant effect on separation performance. When the feed gas flow rate was kept constant at 30 ml/min and the DEA flow rate and concentration were 16 L/h and 1 mol/L, respectively, the collected CH4 concentration was 99.4 %. Meanwhile, the CO2 flux was 10.096 × 10−3 mol m−2 s−1, and the separation factor reached 110.444. Collectively, the application of TiO2/PES composite membranes in GLMC is an efficient method for CO2 capture and mixed gas separation.

Volatile methyl siloxane separation from biogas using hollow fiber membrane contactor with polyethylene glycol dimethyl ether: A numerical and experimental study

In this study, a mass transfer model for hollow fiber membrane contactors (HFMC) was developed to theoretically investigate the mass transfer performance of volatile methyl siloxane (VMS) separation by HFMC. In addition, the effects of operating parameters such as filling rate, liquid and gas velocities on the effectiveness of HFMC separation of VMS were experimentally investigated. The experimental results showed that the increase of filler fraction improved the removal of siloxane. When the absorbent velocity was 250 mL/min and the gas velocity was 500 mL/min, the removal rates of L2, D4, and D5 were 74%, 92%, and 89%, respectively. Additionally, the fluxes of L2, D4 and D5 also increased with the increase of gas and liquid velocities, which were in good agreement with the calculated results of the mass transfer model. The faster the gas and liquid velocities, the higher the total mass transfer coefficient, which indicated that the mass transfer resistance was reduced in the contactor system. The liquid phase mass transfer resistance contributed the most to the total mass transfer resistance in the non-wetting model. However, when the membrane was 10% wetted, the mass transfer resistance contribution of the membrane increased sharply, reaching a maximum of 38.2%.

Numerical evaluation of the ozonation process in a hollow fibre membrane contactor

This work presents comprehensive mathematical modelling employed to describe the ozone (O3) mass transfer in the hollow fibre membrane contactor (HFMC) system. Using the model, impacts of operating parameters and membrane specification such as gas phase and liquid flow rates, porosity-to-tortuosity and membrane length on the dissolved ozone at the reactor outlet as well as ozone concentration distribution were simulated. Also, experimental data were used to validate the created simulation model and it was observed that there is reasonable agreement between experimental results and modelling output in terms of dissolved ozone at the reactor outlet at various water flow rate and initial ozone concentration. Based on the simulation outputs, the gas flow rate as well as porosity (ε)-to-tortuosity (τ) do not have impact on the dissolved ozone at reactor outlet while there was slight increase in the ozone outlet concentration with the enhancement of membrane length. Furthermore, the main resistance for ozone mass transfer was liquid phase and it was indicated that the gas phase and membrane subdomain resistance is lower for ozone mass transfer due to higher ozone diffusion coefficient in the gas phase.

Removal of N and P in a Rotating Biological Contactor Plant: Case Study Agnita, Romania

The wastewater treatment plant of Agnita, Romania was designed with a rotational biological contactor system for a population of approximately 9500, but for environmental protection reasons it must comply with regulations concerning nitrogen and phosphorus designed for larger communities. In order to achieve the prescribed limits for these pollutants, we have used a 40% FeCl3 solution, continuously added to the distributor, without changes in flow or equipment. Its use boosts the removal of ammonia nitrogen, and phosphorus, bringing them within the limits and with reasonable cost. To determine the ferric chloride to be used we considered, aside from the pollutant load, the water temperature, and introduced a new parameter: specific removal power that enabled us to optimize the volume of FeCl3. A major contribution to nitrogen removal was achieved by the denitrification bacteria favored by the presence of ferric ions, which also precipitate phosphorus. The results of this study, performed since September 2021, enable us to continue to use this method and enlarge its application to other plants owned by the local operator.

Sustainable ammonia recovery from low strength wastewater by the integrated ion exchange and bipolar membrane electrodialysis with membrane contactor system

An energy-efficient and reagent-free system consisting of ion exchange, bipolar membrane electrodialysis and membrane contactor (IE-BMED-MC) was developed for recovering ammonia from low NH4+-N strength wastewater. In this system, NH4+ in the wastewater was firstly removed by ion exchange and then enriched in the acidic regenerant produced by bipolar membrane electrodialysis cell, eventually purified and recovered in membrane contactor without the addition of acid and base. A removal efficiency of over 97 % and recovery efficiency of 9 %-74 % with the energy consumption of 8.12–11.9 kWh·kg−1-N were achieved at current density of 0.5–2.5 mA·cm−2, and the nitrogen flux across the cation exchange membrane (174 g-N·m−2·d-1) was much higher than other ammonia recovery processes with low NH4+-N strength wastewater (<50 g-N·m−2·d-1) owing to the resin enrichment effect. Over six cycles, NH4+-N removal efficiency remained at about 90 % with energy consumption as low as 6 kWh·kg−1-N, where the spent regenerant was utilized as the base stream for next cycle to avoid discharge. Generally, this system realized high-efficiency ammonia recovery from low strength wastewater without chemical input and the cost of $0.425 per kg-N was lower than Haber-Bosch process.

Membrane contactor onsite piloting for nutrient recovery from mesophilic digester reject water: The effect of process conditions and pre-treatment options

Nutrient recovery is an important segment of the circular economy, and it significantly contributes to sustainable development goals. This work reports on the outcomes of a field testing pilot-scale membrane contactor system designed for nitrogen (N) and phosphorous (P) recovery in the form of high purity ammonium salts and high-quality P containing sludge. The pilot testing was conducted at the Viikinmäki WWTP using digester reject water under different treatment conditions. Our system showed a high tolerance for solids (concentration > 500 mg/L). Field test trials showed that the higher the feed flow, the better the ammonia transfer rate. Decreasing the retention time from 4 h to 2 h increased the ammonia mass transfer rate constant by >150 %. Among the tested feed pH levels, a pH of 10 had the highest solids removal, which in turn resulted in the highest ammonia recovery percentage. A high acid concentration lowered the ammonia transfer rate. Strong acids such as HNO3 and H2SO4 had a higher ammonia recovery than that of H3PO4. Pre-treating feedwater with starch resulted in the same ammonia accumulation rate as a poly-aluminum chloride (PAX)/polymer pre-treatment. The highest PO4−3 removal of 99 % was achieved with a PAX/polymer treatment at pH 10, whereas the highest total phosphorous removal of 77 % was achieved with a starch treatment. The produced sludge consists mainly of CaCO3 emanating from the used lime, which can be used as a soil amendment. The produced ammonium salts were of high purity and have a nutrient content comparable to that of commercial fertilizers. This study provides important insights into the selection of process parameters of membrane contactor systems based on the goal of the treatment, whether it be nutrient removal or recovery.