Total Membrane Area Research Articles

Anti-Swelling Polyelectrolyte Hydrogel with Submillimeter Lateral Confinement for Osmotic Energy Conversion

AbstractHarvesting the immense and renewable osmotic energy with reverse electrodialysis (RED) technology shows great promise in dealing with the ever-growing energy crisis. One key challenge is to improve the output power density with improved trade-off between membrane permeability and selectivity. Herein, polyelectrolyte hydrogels (channel width, 2.2 nm) with inherent high ion conductivity have been demonstrated to enable excellent selective ion transfer when confined in cylindrical anodized aluminum pore with lateral size even up to the submillimeter scale (radius, 0.1 mm). The membrane permeability of the anti-swelling hydrogel can also be further increased with cellulose nanofibers. With real seawater and river water, the output power density of a three-chamber cell on behalf of repeat unit of RED system can reach up to 8.99 W m−2 (per unit total membrane area), much better than state-of-the-art membranes. This work provides a new strategy for the preparation of polyelectrolyte hydrogel-based ion-selective membranes, owning broad application prospects in the fields of osmotic energy collection, electrodialysis, flow battery and so on.

Forward osmosis for concentrating lithium-enriched brine: From membrane performance to system design

Using concentrated salt-lake brine as the draw solution (DS), forward osmosis (FO) has been proposed as the low carbon footprint concentration technology for extracting water from lithium-enriched brine. From membrane modules to a process, there exist tremendous risks when considering total cost in time and investment for a trial. To address this issue, a bridge between the FO membrane/ module characteristics and a FO system design is highly desirable. This study for the first time developed a system design model using hollow fiber (HF) FO membrane modules for FO concentration of lithium-enriched brine. The concentration polarization along the module, the membrane structural parameters (S), crossflow velocity, and DS concentration were the main factors considered in the model. The effect of all factors on module water flux and total membrane area was systematically investigated for a typical industrial output of 10 k ton of Li2CO3. A master curve of the water flux verse feed concentration for the tailor-made HF modules was utilized as the basis. On a module scale, the structural parameter S is of first importance and indicates requirement of FO membranes with low S. The crossflow velocity has relatively small impact to the membrane area, but not negligible. On a system scale, the empirical equation of the structural parameters and crossflow velocity on the theoretical minimum system membrane area was summarized. The results show that increasing the stages can reduce the number of modules and required DS flow. Increasing DS dilution rate in system design efficiently utilizes the osmotic pressure of DS. The present model serves as a practical solution for process optimization and FO membrane selection. The methodology is valuable for other FO applications using HF FO membranes.

Improved solution thermodynamics modeling in pervaporation

The current work features a system-level design of pervaporation processes (typically utilized to break azeotropes) that is solution thermodynamics-based (inclusive of validated excess thermodynamic properties). Unlike the standard pervaporation modeling methodology in the literature, the current method (referred to here as PervapS3) deconstructs the membrane module into its constituent units, and the material and energy flows were mathematically validated. These amendments to the previous methodology (i.e., leaf-wise modeling, mathematical validation, and inclusion of excess thermodynamic properties) revealed significant deviations in key parameter values. For a given large-scale pervaporation process dehydrating aqueous isopropanol, the total membrane area and energy requirement calculated were up to 22% and 19% less than the values calculated using the previous methodology. Moreover, due to the inclusion of excess thermodynamic properties in the PervapS3 method, the minimum separation work and the second law (thermodynamic) efficiency were up to 94% and 78% less. In other words, the previous pervaporation modeling methodology overestimated membrane area, energy requirement, minimum separation work, and second law efficiency. Considering a conventional azeotropic distillation process for comparison with pervaporation, it was observed that the simulation-based distillation models from the literature were inclusive of the system non-idealities. Per the previous method, the non-ideal second law efficiency of azeotropic distillation would be compared against the ideal second law efficiency of pervaporation, overestimating the latter. The non-ideal second law efficiency must be employed to facilitate a fairer and more accurate comparison of disparate separation technologies.

Energetic Comparison of Flow-Electrode Capacitive Deionization and Membrane Technology: Assessment on Applicability in Desalination Fields.

Flow-electrode capacitive deionization (FCDI) is a promising technology for sustainable water treatment. However, studies on the process have thus far been limited to lab-scale conditions and select fields of application. Such limitation is induced by several shortcomings, one of which is the absence of a comprehensive process model that accurately predicts the operational performance and the energy consumption of FCDI. In this study, a simulation model is newly proposed with initial validation based on experimental data and is then utilized to elucidate the performance and the specific energy consumption (SEC) of FCDI under multiple source water conditions ranging from near-groundwater to high salinity brine. Further, simulated pilot-scale FCDI system was compared with actual brackish water reverse osmosis (BWRO) and seawater reverse osmosis (SWRO) plant data with regard to SEC to determine the feasibility of FCDI as an alternative to the conventional membrane processes. Analysis showed that FCDI is competent for operation against brackish water solutions under all possible operational conditions with respect to the BWRO. Moreover, its distinction can be extended to the SWRO for seawater conditions through optimization of its total effective membrane area via scale-up. Accordingly, future directions for the advancement of FCDI was suggested to ultimately prompt the commercialization of the FCDI process.

Enhancing the energy efficiency of land vehicles air conditioning units through a new evaporative membrane cooler

Led by the growing need for energy efficiency in the air conditioning systems on land vehicles, this paper proposes an original approach that integrates evaporative cooling technologies into the existing systems. In detail, the new evaporative membrane system adds to the traditional one an auxiliary kit composed of a water reserve, a circulation pump, a heat exchanger, and an innovative capillary crossflow membrane cooler. The evaporation process is used to both pre-cool the air flow to the condenser, thus lowering the refrigerant condensation temperature, and also to supply refreshed water for pre-chilling the renewal air. The proposed architecture is particularly feasible for vehicular applications where a water reservoir already exists or where it is possible to install and maintain one. The designed membrane cooler grants high mass transfer efficiency, compactness (membrane surface-to-volume ratio around 1000 m2/m3) and manages high air flow rates while minimizing pressure loss. It is composed by organized layers of polypropylene capillaries where water flows, and plastic spacers for the airflow.First, the vapor and heat transfer mechanisms involved are investigated and the cooler’s mathematical model is described. Numerical results show that a wet-bulb effectiveness exceeding 0.85 can be reached.Subsequently, an assessment of energy performance indicators for a motorhome application is conducted within the MATLAB© Simulink environment. This involves a comparative analysis between the proposed system and the conventional standalone one. The considered contactor has a total membrane area of 8.32 m2 and handles 1200 m3/h of air and 150 kg/h of water. Results indicate that the efficiency ratio and the energy savings of the two systems decrease as the external air humidity increases even though the average energy efficiency ratio of the new system remains significantly higher. Mechanical energy savings are very interesting and decrease as the external air humidity increases: they are about 36–38 % within the humidity range [40–50 %], 26–30 % within the range [50–60 %], and 17–21 % within the range [60–70 %]. The corresponding water consumptions are between 2 kg/h and 6.5 kg/h, and they increase as air humidity decreases.Due to its simple architecture and high performance, this system is very promising in applications for motorhome, city buses, trains, and trucks.

Anatomical structure and physiological characteristics of Robinia pseudoacacia of different stand ages

Drought intensity and frequency have been increased as a result of global warming. Exploring the drought resistance mechanism of Robinia pseudoacacia plantations of different stand ages on the Loess Plateau is crucial for understanding the stability of forest productivity in the region. We investigated anatomical traits, hydraulic function, and non-structural carbohydrate content of the xylem, as well as their association, in R. pseudoacacia plantations of different stand ages in a semi-arid region. The results showed that the vessel diameter, total pit membrane area, pit membrane area, vesture area, and vestured overlap of young and middle-aged stands were larger than those of mature stands, and the pit density was significantly lower in mature stands. Hydraulic conductivity was significantly related to vessel diameter, pit membrane area, and vesture area. Hydraulic conductivities of branches in young, middle-aged, and mature stands were 2.30, 2.12, and 0.76 kg·m-1·s-1·MPa-1, respectively, with embolism values of 54.5%, 53.8%, and 45.1%. Hydraulic conductivity was significantly related to soluble sugar and starch contents. The soluble sugar contents of branches in young, middle-aged and mature stands were 4.9%, 4.2%, and 3.8%, respectively. Xylem growth capacity of R. pseudoacacia in mature stand declined, resulting in the formation of small vessels with many small pits, which reduced hydraulic conductivity while maintaining hydraulic safety, resulting in a decrease of non-structural carbohydrates content. This study revealed the drought response mechanism of R. pseudoacacia plantations with different ages, providing a scientific foundation for the management and nurturing of R. pseudoacacia plantations on the Loess Plateau.

A multi-objective optimisation framework to design membrane-based energy recovery ventilation for low carbon buildings

Membrane energy exchangers (MEEs) are increasingly being studied and utilized to contribute to realising energy-efficient building services and providing satisfactory indoor environments. The performance of MEEs has been extensively studied in terms of heat and mass transfer and pressure drop (PD). However, a model for optimizing the performance of membrane energy exchangers in residential ventilation, which takes into account the influential factors, is lacking in order to support the design of membrane energy exchangers. The purpose of this study was to establish a framework for the multi-objective optimisation design of membrane energy exchanger performance. This framework was demonstrated by considering the competing objectives of maximising thermal recovery effectiveness and minimising pressure drop. One of the constraints used for optimising membrane energy exchangers was the total membrane area, which strongly influences the investment cost of the exchanger. Another constraint was the moisture recovery intensity of the membrane energy exchangers, which affects indoor humidity levels. Pareto optimal solutions were obtained by solving the developed multi-objective optimisation framework using the genetic algorithm in MATLAB.Using multi-objective optimisation, the pressure drop of the MEE was reduced by 41% while the thermal recovery effectiveness remained unchanged. The resulting pressure drops as low as 5 Pa, enables the application of membrane energy exchangers in natural and hybrid ventilation. Factors influencing the Pareto optimal solutions including moisture recovery effectiveness, total membrane area and operating airflows have been investigated. A better understanding of optimal membrane energy exchanger designs considering thermal recovered energy and fan power resulted from this study.

Scalable synthesis and modular properties of tubular silicalite-1 membranes for industrial butane isomer separation

We have reported scale-up synthesis of 50-cm-long tubular sililcalite-1 membranes and separation of industrial n-butane/i-butane mixtures using the membrane modules for the first time. The membranes had 6-μm-thick, well-intergrown and [h0h]-oriented silicalite-1 layers. Twenty silicalite-1 membranes of the total twenty-one ones exhibited an average n-butane permeance, n-butane flux and separation factor of (6.5 ± 1.1) × 10-8 mol/(m2 s Pa), (35 ± 5.1) × 10-4 mol/(m2 s) and 25 ± 3.7, respectively, for the industrial n-butane/i-butane (∼30/70 mol%) mixture at 363 K. It suggests that membrane fabrication had good reproducibility. The separation performance of membrane modules with different membrane elements was studied. A practical separation test was performed for the industrial n-/i-butane mixture using membrane setup assembled by seven 3-tube membrane modules with a total membrane area of 0.38 m2. The separation system displayed excellent separation performance and stability during continuous test for 48 h. Isobutane concentration in the retentate side was enriched to > 98 mol% from 70 mol% in the feed with recovery of 83 % for the one-stage separation system at 363 K when the flow rate was 3.0 standard L/min (4.32 m3/d). The results show that silicalite-1 membranes are promising candidates for industrial separation of n-/i-butane mixtures.

Electrodialysis with Bipolar Membranes for the Sustainable Production of Chemicals from Seawater Brines at Pilot Plant Scale.

Environmental concerns regarding the disposal of seawater reverse osmosis brines require the development of new valorization strategies. Electrodialysis with bipolar membrane (EDBM) technology enables the production of acid and base from a salty waste stream. In this study, an EDBM pilot plant with a membrane area of 19.2 m2 was tested. This total membrane area results much larger (i.e., more than 16 times larger) than those reported in the literature so far for the production of HCl and NaOH aqueous solutions, starting from NaCl brines. The pilot unit was tested both in continuous and discontinuous operation modes, at different current densities (200-500 A m-2). Particularly, three different process configurations were evaluated, namely, closed-loop, feed and bleed, and fed-batch. At lower applied current density (200 A m-2), the closed-loop had a lower specific energy consumption (SEC) (1.4 kWh kg-1) and a higher current efficiency (CE) (80%). When the current density was increased (300-500 A m-2), the feed and bleed mode was more appropriate due to its low values of SEC (1.9-2.6 kWh kg-1) as well as high values of specific production (SP) (0.82-1.3 ton year-1 m-2) and current efficiency (63-67%). These results showed the effect of various process configurations on the performance of the EDBM, thereby guiding the selection of the most suitable process configuration when varying the operating conditions and representing a first important step toward the implementation of this technology at industrial scale.

Low-Fouling Plate-and-Frame Ultrafiltration for Juice Clarification: Part 2—Module Design and Application

The purification and concentration of orange juice are crucial to remove undesirable materials, such as pectin, which is responsible for juice clouds; or limonene, which is responsible for bitter taste. Membrane-based juice clarification is preferred due to its capability to separate specific targeted molecules, while still maintaining the clarified juice’s nutritional content. In this study, a novel designed bench-scale plate-and-frame membrane module composed of low fouling cellulose acetate membrane sheets was manufactured to facilitate orange juice clarification. The experimental results demonstrated the effectiveness of the developed module to be used for juice clarification. After incorporating the functional and structural design parameters, the final module had the following specifications: dimensions of 125 × 168 mm, an effective volume of 0.9–9.4 L, a total active membrane area of 1088 cm2, and a transmembrane pressure of 0.3–0.55 MPa. The results of the juice clarification show no difference in the value of pH, viscosity, total acid, water content, color L* (brightness), and color a* (reddish) of the feed, the permeate, and the retentate streams. The clarified juice had slightly higher total dissolved solids (°Brix), ash content, vitamin C, and color (b* yellowish). Overall, our findings demonstrated that the developed plate-and-frame module could effectively be used to clarify orange juice without altering the quality, i.e., reducing the nutritional contents.

Power Generation Performance of Reverse Electrodialysis (RED) Using Various Ion Exchange Membranes and Power Output Prediction for a Large RED Stack.

Reverse electrodialysis (RED) power generation using seawater (SW) and river water is expected to be a promising environmentally friendly power generation system. Experiments with large RED stacks are needed for the practical application of RED power generation, but only a few experimental results exist because of the need for large facilities and a large area of ion-exchange membranes (IEMs). In this study, to predict the power output of a large RED stack, the power generation performances of a lab-scale RED stack (40 membrane pairs and 7040 cm2 total effective membrane area) with several IEMs were evaluated. The results were converted to the power output of a pilot-scale RED stack (299 membrane pairs and 179.4 m2 total effective membrane area) via the reference IEMs. The use of low-area-resistance IEMs resulted in lower internal resistance and higher power density. The power density was 2.3 times higher than that of the reference IEMs when natural SW was used. The net power output was expected to be approximately 230 W with a pilot-scale RED stack using low-area-resistance IEMs and natural SW. This value is one of the indicators of the output of a large RED stack and is a target to be exceeded with further improvements in the RED system.

Removal of glycerol from biodiesel using multi-stage microfiltration membrane system: industrial scale process simulation

Abstract Biodiesel purification is one of the most important downstream processes in biodiesel industries. The removal of glycerol from crude biodiesel is commonly conducted by an extraction method using water, however this method results in a vast amount of wastewater and needs a lot of energy. In this study, microfiltration membrane was used to remove glycerol from biodiesel, and a process simulation was carried out for an industrial scale biodiesel purification plant using a microfiltration membrane system. The microfiltration experiment using a simulated feed solution of biodiesel containing glycerol and water showed that the membrane process produced purified biodiesel that met the international standards. The result of the process simulation of a multi-stage membrane system showed that the membrane area could be minimized by optimizing the concentration factor of every stage with the aid of a computer program that was written in Phyton programming language with Visual Studio Code. The overall productivity of a single stage membrane system was the same with that of the multi-stage system, however the single stage system required a larger membrane area. To produce 750 m3 day−1 of purified biodiesel, a multi-stage membrane system consisting of 10 membrane modules required a total membrane area of 1515 m2 that was 57% smaller compared to the single stage system consisting of one membrane module. This membrane area reduction was equivalent to a reduction of the total capital cost of 30%. Based on the analysis of the total capital cost, it was found that the optimum number of stages was 4 since it showed a minimum value of the total capital cost with a membrane area of 1620 m2 that was equivalent to the reduction of the total capital cost of 34%. The result of this simulation showed that the multi-stage microfiltration membrane has great potential to replace the conventional method in biodiesel industries.

Industrial-scale fabrication of mordenite membranes by dual heating method for production of ethyl acetate in an industrial VP-esterification plant

High-performance industrial-scale mordenite membranes were successfully prepared on 100-cm-long tubular macroporous mullite supports using a large autoclave containing 50 pieces (membrane area: 1.88 m 2 ) by a dual heating method. The effects of different heating methods on temperature and concentration distribution in the industrial autoclave were discussed in detail. Mordenite membranes prepared using a dual heating method by eliminating the temperature and concentration gradients showed excellent reproducibility, with an average flux of more than 2 kg m −2 h −1 for separation of a 90 wt% HAc/H 2 O mixture at 90 °C. The qualification rate of industrial-scale membranes produced in a single autoclave was more than 90%. Additionally, 345 pieces of industrial-scale mordenite membranes with a total membrane area of ca. 12.6 m 2 were assembled into 3 membrane modules in an industrial vapor permeation (VP) plant to intensify esterification of acetic acid and ethanol by rapid dehydration. The industrial VP-esterification plant produced 99.5 wt% ethyl acetate with a product flow rate of about 140 kg h −1 and the annual output exceeded 1000 tons. Importantly, the industrial plant showed an excellent stability for operating over 100 d, illustrating that the industrial-scale mordenite membranes had a high stability in industrial application of esterification of acetic acid and ethanol to produce ethyl acetate. • 50 pieces of 100-cm-long mordenite membranes were prepared in a single autoclave. • Reproducible industrial-scale membranes were synthesized by a dual heating method. • Ethyl acetate was produced by coupling of esterification with VP in an industrial plant. • Industrial VP-esterification plant showed a good stability for operating over 100 d.

Multi-step membrane process for biogas upgrading

In this work, we proposed a multistep membrane process for the upgrading of a mixture containing 60% of methane and 40% of carbon dioxide, considering three case studies that allow to cover a wide range of CO2 permeability (from 5 to 180 Barrer) and CO2/CH4 selectivity (from 30 to 200). The aim is to investigate to what extend the variation in steps number positively affects the separation performance as well as reduces the total membrane area and recycled flow rate required to obtain a methane stream at a purity of 98%.The multistep paths necessary to achieve the final target have been defined by using performance maps of methane purity versus its recovery.A higher number of steps leads to a significant reduction of membrane area (e.g., from 580 to 180 m2) and promotes the methane recovery, allowing to recover a purer carbon dioxide stream in the permeate (e.g., from 87.4 to 97.9%). Fixing the steps number, the higher CO2 permeability allows to save membrane area but provides more methane losses on the permeate side. Differently, an increment of selectivity reflects in higher methane recovery (i.e., carbon dioxide purity on the permeate side) but lower retentate concentration.

Process design and simulation of industrial-scale biodiesel purification using membrane technology

Biodiesel is commonly produced through a transesterification reaction of vegetable oil with alcohol in the presence of a catalyst to produce fatty acid methyl ester (FAME). The reaction also produces glycerol as a by-product that must be separated from the FAME to obtain a biodiesel product that meets international standards. The common method to remove glycerol from FAME is washing with water. However, it produces a vast amount of wastewater and consumes much energy. Membrane technology is a promising separation technique for removing glycerol from biodiesel on an industrial scale since the separation using membrane does not produce wastewater and the energy consumption is low. In this work, the application of membrane technology to separate biodiesel and glycerol was studied through a process design and simulation of an industrial scale biodiesel purification process with a production capacity of 723 kL/day. A multistage feed-and-bleed microfiltration membrane system was designed to purify biodiesel from glycerol, and the process simulation was carried out using computer programming. The result of the process simulation showed that purified biodiesel could be produced by using the multistage microfiltration membrane system. The minimum membrane area required for the separation process in each stage could be calculated using the computer program. It was found that the total membrane area decreased with the increasing number of stages. A reduction of the total membrane area of 37% was achieved using ten stages microfiltration system. The optimum number of the stages could be determined through a tradeoff analysis of the cost to minimize the capital cost of the multistage membrane system. For the case study in this work, a stage number of 4 was found as the optimum stage number of the microfiltration system. This result showed that the membrane technology has great potential to be applied for the industrial-scale biodiesel purification process.

Optimization of air mass flow in a PEM fuel cell

In our work, we focused on measuring the performance characteristics of a test hydrogen fuel cell with an open cathode. The aim of the work was to verify the effect of the mass flow through the fuel cell on the power output as a function of the current density and voltage on the fuel cell. A test bench capable of testing fuel cells up to 2000 W was used to measure the power characteristics. The test fuel cell was composed of three cells and its total membrane area was 100 cm2. A PIV measurement system was used to measure the mass flow. The mass flow measurement was performed at the inlet of the fuel cell. The measurements included the determination of the inlet temperature distribution using a thermal imaging camera. The presented measurements were performed for two configurations with original and optimized diffuser at the inlet of the fans. Finally, the effect of mass flow and overall thermal management on the fuel cell performance is discussed, including the effect of the newly designed diffuser.

Design and optimization of Single Pass Tangential Flow Filtration for inline concentration of monoclonal antibodies

A number of Single Pass Tangential Flow Filtration (SPTFF) systems have recently been commercialized for inline concentration of monoclonal antibodies and other biotherapeutics, both to resolve bottlenecks in existing processes and as part of the development of integrated continuous downstream processes. The objective of this study was to examine the design and optimization of SPTFF modules using a previously developed mathematical model for the filtrate flux and pressure drop that specifically accounts for the concentration dependence of the antibody viscosity and osmotic pressure as well as the variation of the flow rate and antibody concentration with the position in the long pathlength SPTFF device. Model simulations were performed to examine the effects of channel width, length, and cassette staging (number of parallel cassettes in each stage) on SPTFF performance. The concentration factor (conversion) was greatest for a long thin channel configuration, but this also caused very large feed-side pressure drops. The use of cascade configurations, with a greater number of parallel channels near the feed inlet, significantly reduced the pressure drop but with a corresponding increase in total membrane area. A key factor governing the SPTFF performance was the increase in viscosity of the antibody solution at high conversion. These results provide important insights into the design and optimization of SPTFF systems for monoclonal antibody processing.

Ion exchange membranes based on radiation-induced grafted functionalized polystyrene for high-performance reverse electrodialysis

Radiation-induced grafted ion exchange membranes based on functionalized polystyrene were tested for the first time in reverse electrodialysis (RED). Сation and anion exchange membranes based on sulfonated and quaternized/chloromethylated poly(styrene-co-divinylbenzene) grafted on UV-oxidized polymethylpentene films with different conductivity and selectivity relationships were compared with each other and with different commercial ion-exchange membranes (IEMs), FujiFim® Type 1 and Type 2 and RALEX®. The synthesized grafted membranes provided the highest power density of lab-scale stacks with a total active membrane area of 72 cm2 with the use of 0.1 М/1 М NaCl (0.67 W m−2) and 0.1 М/5 М NaCl (2.1 W m−2) solutions. The use of grafted membranes with a low resistance ~0.5 Ω cm2 (0.5 М NaCl, 25 °C) did not benefit the stack resistance; the low selectivity of such membranes resulted in a lower voltage and a high non-selective diffusion current of the RED stack. Higher power densities and current efficiencies in some model systems are observed for stacks with grafted membranes with lower conductivity and higher selectivity.

On optimisation of N2 and CO2-selective hybrid membrane process systems for post-combustion CO2 capture from coal-fired power plants

A superstructure-based optimisation model for the CO2 capture process using an N2-selective and CO2-selective membranes is presented. The model automatically selects either of the membranes for each membrane stage to have a hybrid membrane CO2 capture process. The superstructure embeds numerous process routes and allows the collection of product streams and residue streams from either the retentate side or permeate side of the multi-membrane stages. This results in novel process flowsheets for post-combustion CO2 capture using membrane technology. In the study, the optimisation of carbon capture by an all N2-selective membrane process is also carried out. At 90% recovery and 95% product purity, the multi-stage optimisation of the N2–CO2 hybrid membrane process reduces the total membrane area by 46% and the cost of capture by 14% compared to the optimised CO2-selective membrane process.

Techno-economic comparison between forward osmosis (FO) and temperature-enhanced osmotic membrane distillation (T-OMD) in agricultural fertigation

Forward osmosis (FO), as one energy-efficient desalination technology, had been intensively studied in agricultural fertilization to meet the demand of the water resource and the fertilizer for plant growth, showing good techno-economic benefit. As such, the energy-efficient temperature-enhanced osmotic membrane distillation (T-OMD) heated by low-grade thermal sources (i.e. solar energy) was firstly investigated in agricultural fertilization via techno-economic comparison with FO. The experimental investigation revealed that T-OMD in the agricultural fertigation can be endowed with quadruple advantages of high water flux at a high-temperature difference (>40 °C), low fertilizer loss, good compatibility for different fertilizers, and good feasibility to utilize some unconventional waters (i.e. wastewater, seawater, and seawater RO brine). Furthermore, a preliminary economic analysis showed that the membrane area and the price of the FO membrane module are two significant indicators to evaluate the economic feasibility of T-OMD. In detail, T-OMD must be more cost-effective than FO if the total membrane area is larger than 10,000 m2 under the same operating temperature configuration or dilution factor lower than 0.25 and permeate flux higher than 10,000 m3/h are satisfied under different operating temperature configurations. Based on the experimental investigation and economic analysis, T-OMD can provide an alternative pathway to achieve high-efficient and cost-effective agricultural fertigation.