Natural organic matter removal and fouling resistance properties of a boron nitride nanosheet-functionalized thin film nanocomposite membrane and its impact on permeate chlorine demand

• Published in: Journal of water process engineering 2020-04, Vol.34, p.101160, Article 101160
• Main Authors: Abdikheibari, Sara, Dumée, Ludovic F., Jegatheesan, Veeriah, Mustafa, Zainab, Le-Clech, Pierre, Lei, Weiwei, Baskaran, Kanagaratnam
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: AQUASIM simulation; Boron nitride nanosheets BN(NH2); Fouling resistance; Natural organic matter removal; Thin film nanocomposite membrane
• ISSN: 2214-7144; 2214-7144
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jwpe.2020.101160

[Display omitted] •PPA thin film was functionalized with BN(NH2) nanosheets via a modified IP method.•TFN membranes were used for NOM removal from a reservoir located in Australia.•TFN membranes had higher flux and NOM removal than control/commercial membranes.•TFN membranes appeared better than a conventional plant in surface water treatment.•Application of BN(NH2)-modified membranes reduces the formation potential of DBPs. Nanofiltration (NF) is an attractive surface water treatment option for the enhanced removal of natural organic matter (NOM) to comply with the regulations of potentially toxic disinfection by-products (DBPs) formation. However, organic fouling has remained an unresolved issue which makes the process less cost-effective. To address this problem, the current study reports on the fabrication of a new thin film nanocomposite (TFN) membrane incorporated with and decorated by amine-functionalized boron nitride BN(NH2) nanosheets. Physicochemical investigations revealed 60 and 40 % enhancement in hydrophilicity and negative charge density of the modified membranes, respectively, which translated into 69 % improvement in flux as well as boosted NOM removal and fouling resistance compared with control counterparts. Additionally, the modified membranes exhibited a better filtration performance under detrimental solution chemistry conditions of low pH and high Ca2+ concentration. Liquid chromatography coupled with organic carbon detection (LC-OCD) profiles and fluorescence excitation emission matrices (FEEM) demonstrated the capability of the modified membranes in removing humics and lower molecular-sized compounds from water as opposed to moderate removals achieved in a conventional water treatment plant. Finally, AQUASIM simulations showed the lower chlorine demand of the NF-treated water which can reflect on its decreased DBPs formation potential.