• Membrane Journal
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• v.21 no.4
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• pp.351-359
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• 2011

For advanced drinking water treatment of high turbidity water, we used the hybrid process that was composed of photocatalyst packing in space of between outside of multi-channel ceramic microfiltration membrane and membrane module inside. Photocatalyst was polypropylene (PP) beads coated $TiO_2$ powder by CVD (chemical vapor deposition) process. Instead of natural organic matters (NOM) and fine inorganic particles in natural water source, standard NOM solution was prepared with humic acid and kaolin. Water-back-flushing of 10 sec was performed per every period of 10 min to minimize membrane fouling. Resistance of membrane fouling ($R_f$) increased and J decreased as concentration of humic acid changed from 2 mg/L to 10 mg/L, and finally the highest total permeate volume ($V_T$) could be obtained at 2 mg/L. Then, treatment efficiency of turbidity and $UV_{254}$ absorbance were above 96.4% and 78.9%, respectively. As results of treatment portions by membrane filtration, photocatalyst adsorption, and photo-oxidation in (MF), (MF + $TiO_2$), (MF + $TiO_2$ + UV) processes, turbidity was treated little by photocatalyst adsorption, and photo-oxidation. However, treatment portions of $UV_{254}$ absorbance by adsorption (MF + $TiO_2$) and photo-oxidation (MF + $TiO_2$ + UV) at humic acid of 4 mg/L and 6 mg/L were above 9.0, 9.5 and 8.1, 10.9%, respectively.

• Korean Chemical Engineering Research
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• v.60 no.1
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• pp.7-11
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• 2022

In the membrane forming process of a proton exchange membrane fuel cell (PEMFC), drying and annealing heat treatment processes are required for performance and durability. In this study, the optimal annealing temperature for improving the durability of the polymer membrane was studied. It was annealed in the temperature range of 125~175 ℃, and thermal stability and hydrogen permeability were measured as basic data of durability at each annealing temperature. The electrochemical durability was analyzed by Fenton reaction and open circuit voltage (OCV) holding. The annealing temperature of 165 ℃ was the optimal temperature in terms of thermal stability and hydrogen permeability. In the Fenton reaction, the fluorine emission rate of the membrane annealed at 165 ℃ was the lowest, and the lifespan of the membrane annealed at 165 ℃ was the longest in the OCV holding experiment, confirming that 165 ℃ was the optimal temperature for the durability of the polymer membrane.

• Membrane Journal
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• v.32 no.2
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• pp.83-90
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• 2022

Wastewater from refineries and petroleum plant lead to severe environmental pollution. There are various existing processes applied for oily water treatment, but membrane-based technology is one of the most efficient methods. Polymeric membranes prepared from organic materials for the separation of oil in water often face chronic problem of membrane fouling. Inorganic membranes are considered to be more efficient due to longer lifetime than organic membranes. Zeolite membranes have better chemical stability and long-term recyclability. The presence of hydrophilicity enhances the water flux of membrane. Ceramic membranes prepared from zeolites are another efficient class of inorganic membranes applied for oil water separation. This review is focused on oily wastewater separation based on zeolite membrane which classified into two categories, i) neat zeolite and ii) zeolite composites with other materials.

• Membrane Journal
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.187-195
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• 2018

In this work, the morphology of polyvinylidene-co-hexafluoropropylene (PVDF-co-HFP) membranes were systemically investigated using phase inversion technique, to target membrane contactor applications. As the presence of macrovoids degrade the mechanical integrity of the membranes and jeopardize the long-term stability of membrane contactor processes (e.g. wetting), a wide range of dope compositions and casting conditions was studied to eliminate the undesired macrovoids. The type of solvent had significant effect on the membrane morphology, and the observed morphology were correlated to the physical properties of the solvent and solvent-polymer interactions. In addition, to fabricate macrovoid-free structure, the effects of different coagulation temperatures, inclusion of additives, and addition of nonsolvents were investigated. Due to the slow crystallization rate of P(VDF-co-HFP) polymer, it was found that obtaining porous membrane without macrovoids is difficult using only nonsolvent-induced phase separation method (NIPS). However, combined other phase inversion methods such as evaporation-induced phase separation (EIPS) and vapor-induced phase separation (VIPS), the desired membrane morphology can be obtained without any macrovoids.

• Proceedings of the PSK Conference
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• 2003.04a
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• pp.125.2-126
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• 2003

Human tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNFa) is a key pro-inflammatory cytokine produced by activated monocytes and macrophage as a part of the self-defence machinery. TNF-a converting enzyme (TACE) is the metalloproteinase that processes the membrane bound precursor of TNFa to the soluble component. (omitted)

• Journal of Korean Society of Environmental Engineers
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• v.30 no.9
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• pp.948-954
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• 2008

Membrane bioreactor(MBR) processes have been widely applied to wastewater treatment for last decades due to its excellent capability of solid-liquid separation. However, membrane fouling was considered as a limiting factor in wide application of the MBR process. Excess aeration into membrane surface is a common way to control membrane fouling in most MBR. However, the excessively supplied air is easily dissipated in the reactor, which results in consuming energy and thus, it should be modified for effective control of membrane fouling. In this study, cylindrical tube was introduced to MBR in order to use the supplied air effectively. Membrane fibers were immersed into the cylindrical tube. This makes the supplied air non-dissipated in the reactor so that membrane fouling could be controlled economically. Two different air supplying method was employed and compared each other; nozzle and porous diffuser which were located just beneath the membrane module. Transmembrane pressure(TMP) was monitored as a function of airflow rate, flux, and ratio of the tube area and cross-sectioned area of membrane fibers(A$_m$/A$_t$). Flow rate of air and liquid was regulated to obtain slug flow in the cylindrical tube. With the same flow of air supply, nozzle was more effective for controlling membrane fouling than porous diffuser. Accumulation of sludge was observed in the tube with the nozzle, if the air was not suppled sufficiently. Reduction of membrane fouling was dependent upon the ratio, A$_m$/A$_t$. For diffuser, membrane fouling was minimized when A$_m$/A$_t$ was 0.27, but 0.55 for nozzle.

• Membrane Journal
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.126-134
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• 2016

To produce renewable biomethane from biogas, the properties of physical absorbents such as water, methanol, 1-methyl-2-pyrrolidone (NMP), poly(ethylene glycol) dimethylether (PEGDME), and propylene carbonate (PC) were studied, and PC was applied to membrane contactor systems. Among physical absorbents, PC exhibited a high contact angle of $58.3^{\circ}$ on polypropylene surface, and a PC/water mixture (5 wt%) increased the contact angle to $90^{\circ}$. Furthermore, the PC/water mixture presented higher $CO_2$ absorption capacities (0.148-0.157 mmol/g) than that of water (0.121 mmol/g), demonstrating a good property as an absorbent for membrane contactors. Actual operations in membrane contactors using the PC/water mixture resulted in $CO_2$ removal of 98.0-97.8% with biomethane purities of 98.5-98.3%, presenting a strong potential for biogas treatment. However, the PC/water mixture yielded moderate improved in $CO_2$ removal and methane recovery, as compared with water in the membrane contactor operation. This is originated from insufficient desorption processes to reuse absorbent and low $CO_2$ flux of the PC/water absorbent. Thus, it is requiring optimizations of membrane contactor technology including development of absorbent and improvement of operation process.

• Applied Chemistry for Engineering
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• v.16 no.5
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• pp.641-647
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• 2005

The partial oxidation of methane is one of important processes for hydrogen production. As a membrane reactor, palladium-silver (Pd-Ag) alloy membrane prepared by electroless plating technique was employed for partial oxidation of methane. The experimental variables were reaction temperature, $O_2/CH_4$ mole ratio, $CH_4$ feed rate, and $N_2$ sweep gas flow rate. The methane conversions increased with the reaction temperatures in the range of 350 to $730^{\circ}C$. The highest methane conversion and CO selectivity were obtained at the condition of $O_2/CH_4$ mole ratio of 0.5 and $730^{\circ}C$ using commercially available nickel/alumina catalyst. The Pd-Ag membrane reactor showed higher methane conversions, 10~40% higher, compared to those in a traditional reactor.

• Membrane Journal
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.75-82
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• 2000

This study, which was tarried out to investigate the characteristics of permeation rates and fouling phenomena in drinking-water treating processes with MF membrane, showed that pressure drop was dependent on the length of membrane module and operating pressure; the pressure drop increased with the length of membrane module and operating pressure, operation at a relatively low pressure(0.5kg/$cm^2$) is better than that at a relatively (2.0kg/$cm^2$), since high operating pressure accelerates the clogging. In case of out-in permeation type, almost same flux was obtained after a certain operating time regardless of membrane length and operating pressure. In order to understand, the microbial fouling, chemical cleaning was carried out to the forced contaminated hollow-fiber membrane with chemicals($H_2O_2$, NaOCl, and NaOH). Chemical cleanings with $H_2O_2$and NaOCl, which are oxidizing agents, are better for sterilizing and desorbing the microbes than those with NaOH.

• Journal of Korean Society on Water Environment
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.289-296
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• 2010

The purpose of this study is to evaluate various pre-treatment methods and proprieties of water quality for wastewater reuse using reverse osmosis (RO) processes. Secondary effluents were sampled from wastewater treatment plants and lab scale pre-treatments and RO filtration test were conducted systematically. Specifically, different types of pre-treatments, such as coagulation, microfiltration and ultrafiltration, were employed to evaluate the removal efficiency of particle and organic matters which may affect the membrane fouling rate. RO process was later added to eliminate trace amounts of remaining organic matters and salt from the raw water for wastewater reclamation. The permeate through the RO process satisfied water quality regulations for industrial water uses. The experimental results showed that the initial fouling tendency differed not only by the feed water properties but also by the membrane characteristics. Membrane fouling was greater for the membranes with large surface roughness, regardless of the hydrophobicity and zeta potentials. Thus both careful consideration of pre-treatment options and proper selection of RO membrane are of paramount importance for an efficient operation of wastewater treatment.