Controllable preparation of ZnO porous flower through a membrane dispersion reactor and their photocatalytic properties

Three dimensional (3D) flower-like basic zinc carbonate constructed by multilayered nanoplates were rapidly prepared at room temperature through the direct precipitation method coupled with membrane dispersion technology, and porous ZnO with similar structures could be obtained after calcining the precursor. The structural properties of the products before and after the calcining process were characterized by SEM, TEM and XRD.The supersaturation of the reaction system due to the membrane dispersion played an important role in the formation of uniform Zn_5(CO_3)_2(OH)_6 precursors. A plausible mechanism was proposed for the formation of the flower-like ZnO assembled by nanoplates composed of nanoparticles. The obtained ZnO microspheres showed excellent photocatalytic properties, which could be attributed to the open structure and remarkable amount of porous nanoplates.

Meltblown fabric vs nanofiber membrane, which is better for fabricating personal protective equipments

The coronavirus disease 2019(COVID-19)pandemic has led to a great demand on the personal protection products such as reusable masks.As a key raw material for masks,meltblown fabrics play an important role in rejection of aerosols.However,the electrostatic dominated aerosol rejection mechanism of meltblown fabrics prevents the mask from maintaining the desired protective effect after the static charge degradation.Herein,novel reusable masks with high aerosols rejection efficiency were fabricated by the introduction of spider-web bionic nanofiber membrane(nano cobweb-biomimetic membrane).The reuse stability of meltblown and nanofiber membrane mask was separately evaluated by infiltrating water,75%alcohol solution,and exposing under ultraviolet(UV)light.After the water immersion test,the filtration efficiency of meltblown mask was decreased to about 79%,while the nanofiber membrane was maintained at 99%.The same phenomenon could be observed after the 75%alcohol treatment,a high filtration efficiency of 99%was maintained in nanofiber membrane,but obvious negative effect was observed in meltblown mask,which decreased to about 50%.In addition,after long-term expose under UV light,no filtration efficiency decrease was observed in nanofiber membrane,which provide a suitable way to disinfect the potential carried virus.This work successfully achieved the daily disinfection and reuse of masks,which effectively alleviate the shortage of masks during this special period.

Membrane enhanced COD degradation of pulp wastewater using Cu_2O/H_2O_2 heterogeneous Fenton process

Both activity and stability of the catalyst can be improved in heterogeneous Fenton reaction,in particular,with no limitation for the working p H and no production of the sludge.In this work,a combination of catalyst Cu_2O and pore-channel-dispersed H_2O_2is proposed to treat the pulp wastewater.Degradation degree of CODs in the wastewater was up to 77%in the ceramic membrane reactor using Cu_2O powder(2.0 g·L^(-1))and membranefeeding H_2O_2(0.8 ml·L^(-1))within 60 min.Evolution of·OH radical formation in the advanced oxidation process was analyzed with a fluorescent method.Utilization efficiency of H_2O_2was successfully enhanced by 10%with the membrane distributor.Further on,the catalyst recyclability was evaluated in a five-cycle test.The concentration of copper ions being dissolved in the treated water was monitored with ICP.After Cu_2O/H_2O_2(membrane)treatment the effluent is qualified to discharge with COD concentration lower than 15 mg·L^(-1)with regard to the national standard GB25467-2010.

A bifunctional MnO_x@PTFE catalytic membrane for efficient low temperature NO_x-SCR and dust removal

Low-temperature selective catalytic reduction of NOx combined with dust removal technique due to its energy conservation characteristic has been attracted much attention for fume purification.In this work,the MnOx wrapped PTFE membrane with efficient dust removal and low-temperature NH3-SCR has been prepared with a facile route.MnOxwith different crystal structures was uniformly grown around the PTFE fibrils through water bath.The flower-sphere-like MnOx@PTFE(O-MnOx@PTFE)and lamellar-interlaced ripple-like MnOx@PTFE(W-MnOx@PTFE)have large specific surface area which is favorable for enhancing catalytic performance.Also,the uniformly wrapped W-MnOxaround the PTFE fibrils optimized the pore structure for ultrafine dust capture.The membrane can almost 100%reject particles that are smaller than 1.0μm with a low filtration resistance.Meanwhile,W-MnOx@PTFE with more surface chemisorbed oxygen has the best NO conversion efficiency of 100%at a comparatively low and wide activity temperature window of 160–210°C,which is far to the thermal limitation of the PTFE.Therefore,this efficient and energy conserving membrane has a bright application prospects for tail gas treatment compared to the original treatment process.

Fouling behavior of poly(vinylidene fluoride)(PVDF)ultrafiltration membrane by polyvinyl alcohol(PVA)and chemical cleaning method

Severe fouling to poly(vinylidene fluoride)(PVDF)membrane is usually caused as filtrating the papermaking wastewater in the ultrafiltration(UF)process.In the paper,fouling behavior and mechanism were investigated,and the low-concentration polyvinyl alcohol(PVA)contained in the sedimentation tank wastewater was found as the main foulant.Consequently,the corresponding cleaning approach was proposed.The experiment and modeling results elaborated that the fouling mode developed from pore blockage to cake layer along with filtration time.Chemical cleaning conditions including the composition and concentration of reagents,cleaning duration and trans-membrane pressure were investigated for their effect on cleaning efficiency.Pure water flux was recovered by over 95% after cleaning the PVDF membrane using the optimal conditions 0.5 wt% NaClO(as oxidant)and 0.1 wt% sodiumdodecyl benzene sulfonate(SDBS,as surfactant)at 0.04MPa for 100 min.In the chemical cleaning method,hypochlorite(ClO−)could first chain-scissor PVA macromolecules to small molecules and SDBS could wrap the fragments in micelles,so that the foulants were removed from the pores and surface of membrane.After eight cycling tests,pure water flux recovery maintained above 95% and the reused membrane was found intact without defects.

Recent developments on catalytic membrane for gas cleaning

Catalytic membrane, a novel membrane separation technology that combines catalysis and separation, exhibits significant potential in gas purification such as formaldehyde, toluene and nitrogen oxides(NO_x). The catalytic membrane can remove solid particles through membrane separation and degrade gaseous pollutants to clean gas via a catalytic reaction to achieve green emissions. In this review, we discussed the recent developments of catalytic membranes from two aspects: preparation of catalytic membrane and its application in gas cleaning.Catalytic membranes are divided into organic catalytic membranes and inorganic catalytic membranes depending on the substrate materials. The organic catalytic membranes which are used for low temperature operation(less than 300 °C) are prepared by modifying the polymers or doping catalytic components into the polymers through coating, grafting, or in situ growth of catalysts on polymeric membrane. Inorganic catalytic membranes are used at higher temperature(higher than 500 °C). The catalyst and inorganic membrane can be integrated through conventional deposition methods, such as chemical(physical) vapor deposition and wet chemical deposition. The application progress of catalytic membrane is focused on purifying indoor air and industrial exhaust to remove formaldehyde, toluene, NO_x and PM2.5, which are also summarized. Perspectives on the future developments of the catalytic membranes are provided in terms of material manufacturing and process optimization.

Acid precipitation coupled electrodialysis to improve separation of chloride and organics in pulping crystallization mother liquor

Inefficient separation of inorganic salts and organic matters in crystallization mother liquor is still a problem to industrial wa stewater treatment since the high salinity significantly impedes organic pollutant degradation by oxidation or incineration.In the study,acidification combined electrodialysis(ED)was attempted to effectively separate Cl-ions from organics in concentrate pulping wastewater.Membrane’s rejection rate to total organic carbon(TOC)was 85%at wastewater intrinsic pH=9.8 and enhanced to 93%by acidifying it to pH=2 in ED process.Negative-charged alkaline organic compounds(mainly lignin)could be liberated from their sodium salt forms and coagulated in acidification pretreatment.Neutralization of the organic substances also made their electro-migration less effective under electric driving force and in particular improved separation efficiency of chloride and organics.After acid-ED coupled treatment(pH=2 and J=40 mA·cm-2)[TOC]remarkably reduced from 1.315 g·L-1 to 0.048 g·L-1 and[Cl-]accumulated to 130 g·L-1 in concentrate solution.Recovery rate of NaCl was 89%and the power consumption was 0.38 kW·h·kg-1 NaCl.Irreversible fouling was not caused as electric resistance of membrane pile maintained stably.In conclusion,acidic-ED is a practical option to treat salinity organic wastewater when current techniques including thermal evaporation and pressure-driven membrane se paration present limitations.

Catalytic performance of hybrid Pt@ZnO NRs on carbon fibers for methanol electro-oxidation

A novel Pt@ZnO nanorod/carbon fiber （NR/CF） with hierarchical structure was prepared by atomic layer deposition combined with hydrothermal synthesis and magnetron sputtering （MS）. The morphology of Pt changes from nanoparticle to nanorod bundle with controlled thickness of Pt between 10 and 50 nm. Significantly, with the increase of voltage from 0 to 0.6 V （vs. standard calomel electrode）, the prompt photocurrent generated on ZnO NR/CF increases from 0235 to 0.725 mA. Besides, the Pt@ZnO NR/CF exhibited higher electrochemical active surface area （ECSA） value, better methanol oxidation ability and CO tolerance than Pt@CF, which demonstrated the importance of the multifunctional ZnO support. As the thickness of Pt increasing from 10 to 50 rim, the ECSA values were improved proportionally, leading to the improvement of methanol oxidation ability. More importantly, UV radiation increased the density of peak current of Pt@ZnO NR/CF towards methanol oxidation by additional 42.4%, which may be due to the synergy catalysis of UV light and electricity.

Two-dimensional graphitic carbon nitride for membrane separation

Recent years,membrane separation technology has attracted significant research attention because of the efficient and environmentally friendly operation.The selection of suitable materials to improve the membrane selectivity,permeability and other properties has become a topic of vital research relevance.Two-dimensional(2D)materials,a novel family of multifunctional materials,are widely used in membrane separation due to their unique structure and properties.In this respect,as a novel 2D material,graphitic carbon nitride(g-C_(3)N_(4))have found specific attention in membrane separation.This study reviews the application of carbon nitride in gas separation membranes,pervaporation membranes,nanofiltration membranes,reverse osmosis membranes,ion exchange membranes and catalytic membranes,along with describing the separation mechanisms.

Enhanced performances of polypropylene membranes by molecular layer deposition of polyimide

Molecular layer deposition （MLD） for the deposition of polyimide （PI） at low temperature of 110 ℃ has been firstly introduced into the field of membrane separation. With the optimized MLD deposition parameters, such low de- position temperature has successfully expanded the application of MLD for the surface modification of polymeric materials. Globular PI particulates grow on both the free surfaces as well as the pore walls of the polypropylene （PP） membranes as isolated islands during progressive precursor exposures. The PI-deposited PP membranes ex- hibit synergistically improved performances in various aspects. Evidently improved surface hydrophilicity and per- meation performance （30%） have been achieved v/a the MLD deposition of polyimide films. The overall separation efficiency maintained higher than 85% even after 250 cycles of MLD deposition. More importantly, the thermal sta- bility has been improved and the integrity of the porous structure for PI-deposited PP membranes has been well preserved even after harsh treatment, which ensures its potential application in industries.

Effects of the original state of sodium-based additives on microstructure,surface characteristics and filtration performance of SiC membranes

Sodium-contained compounds are promising sintering additives for the low-temperature preparation of reaction bonded SiC membranes.Although sodium-based sintering additives in various original states were attempted,their effects on microstructure and surface properties have rarely been studied.In this work,three types of sodium-based additives,including solid-state NaA zeolite residue(NaA)and liquidstate dodecylbenzene sulfonate(SDBS)and water glass(WG),were separately adopted to prepare SiC membranes,and the microstructure,surface characteristics and filtration performance of these SiC membranes were comparatively studied.Results showed that the SiC membranes prepared with liquid-state SDBS and WG(S-SDBS and S-WG)showed lower open porosity yet higher bending strength compared to those prepared with solid-state NaA(S-NaA).The observed differences in bending strength were further interpreted by analyzing the reaction process of each sintering additive and the composition of the bonding phase in the reaction bonded SiC membranes.Meanwhile,the microstructural differentiation was correlated to the original state of the additives.In addition,their surface characteristics and filtration performance for oil-in-water emulsion were examined and correlated to the membrane microstructure.The S-NaA samples showed higher hydrophilicity,lower surface roughness(1.80μm)and higher rejection ratio(99.99%)in O/W emulsion separation than those of S-WG and S-SDBS.This can be attributed to the smaller mean pore size and higher open porosity,resulting from the originally solid-state NaA additives.Therefore,this work revealed the comprehensive effects of original state of sintering additives on the prepared SiC membranes,which could be helpful for the application-oriented fabrication by choosing additives in suitable state.

Acid precipitation coupled membrane-dispersion advanced oxidation process(MAOP)to treat crystallization mother liquor of pulp wastewater

Treatment to crystallization mother liquor containing high concentration of organic and inorganic substances is a challenge in zero liquid discharge of industrial wastewater.Acid precipitation coupled membrane-dispersion advanced oxidation process(MAOP)was proposed for organics degradation before salt crystallization by evaporation.With acid-MAOP treatment CODCrin mother liquor of pulping wastewater was eliminated by 55.2%from ultrahigh initial concentration up to 12,500 mg·L^-1.The decolorization rate was 96.5%.Recovered salt was mainly NaCl(83.3 wt%)having whiteness 50 brighter than industrial baysalt of whiteness 45.The oxidation conditions were optimized as CO3=0.11 g·L^-1 and CH2O2=2.0 g·L^-1 with dispersing rate 0.53 ml·min^-1 for 100 min reaction toward acidified liquor of p H=2.Acidification has notably improved evaporation efficiency during crystallization.Addition of H2O2 made through membrane dispersion has eliminated hydroxyl radical"quench effect"and enhanced the degradation capacity,in particular,the breakage of carbon-chloride bonds(of both aliphatic and aromatic).As a result,the proposed coupling method has improved organic pollutant reduction so as the purity of salt from the wastewater mixture which can facilitate water and salt recycling in industry.

A reverse particle grading strategy for design and fabrication of porous SiC ceramic supports with improved strength

Porous ceramics usually require high mechanical strength and maximized porosity simultaneously,while for conventional particle grading strategies,it is highly challenging to meet both demands.To this end,a reverse particle grading strategy was developed based on the linear packing model by unusually introducing coarse particles(d_(50)=16μm)into a fine particle(d50=5μm)matrix.Following the extrusion and sintering process,tubular porous SiC ceramic supports with improved mechanical strength were successfully fabricated.The effects of coarse particles on the rheological properties of the ceramic paste and the macroscopic properties and microstructure of the SiC supports were systematically investigated.With an increase in the content of coarse SiC particles to 30 wt%,the pressure generated during extrusion decreased from 5.5±0.2 to 1.3±0.1 MPa.Notably,the bending strength of the tubular supports increased from 36.6±5.6 to 49.1±4.5 MPa when 20 wt%coarse powder was incorporated.The notably improved mechanical strength was attributed to the distribution of coarse particles that prolonged the route of crack deflection.Additionally,the optimized tubular supports had an average pore size of 1.2±0.1μm,an open porosity of 45.1%±1.6%,and a water permeability of 7163±150 L/(m^(2)·h·bar)as well as good alkali and acid corrosion resistance.Significantly,the strategy was proven to be feasible for the scale-up fabrication of 19-channel SiC tubular porous ceramic supports.

超薄ePTFE纳米纤维膜用于PM2.5的高效治理

针对中高浓度PM2.5的高效过滤问题,选取颗粒粒径与膜孔径比值(dP/dm)范围为0.86~4.46,厚度小于等于1μm的三种不同结构的超薄ePTFE纳米纤维膜展开应用性能研究。考察了过滤速度、PM2.5浓度和膜结构对过滤性能的影响以及膜的再生性能。得益于纳米纤维堆叠的网状结构,在过滤速度为1.2~4.8 m/min,进口浓度为200~1000 mg/m3的范围内,三种超薄ePTFE纳米纤维膜均能实现PM2.5的高效截留(>99.5%),其稳定压降和压降增长速度均随过滤风速和进口PM2.5浓度增加而增加,但初始压降和出口浓度仅随过滤风速增加而增加,与进口浓度关系不大。超薄ePTFE纳米纤维膜层数少、过滤阻力低(≤130 Pa)且膜表面光滑(表面粗糙度小于1μm),降低了滤饼与膜表面附着力,使滤饼易于脱落,在4次循环实验中展现出良好的再生性能。横向对比结果显示,d_(P)/d_(m)为0.86,膜厚度为0.5μm的超薄ePTFE纳米纤维膜兼具最低的过滤压降(30 Pa)、良好的过滤效率(99.93%)及再生性能好的优势,在中高浓度PM2.5空气净化领域表现出较好的应用前景。

Hydroxyl radical intensified Cu2O NPs/H2O2 process in ceramic membrane reactor for degradation on DMAc wastewater from polymeric membrane manufacturer

High-concentration industrial wastewater containing N,N-dimethylacetamide(DMAc)from polymeric membrane manufacturer was degraded in Cu2O NPs/H2O2 Fenton.process.In the membrane assisted Fenton process DMAc removal rate was up to 98%with 120 min which was increased by 23%over the batch reactor.It was found that:OH quench time was extended by 20 min and the maximum:0H productivity was notably 88.7%higher at 40 min.The degradation reaction rate constant was enhanced by 2.2 times with membrane dispersion(k=0.0349 min^-1).DMAc initial concentration(C0)and H202 flux (Jp)had major influence on mass transfer and kinetics,meanwhile,membrane pore size(rp)and length(L)also affected the Treaction rate.The intensifed radical yield,fast mass transfer and nanoparticles high activity all contributed to improve pollutant degradation eficiency.Time-resolved DMAC degradation pathway was analyzed as hydroxylation,demethylation and oxidation leading to the finai products of CO2;H20 and NO3^-(rather.than NH,from biodegradation).Continuous process was operated in the dual-membrane configuration with in situ reaction and separation.After five cycling,tests,DMAc removal was all above 95%for the initial[DMAc]0=14,000 mg/L in wastewater and stability of the catalyst and the membrane maintained weil.

Ultralight 3D-γ-MnOOH porous materials fabricated by hydrothermal treatment and freeze-drying

Creating three-dimensional(3D) ultralight metal oxide using cost-effective precursors and facile approaches is important. Here, shape-controlled γ-MnOOH(density lower than 0.078 g cm-3) with a continuously 3D porous network(3D-γ-MnOOH) was successfully fabricated with KMnO4, MnCl2 and NaOH via hydrothermal treatment and freeze-drying. The hydrothermal condition and the amount of reactants were systematically investigated, and the optimal procedure occurs at 180°C for 10 h with the molar ratios of NaOH/KMnO4 and MnCl2/KMnO4 as 5.0 and 3.5,respectively. Owing to the low density, 3D network, and the filling of air inside the channel, the new γ-MnOOH can float on the water for at least 4 months with complete structure.The formation and floating mechanism of the 3D-γ-MnOOH were also explored. This new 3D-γ-MnOOH could be utilized in oil absorption.