ORCID Profile
0000-0002-8755-0464
Current Organisation
University of New South Wales
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Research Topics
In Research Link Australia (RLA), "Research Topics" refer to ANZSRC FOR and SEO codes. These topics are either sourced from ANZSRC FOR and SEO codes listed in researchers' related grants or generated by a large language model (LLM) based on their publications.
Top 5 Research Topics
ANZSRC Field of Research (FoR)
Chemical Engineering | Membrane and Separation Technologies | Water Treatment Processes | Membrane And Separation Technologies | Water And Sanitary Engineering | Renewable Power and Energy Systems Engineering (excl. Solar Cells) | Wastewater Treatment Processes | Chemistry Of Catalysis | Characterisation Of Macromolecules | Toxicology (incl. Clinical Toxicology) | Environmental Biotechnology | Functional Materials | Environmental Chemistry (incl. Atmospheric Chemistry) | Environmental Monitoring | Water Resources Engineering | Water Quality Engineering | Environmental Science and Management | Macromolecular and Materials Chemistry | Environmental Technologies | Environmental Engineering | Civil Engineering | Bio-Remediation | Chemical Engineering not elsewhere classified | Sustainable Agricultural Development | Bioprocessing, Bioproduction and Bioproducts |
ANZSRC Socio-Economic Objective (SEO)
Physical and Chemical Conditions of Water for Urban and Industrial Use | Physical and Chemical Conditions of Water in Fresh, Ground and Surface Water Environments (excl. Urban and Industrial Use) | Management of Water Consumption by Manufacturing Activities | Climate Change Adaptation Measures | Water Services and Utilities | Industry | Land and water management | Land and water management | Urban Water Evaluation (incl. Water Quality) | Environmentally Sustainable Energy Activities not elsewhere classified | Integrated Systems | Prevention and treatment of pollution | Other | Processed food products and beverages not elsewhere classified | Water Recycling Services (incl. Sewage and Greywater) | Land and Water Management of environments not elsewhere classified | Urban and Industrial Water Management | Industrial Energy Conservation and Efficiency | Solar-Thermal Energy | Industrial Instruments | Environmental health | Industrial Chemicals and Related Products not elsewhere classified | Expanding Knowledge in Engineering | Environmental Health | Farmland, Arable Cropland and Permanent Cropland Water Management
Related Links
Publications
Numerical study of CaCO3 scaling in submerged vacuum membrane distillation and crystallization (VMDC)
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 08-2018
Boron nitride nanotube growth via boron oxide assisted chemical vapor transport-deposition process using LiNO3 as a promoter
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 08-04-2015
CFD modelling of uneven flows behaviour in flat-sheet membrane bioreactors: From bubble generation to shear stress distribution
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2019
Development of a mobile groundwater desalination system for communities in rural India
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 11-2018
DOI: 10.1016/J.WATRES.2018.08.001
Abstract: The consumption of saline groundwater has contributed to a growing incidence of renal diseases, particularly in coastal communities of India. Although reverse osmosis (RO) is routinely used to remove salt from groundwater, conventional RO systems (i.e. centralized systems using spiral wound RO elements) have limited utility in these communities due to high capital and maintenances costs, and lack of infrastructure to distribute the water. Consequently, there is a need to develop an appropriate solution for groundwater treatment based on small-scale, mobile and community-led systems. In this work, we designed a mobile desalination system to provide a simple platform for water treatment and delivery of goods to rural communities. The system employs tubular RO membranes packed in a single, low-profile vessel which fits below the cargo space. The low-profile enables minimal intrusion on the space available for the transportation of goods. Pressure is delivered by a belt driven clutch pump, powered by the engine. Water is treated locally by connecting the intake to the village well while the vehicle idles. A combined numerical and experimental approach was used to optimise the module/system design, resulting in ∼20% permeate flux enhancement. Experimental results revealed that the system can produce 16 L per square meter of membrane area per hour (LMH) at a salinity level of 80 ppm from a ∼2000 ppm groundwater when it is feed at 1 m
Particle deposition on flat sheet membranes under bubbly and slug flow aeration in coagulation-microfiltration process: Effects of particle characteristic and shear stress
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 11-2017
Comparison of treatment options for removal of recalcitrant dissolved organic matter from paper mill effluent
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 09-2010
DOI: 10.1016/J.CHEMOSPHERE.2010.06.060
Abstract: Recycling paper mill effluent by conventional water treatment is difficult due to the persistence of salt and recalcitrant organics. Elimination of dissolved organic matter (DOM) from paper mill effluent was studied using three treatment options, ion exchange resin (IER), granular activated carbon (GAC) and nanofiltration (NF). The removal efficiency was analysed based on hydrophobicity, molecular weight and fluorogenic origin of the DOM fractions. For IER, GAC and NF treatments, overall removal of dissolved organic carbon was 72%, 76% and 91%, respectively. Based on the hydrophobicity, all the three treatment methods majorly removed hydrophobic acid fractions (HPhoA). Further, IER acted on all fractions, 57% of HPhoA, 44% of transphilic acid and 18% of hydrophilics, substantiating that the removal is by both ion exchange and adsorption. Based on the molecular weight, IER and GAC treatments acted majorly on the high molecular weight fractions, whereas NF eliminated all molecular weight fractions. After GAC adsorption, some amount of humic hydrolysates and low molecular weight neutrals persisted in the effluent. After IER treatment, amount of low molecular weight compounds increased due to resin leaching. Qualitative analysis of fluorescence excitation emission matrices showed that the fulvic acid-like fluorophores were more recalcitrant among the various DOM fractions, considerable amount persisted after all the three treatment methods. Three treatment methods considerably differed in terms of removing different DOM fractions however, a broad-spectrum process like NF would be needed to achieve the maximum elimination.
Fouling of a microfiltration membrane by two Gram-negative bacteria
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 06-1993
Environmental Benefits and Burdens of Phosphorus Recovery from Municipal Wastewater
Publisher: American Chemical Society (ACS)
Date: 10-07-2015
DOI: 10.1021/ES505102V
Abstract: The environmental benefits and burdens of phosphorus recovery in four centralized and two decentralized municipal wastewater systems were compared using life cycle assessment (LCA). In centralized systems, phosphorus recovered as struvite from the solids dewatering liquid resulted in an environmental benefit except for the terrestrial ecotoxicity and freshwater eutrophication impact categories, with power and chemical use offset by operational savings and avoided fertilizer production. Chemical-based phosphorus recovery, however, generally required more resources than were offset by avoided fertilizers, resulting in a net environmental burden. In decentralized systems, phosphorus recovery via urine source separation reduced the global warming and ozone depletion potentials but increased terrestrial ecotoxicity and salinization potentials due to application of untreated urine to land. Overall, mineral depletion and eutrophication are well-documented arguments for phosphorus recovery however, phosphorus recovery does not necessarily present a net environmental benefit. While avoided fertilizer production does reduce potential impacts, phosphorus recovery does not necessarily offset the resources consumed in the process. LCA results indicate that selection of an appropriate phosphorus recovery method should consider both local conditions and other environmental impacts, including global warming, ozone depletion, toxicity, and salinization, in addition to eutrophication and mineral depletion impacts.
Impact of iron dosing of membrane bioreactors on membrane fouling
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 09-2014
Structural analysis and atomic simulation of Ag/BN nanoparticle hybrids obtained by Ag ion implantation
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 05-2016
Free radical exit in emulsion polymerization. II. Model discrimination via experiment
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 03-1994
Evaluating the impact of recycled fiber content on effluent recycling in newsprint manufacture
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 09-2013
DOI: 10.1016/J.CHEMOSPHERE.2013.04.015
Abstract: This paper investigates the effect of using recycled fiber (RCF) in newsprint production on the effluent quality and its treatability using membrane operations for internal and external recycling and reuse. Increased chemical usage in RCF for deinking had significant impact on the silica and sodium content of the effluent which in turn limits the membrane's operation. Increasing the RCF content from 0% to 50% is estimated to increase the silica content from 4 to 119mgL(-1) and sodium content from 135 to 500mgL(-1). A process model was developed to calculate the impact of these excess chemicals on the greenhouse gas (GHG) emission and brine disposal for an integrated membrane plant design producing 4MLday(-1) of recycled water. As the ratio of RCF increased from 0% to 50% in the mill process, the operating pressure increased for nanofiltration (NF) and reverse osmosis (RO). Additionally, organics presence in the feed increased the NF operating pressure above the simulated value and reduced the silica removal efficiency by 15%. Incorporation of lime coagulation pretreatment was found to be essential to operate RO at high recoveries with relatively GHG emissions. Without pretreatment, as RCF content increased from 0% to 50%, RO recovery decreased from 80% to 22% and the expended GHG increased from 0.9 to 3.5kgCO2m(-3). Although the excess sodium concentration limits the brine disposal for irrigation purposes, a partial blending of the treated wastewater with other process streams resulted in the reduction of sodium absorption ratio by 20%.
Ageing of Polymeric Membranes in Water and Wastewater Treatment
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2012
Comparison of reverse osmosis membrane fouling profiles from Australian water recycling plants
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 07-2012
A numerical approach to module design for crossflow vacuum membrane distillation systems
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 07-2016
In situ fabrication and optoelectronic analysis of axial CdS/p-Si nanowire heterojunctions in a high-resolution transmission electron microscope
Publisher: IOP Publishing
Date: 23-03-2015
DOI: 10.1088/0957-4484/26/15/154001
Abstract: A high-precision technique was utilized to construct and characterize axial nanowire heterojunctions inside a high-resolution transmission electron microscope (HRTEM). By an in-tandem technique using an ultra-sharp tungsten probe as the nanomanipulator and an optical fiber as the optical waveguide the nanoscale CdS -Si axial nanowire junctions were fabricated, and in situ photocurrents from them were successfully measured. Compared to a single constituting nanowire, the CdS -Si axial nanowire junctions possess a photocurrent saturation effect, which protects them from damage under high voltages. Furthermore, a set of experiments reveals the clear relationship between the saturation photocurrent values and the incident light intensities. The applied technique is expected to be valuable for bottom-up nanodevice fabrications, and the regarded photocurrent saturation feature may solve the Joule heating-induced failure problem in nanowire optoelectronic devices caused by a fluctuating bias.
Removal efficiency and integrity monitoring techniques for virus removal by membrane processes
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 05-2012
Diagnosis of dissolved organic matter removal by GAC treatment in biologically treated papermill effluents using advanced organic characterisation techniques
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 02-2012
DOI: 10.1016/J.CHEMOSPHERE.2011.11.059
Abstract: Granular activated carbon (GAC) exhaustion rates on pulp and paper effluent from South East Australia were found to be a factor of three higher (3.62cf. 1.47kgm(-3)) on Kraft mills compared to mills using Thermomechanical pulping supplemented by Recycled Fibre (TMP/RCF). Biological waste treatment at both mills resulted in a final effluent COD of 240mgL(-1). The dissolved organic carbon (DOC) was only 1.2 times higher in the Kraft effluent (70 vs. 58mgL(-1)), however, GAC treatment of Kraft and TMP/RCF effluent was largely different on the DOC persisted after biological treatment. The molecular mass (636 vs. 534gmol(-1)) and aromaticity (5.35 vs. 4.67Lmg(-1)m(-1)) of humic substances (HS) were slightly higher in the Kraft effluent. The HS aromaticity was decreased by a factor of 1.0Lmg(-1)m(-1) in both Kraft and TMP/RCF effluent. The molecular mass of the Kraft effluent increased by 50gmol(-1) while the molecular mass of the TMP/RCF effluent was essentially unchanged after GAC treatment the DOC removal efficiency of the GAC on Kraft effluent was biased towards the low molecular weight humic compounds. The rapid adsorption of this fraction, coupled with the slightly higher aromaticity of the humic components resulted in early breakthrough on the Kraft effluent. Fluorescence excitation-emission matrix analysis of the each GAC treated effluent indicated that the refractory components were higher molecular weight humics on the Kraft effluent and protein-like compounds on the TMP/RCF effluent. Although the GAC exhaustion rates are too high for an effective DOC removal option for biologically treated pulp and paper mill effluents, the study indicates that advanced organic characterisation techniques can be used to diagnose GAC performance on complex effluents with comparable bulk DOC and COD loads.
Towards new opportunities for reuse, recycling and disposal of used reverse osmosis membranes
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 08-2012
Diagnosis of membrane bioreactor performance through residence time distribution measurements - a preliminary study
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2009
Membrane bioreactors: overview of the effects of module geometry on mixing energy
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 05-2009
DOI: 10.1002/APJ.248
Relative impact of fouling and cleaning on PVDF membrane hydraulic performances
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 04-2012
Assessing the oxidative degradation of polyamide reverse osmosis membrane-Accelerated ageing with hypochlorite exposure
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 02-2010
Evaluation of membrane bioreactor performance via residence time distribution: Effects of membrane configuration and mixing
Publisher: IWA Publishing
Date: 02-2008
DOI: 10.2166/WST.2008.114
Abstract: Unlike conventional wastewater treatment systems that have a single effluent discharge point, membrane bioreactors (MBR) may have multiple extraction points resulting from the location of the membrane element in the reactor. This leads to multiple residence time distributions for an MBR system. One method to characterise the mixing is based on the concept of residence time distribution (RTD). A set of RTDs were generated using the conservative tracer, lithium chloride, for pilot plant MBRs with capacity up to 300 m3/day. Flat sheet and hollow fibre pilot plant MBR systems were operated in parallel on primary effluent collected at the Bedok Water Reclamation Plant in the republic of Singapore. Analysis of the RTD profiles indicated that membrane geometry did not impact on the kinetic conversion associated with nitrification because both MBRs were in well mixed conditions. However, the energy required to achieve perfect mixing with a hollow fibre module MBR, as defined by the velocity gradient, was lower than that with a flat sheet module MBR. The implication is that energy input associated with reactor mixing will depend on the configuration of the membrane. The difference in energy requirements between flat sheets and hollow fibres is such that careful consideration should be given to membrane selection in larger municipal installations.
Polymer-Fraction dependence of entry rate coefficients in emulsion polymerization
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 1992
DOI: 10.1071/CH9922057
Abstract: Data on the rate of approach to steady state in a series of studies of the seeded emulsion polymerization of styrene yield the dependence of the rate coefficient for entry of free radicals into latex particles as a function of the weight-fraction polymer and hence of monomer concentration in the aqueous phase. The results are in accord with a model for the entry process (i.e., for the initiator efficiency) based on aqueous-phase propagation and termination being the rate-controlling events.
Numerical simulations of impact of membrane module design variables on aeration patterns in membrane bioreactors
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 12-2016
Shear stress in a pressure-driven membrane system and its impact on membrane fouling from a hydrodynamic condition perspective: a review
Publisher: Wiley
Date: 22-12-2016
DOI: 10.1002/JCTB.5154
Growth of spherical boron oxynitride nanoparticles with smooth and petalled surfaces during a chemical vapour deposition process
Publisher: Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC)
Date: 2016
DOI: 10.1039/C6CE01126H
Statistically Analyzed Photoresponse of Elastically Bent CdS Nanowires Probed by Light-Compatible In Situ High-Resolution TEM
Publisher: American Chemical Society (ACS)
Date: 09-09-2016
DOI: 10.1021/ACS.NANOLETT.6B01614
Abstract: We demonstrate that high resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) paired with light illumination of a s le and its electrical probing can be utilized for the in situ study of initiated photocurrents in free-standing nanowires. Morphology, phase and crystallographic information from numerous in idual CdS nanowires is obtained simultaneously with photocurrent measurements. Our results indicate that elastically bent CdS nanowires possessing a wurtzite structure show statistically unchanged values of ON/OFF (photocurrent/dark current) ratios. Photocurrent spectroscopy reveals red shifts of several nanometers in the cutoff wavelength after nanowire bending. This results from deformation-induced lattice strain and associated changes in the nanowire band structure, as confirmed by selected area electron diffraction (SAED) analyses and density functional tight binding (DFTB) simulations. The ON/OFF ratio stabilities and photocurrent spectroscopy shift of bent CdS nanowires are important clues for future flexible electronics, optoelectronics, and photovoltaics.
Evaluation of full-scale membrane bioreactor mixing performance and the effect of membrane configuration
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 15-03-2010
Multi-effect distillation: a sustainable option to large-scale green hydrogen production using solar energy
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 09-2023
Removal of contaminants of concern in water using advance oxidation techniques
Publisher: IWA Publishing
Date: 06-2007
DOI: 10.2166/WST.2007.421
Abstract: This research involves the removal of contaminants of concern in water supplies using advanced oxidation technologies, in particular titanium dioxide photocatalysis. Photocatalysis for the removal of 1,4-dioxane and the natural (17β-oestradiol, oestriol) and synthetic (17α-ethynyloestradiol) oestrogens in water was investigated using both UVA and solar radiation. The H2O2/UVC process, solar, UVC and UVA light alone were also investigated and the processes compared. It was found that TiO2 photocatalysis is an effective method for the degradation of the natural (17β-oestradiol and oestriol) and the synthetic (17α-ethynyloestradiol) oestrogens in water in immobilised Degussa P25 and sol-gel spiral reactors with both UVA and solar radiation as the light source. Photocatalysis using the commercial catalyst Degussa P25 as an immobilised reactor with a UVA l shows the best performance. Photocatalysis was shown to completely mineralise 1,4-dioxane to CO2 in Degussa P25 suspension and sol-gel reactors using both UVA and solar radiation. The commercial catalyst Degussa P25 in suspension with UVA radiation shows the best performance. Photocatalysis is much more efficient than H2O2/UVC, UVA, UVC and solar radiation alone for all contaminants investigated.
Organic Fouling of Ultrafiltration Membrane: Detailed Characterization by Liquid Chromatography with Organic Carbon Detector (LC-OCD)
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 12-2012
Cleaning strategies for iron-fouled membranes from submerged membrane bioreactor treatment of wastewaters
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 02-2015
Evaluation of novel hollow fibre membranes for NOM removal by advanced membrane autopsy
Publisher: IWA Publishing
Date: 26-11-2016
DOI: 10.2166/WS.2015.170
Abstract: A full-scale inside out hollow fibre membrane module was operated in a pilot-scale water treatment plant in Sweden for a period of 12 months from August 2013 to July 2014. Liquid chromatography– organic carbon detection (LC-OCD) chromatogram indicated the membranes could effectively remove 86% of dissolved organic carbon and 92% of humic substances from the feedwater. Routine cleaning-in-place was conducted to remove any fouling material accumulated on the membranes. Autopsy of the aged membrane s les after 12 months’ operation suggested no significant changes were detected for the membrane s les obtained from the top, middle and bottom sections of the membrane module and were similar to the virgin membrane s le.
Transforming 'value engineering' froman art form into a science - Process resilience modelling
Publisher: IWA Publishing
Date: 03-2014
DOI: 10.2166/WPT.2014.012
Abstract: The resilience of a treatment facility should be an important part of its design and operation throughout its service life to ensure it meets compliance and production expectations. This has traditionally been difficult to assess and quantify, and as a consequence its management has largely been ignored, or has been reduced to a function of how many treatment stages are provided with redundancy and/ or backup ‘stand-by’ facilities. Without proper resilience assessment there will always be a tendency to undertake ‘gold-plate’ engineering producing specifications much higher than the business need. This consequently leads to higher capital and operational expenditure over the life of a treatment asset. Value engineering then ends up an art form, where negotiating the line between risk and cost is often more to do with good luck than judgement. Resilience assessment makes value engineering a science rather than an art, as well as providing a critical means of influencing and assessing investment decisions and operational and maintenance planning to minimise the overall cost of compliance. Asset resilience assessment techniques have been developed in other industries over the last 15 years. Recently the authors have applied these tried and tested approaches to water and wastewater treatment assets.
Scaling prediction based on thermodynamic equilibrium calculation — scopes and limitations
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 08-2009
Enhancement of reverse osmosis water recovery using interstage calcium precipitation
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 06-2012
Aluminum matrix composites reinforced with multi-walled boron nitride nanotubes fabricated by a high-pressure torsion technique
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 12-2015
International capacity building to achieve SDG6: insights from longitudinal analysis of five water operator partnerships
Publisher: Informa UK Limited
Date: 22-09-2022
Accelerated seeded precipitation pre-treatment of municipal wastewater to reduce scaling
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 05-2008
DOI: 10.1016/J.CHEMOSPHERE.2008.01.045
Abstract: Membrane based treatment processes are very effective in removing salt from wastewater, but are hindered by calcium scale deposit formation. This study investigates the feasibility of removing calcium from treated sewage wastewater using accelerated seeded precipitation. The rate of calcium removal was measured during bench scale batch mode seeded precipitation experiments at pH 9.5 using various quantities of calcium carbonate as seed material. The results indicate that accelerated seeded precipitation may be a feasible option for the decrease of calcium in reverse osmosis concentrate streams during the desalination of treated sewage wastewater for irrigation purposes, promising decreased incidence of scaling and the option to control the sodium adsorption ratio and nutritional properties of the desalted water. It was found that accelerated seeded precipitation of calcium from treated sewage wastewater was largely ineffective if carried out without pre-treatment of the wastewater. Evidence was presented that suggests that phosphate may be a major interfering substance for the seeded precipitation of calcium from this type of wastewater. A pH adjustment to 9.5 followed by a 1-h equilibration period was found to be an effective pre-treatment for the removal of interferences. Calcium carbonate seed addition at 10 g l(-1) to wastewater that had been pre-treated in this way was found to result in calcium precipitation from supersaturated level at 60 mg l(-1) to saturated level at 5 mg l(-1). Approximately 90% reduction of the calcium level occurred 5 min after seed addition. A further 10% reduction was achieved 30 min after seed addition.
MTBE and priority contaminant treatment with high energy electron beam injection
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 11-2002
Lateral piezopotential-gated field-effect transistor of ZnO nanowires
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 04-2015
A New Method for Determining Propagation Rate Coefficients at High Fraction of Polymer
Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
Date: 1988
DOI: 10.1071/CH9880279
Application of a combination of oxidants improves treatment performance for NOM and manganese
Publisher: Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC)
Date: 2022
DOI: 10.1039/D2EW00416J
Abstract: Systematic evaluation of seven oxidant combinations for pre and post coagulation in direct filtration provides guidance on maximising NOM and manganese removal without increasing DBP formation.
Performance of a membrane-based irrigation system for different evaporative conditions
Publisher: American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers
Date: 17-07-2016
Evaluation of effluent organic matter fouling in ultrafiltration treatment using advanced organic characterisation techniques
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 10-2011
An alternative membrane treatment process to produce low-salt and high-nutrient recycled water suitable for irrigation purposes
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 07-2011
Computational fluid dynamics simulations of MBRs: Inside submerged versus outside submerged membranes
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2009
Fabrication, characterization, and mechanical properties of spark plasma sintered Al–BN nanoparticle composites
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 08-2015
Cake resistance and solute rejection in bacterial microfiltration: The role of the extracellular matrix
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 26-04-1993
An integrated, solar-driven membrane distillation system for water purification and energy generation
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 03-2019
Design of BN porous sheets with richly exposed (002) plane edges and their application as TiO2 visible light sensitizer
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 09-2015
MBR focus: the operators' perspective
Publisher: Mark Allen Group
Date: 06-2005
Degradation of 1,4-dioxane in water using TiO2 based photocatalytic and H2O2/UV processes
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 07-2007
DOI: 10.1016/J.JHAZMAT.2007.04.049
Abstract: 1,4-dioxane is a synthetic compound found in industrial effluent and subsequently contaminates water bodies due to its high solubility and high volatility. It is of concern due to its toxic and hazardous nature and has been listed as a class 2B carcinogen. This study involved optimisation of the photocatalytic and H(2)O(2)/UVC processes for 1,4-dioxane removal. Different photocatalysts and loadings were investigated for the degradation of low concentrations of 1,4-dioxane in water including a commercial P25, a synthesised magnetic photocatalyst and an immobilised sol-gel system. A commercial catalyst (Degussa P25) was the most efficient. A lifetime study of the sol-gel reactor showed that the coating was stable over the time period studied. The optimum H(2)O(2) concentration in the H(2)O(2)/UVC process was found to be 30ppm. The addition of H(2)O(2) to the photocatalytic process for 1,4-dioxane removal caused a decrease in rate for the commercial P25 photocatalyst and an increase in rate for the lab-made magnetic photocatalyst.
CFD simulations of membrane filtration zone in a submerged hollow fibre membrane bioreactor using a porous media approach
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 11-2010
Surfactant modified graphene oxide laminates for filtration
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 05-2017
Thermodynamic efficiencies and GHG emissions of alternative desalination processes
Publisher: IWA Publishing
Date: 07-2010
DOI: 10.2166/WS.2010.085
Abstract: Three alternative approaches to desalinating seawater were evaluated with respect to their thermodynamic efficiencies and greenhouse-gas emissions. The technologies considered were multistage flash distillation (MSF), reverse osmosis (RO), and membrane distillation (MD). The analysis was based on published stream data from large-scale operational MSF and RO facilities and experimental-scale data for the MD process. RO was found to be the most exergy-efficient (30.1%) followed by MD (14.27%) and MSF (7.73%). RO and MD required less power consumption to produce water (3.29 kWh/m3 and 5.9 kWh/m3, respectively) compared to MSF which had a much higher energy demand (16.7 kWh/m3). Similar results were obtained when comparing equivalent carbon dioxide emissions from each process MD and RO accounted for 5.22 and 2.91 kg CO2eq/m3, respectively, whereas MSF generated three to four times that amount. The results indicate that MD has potential as a commercially viable technique for seawater desalination provided a source of waste heat is available. This study provides an overview of the use of thermodynamic efficiency analysis to evaluate desalination processes and provides insight into where energy may be saved with developed desalination processes and areas of research for emerging desalination techniques.
Comparative life cycle assessment of end-of-life options for reverse osmosis membranes
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 02-2015
Hazardous events in membrane bioreactors - Part 3: Impacts on microorganism log removal efficiencies
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2016
Microfiltration of biomass and biofluids: Effects of membrane morphology and operating conditions
Publisher: Mark Allen Group
Date: 09-1991
Using MF-NF-RO train to produce low salt and high nutrient value recycled water for agricultural irrigation
Publisher: IWA Publishing
Date: 11-2008
DOI: 10.2166/WST.2008.534
Abstract: The project investigated and demonstrated that using a selective nanofiltration (NF) membrane and a reverse osmosis (RO) membrane in sequence can produce recycled water with useful levels of nutrient ions, and lower the sodium absorption ratio (SAR) to minimise soil salinity. The recovery of nutrient and useful ions from the wastewater makes NF-RO treated recycled water an attractive option for agricultural irrigation. It was found that the addition of polyacrylic acid (PAA) significantly increased the rejection of alent ions by SR2 NF element, and kept the sodium rejection largely unchanged. This effect enhanced the enrichment of alent ions in the NF rejects, and allowed sodium ions to pass to the RO stage. The product water included NF reject and the RO permeate. Overall, the MF-NF-RO train with a PAA aided NF pre-treatment can produce a product water fit for agriculture irrigation purpose, and reduce the scaling on the RO membrane due to calcium ions which are removed by NF, leading to the higher RO recovery. This approach achieved overall higher water production with less waste for disposal.
Mechanical analysis of hollow fiber membrane integrity in water reuse applications
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 08-2005
Evaluation of ion exchange resins for the removal of dissolved organic matter from biologically treated paper mill effluent
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2013
DOI: 10.1016/J.CHEMOSPHERE.2012.09.007
Abstract: In this study, the efficiency of six ion exchange resins to reduce the dissolved organic matter (DOM) from a biologically treated newsprint mill effluent was evaluated and the dominant removal mechanism of residual organics was established using advanced organic characterisations techniques. Among the resins screened, TAN1 possessed favourable Freundlich parameters, high resin capacity and solute affinity, closely followed by Marathon MSA and Marathon WBA. The removal efficiency of colour and lignin residuals was generally good for the anion exchange resins, greater than 50% and 75% respectively. In terms of the DOM fractions removal measured through liquid chromatography-organic carbon and nitrogen detector (LC-OCND), the resins mainly targeted the removal of humic and fulvic acids of molecular weight ranging between 500 and 1000 g mol(-1), the portion expected to contribute the most to the aromaticity of the effluent. For the anion exchange resins, physical adsorption operated along with ion exchange mechanism assisting to remove neutral and transphilic acid fractions of DOM. The column studies confirmed TAN1 being the best of those screened, exhibited the longest mass transfer zone and maximum treatable volume of effluent. The treatable effluent volume with 50% reduction in dissolved organic carbon (DOC) was 4.8 L for TAN1 followed by Marathon MSA - 3.6L, Marathon 11 - 2.0 L, 21K-XLT - 1.5 L and Marathon WBA - 1.2 L. The cation exchange resin G26 was not effective in DOM removal as the maximum DOC removal obtained was only 27%. The resin capacity could not be completely restored for any of the resins however, a maximum restoration up to 74% and 93% was achieved for TAN1 and Marathon WBA resins. While this feasibility study indicates the potential option of using ion exchange resins for the reclamation of paper mill effluent, the need for improving the regeneration protocols to restore the resin efficiency is also identified. Similarly, care should be taken while employing LC-OCND for characterising resin-treated effluents, as the resin degradation is expected to contribute some organic carbon moieties misleading the actual performance of resin.
Insights on pulsed bubble control of membrane fouling: Effect of bubble size and frequency
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 05-2018
Mixing characterisation of full-scale membrane bioreactors: CFD modelling with experimental validation
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 05-2010
DOI: 10.1016/J.WATRES.2010.02.029
Abstract: Membrane Bioreactors (MBRs) have been successfully used in aerobic biological wastewater treatment to solve the perennial problem of effective solids-liquid separation. The optimisation of MBRs requires knowledge of the membrane fouling, biokinetics and mixing. However, research has mainly concentrated on the fouling and biokinetics (Ng and Kim, 2007). Current methods of design for a desired flow regime within MBRs are largely based on assumptions (e.g. complete mixing of tanks) and empirical techniques (e.g. specific mixing energy). However, it is difficult to predict how sludge rheology and vessel design in full-scale installations affects hydrodynamics, hence overall performance. Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) provides a method for prediction of how vessel features and mixing energy usage affect the hydrodynamics. In this study, a CFD model was developed which accounts for aeration, sludge rheology and geometry (i.e. bioreactor and membrane module). This MBR CFD model was then applied to two full-scale MBRs and was successfully validated against experimental results. The effect of sludge settling and rheology was found to have a minimal impact on the bulk mixing (i.e. the residence time distribution).
Impact of membrane ageing on reverse osmosis performance – Implications on validation protocol
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 12-2016
Water resources and the potential of brackish groundwater extraction in Egypt: A review
Publisher: IWA Publishing
Date: 21-02-2014
Numerical simulation of bubble induced shear inmembrane bioreactors: Effects of mixed liquor rheology and membrane configuration
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 05-2015
DOI: 10.1016/J.WATRES.2015.02.009
Abstract: A CFD model, incorporating an empirically determined rheology model and a porous media model, was developed to simulate bubble induced surface shear in membrane bioreactors configured with hollow fibre membranes with outer diameters ranging from 1.3 to 2.4 mm, arranged in vertically orientated modules with packing density from 200 to 560 m(2)/m(3). The rheology model was developed for mixed liquor suspended solids (MLSS) concentrations of 3 to 16 gL(-1) in the presence and absence of coagulant (generated by addition of a ferrous salt) for shear rates ranging from 0 to 500 s(-1). Experimentally determined particle relaxation times for the biological flocs in the mixed liquor, both in the absence and presence of iron, were negligible, consistent with an environment where positive buoyancy forces were greater than negative settling forces thereby allowing the sludge mixture to be modelled as a single continuous phase. The non-Newtonian behaviour of the mixed liquor was incorporated into the CFD simulations using an Ostwald-de Waele rheology model. Interactions between mixed liquor and hollow fibre membranes of different fibre size and packing density were described using a porous media model that was calibrated by empirical measurement of inertial loss coefficients over a range of viscosities (0.8 × 10(-3) to 2.1 × 10(-3) Pa.s) and velocities (0 to 0.35 m/s) typically encountered in full scale MBRs. Experimental results indicated that addition of iron salts resulted in an increase in MLSS and sludge viscosity. Shear stress is affected by both velocity and viscosity. The increase in sludge viscosity resulted in an increase in resistance to flow through the hollow fibre membrane bundles and, as a result, decreased the liquid flow velocities. CFD simulations provided insight on the effects of point of coagulant addition and MLSS concentration on bubble-induced shear over a range of industrially relevant conditions. A 12% increase in shear stress was observed when ferrous salts were added to the membrane filtration zone compared to addition to the primary anoxic zone. The presence of iron salts also improved the distribution of shear stress especially at the lower zone of the membrane module. The CFD models developed here were validated using Particle Image Velocimetry (PIV) with the average difference between simulated liquid velocities and PIV measured velocities found to be 5.5%.
Non-microbial indicators for monitoring virus removal by ultrafiltration membranes
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 03-2014
The Performance and Fouling Control of Submerged Hollow Fiber (HF) Systems: A Review
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date: 28-07-2017
DOI: 10.3390/APP7080765
Membrane ageing during water treatment: Mechanisms, monitoring, and control. Mechanisms, monitoring, and control.
Publisher: Elsevier
Date: 2015
Phosphorus recovery from centralised municipal water recycling plants
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2012
Natural versus wastewater derived dissolved organic carbon: Implications for the environmental fate of organic micropollutants
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 08-2011
DOI: 10.1016/J.WATRES.2011.05.038
Abstract: The interaction of organic micropollutants with dissolved organic carbon (DOC) can influence their transport, degradation and bioavailability. While this has been well established for natural organic carbon, very little is known regarding the influence of DOC on the fate of micropollutants during wastewater treatment and water recycling. Dissolved organic carbon-water partition coefficients (K(DOC)) for wastewater derived and reference DOC were measured for a range of micropollutants using a depletion method with polydimethylsiloxane disks. For micropollutants with an octanol-water partition coefficient (log K(OW)) greater than 4 there was a significant difference in K(DOC) between reference and wastewater derived DOC, with partitioning to wastewater derived DOC over 1000 times lower for the most hydrophobic micropollutants. The interaction of nonylphenol with wastewater derived DOC from different stages of a wastewater and advanced water treatment train was studied, but little difference in K(DOC) was observed. Organic carbon characterisation revealed that reference and wastewater derived DOC had very different properties due to their different origins. Consequently, the reduced sorption capacity of wastewater derived DOC may be related to their microbial origin which led to reduced aromaticity and lower molecular weight. This study suggests that for hydrophobic micropollutants (log K(OW) > 4) a higher concentration of freely dissolved and thus bioavailable micropollutants is expected in the presence of wastewater derived DOC than predicted using K(DOC) values quantified using reference DOC. The implication is that naturally derived DOC may not be an appropriate surrogate for wastewater derived DOC as a matrix for assessing the fate of micropollutants in engineered systems.
Optimising mixing and nutrient removal in membrane bioreactors: CFD modelling and experimental validation
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2010
Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis of membrane reactors: modelling of membrane bioreactors for municipal wastewater treatment
Publisher: Elsevier
Date: 2013
Real-time monitoring of scale formation in reverse osmosis using electrical impedance spectroscopy
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 03-2014
Degradation of polymeric membranes in water and wastewater treatment
Publisher: Elsevier
Date: 2011
Optimizing hollow fibre nanofiltration for organic matter rich lake water
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date: 30-09-2016
DOI: 10.3390/W8100430
Selective separation of contaminants from paper mill effluent using nanofiltration
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 04-2012
Potential upgrading of bio-refinery streams by electrodialysis
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 08-2017
Limitations for transferring lab-scale microfiltration results to large-scale membrane bioreactor (MBR) processes
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 07-2012
Fluid Structure Interaction analysis of lateral fibre movement in submerged membrane reactors
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 04-2016
Impact of module design in forward osmosis and pressure assisted osmosis: An experimental and numerical study
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 2018
Production and characterisation of UF membranes by chemical conversion of used RO membranes
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 11-2013
Effect of ferric and ferrous iron addition on phosphorus removal and fouling in submerged membrane bioreactors
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 02-2015
DOI: 10.1016/J.WATRES.2014.11.011
Abstract: The effect of continuously dosing membrane bioreactors (MBRs) with ferric chloride (Fe(III)) and ferrous sulphate (Fe(II)) on phosphorus (P) removal and membrane fouling is investigated here. Influent phosphorus concentrations of 10 mg/L were consistently reduced to effluent concentrations of less than 0.02 mg/L and 0.03-0.04 mg/L when an Fe(III)/P molar ratio of 4.0 and Fe/P molar ratio (for both Fe(II) and Fe(III)) of 2.0 were used, respectively. In comparison, effluent concentrations did not decrease below 1.35 mg/L in a control reactor to which iron was not added. The concentrations of supernatant organic compounds, particularly polysaccharides, were reduced significantly by iron addition. The sub-critical fouling time (tcrit) after which fouling becomes much more severe was substantially shorter with Fe(III) dosing (672 h) than with Fe(II) dosing (1200-1260 h) at Fe/P molar ratios of 2.0 while the control reactor (no iron dosing) exhibited a tcrit of 960 h. Not surprisingly, membrane fouling was substantially more severe at Fe/P ratios of 4. Fe(II) doses yielding Fe/P molar ratios of 2 or less with dosing to the aerobic chamber were found to be optimal in terms of P removal and fouling mitigation performance. In long term operation, however, the use of iron for maintaining appropriately low effluent P concentrations results in more severe irreversible fouling necessitating the application of an effective membrane cleaning regime.
Simulation of NOM removal by capillary NF: A numerical method for full-scale plant design
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 06-2018
Scale formation and control in high pressure membrane water treatment systems: A review
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 11-2011
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