Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Advances in Membrane Materials and Processes for Desalination of Brackish Water

  • Water Pollution (G Toor and L Nghiem, Section Editors)
  • Published:
Current Pollution Reports Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Purpose of Review

This review aims to succinctly summarize recent advances of four key membrane processes (e.g., reverse osmosis (RO), forward osmosis (FO), electrodialysis (ED), and membrane distillation (MD)) in membrane materials and process designs, to elucidate the contributions of these advances to the steadfast growth of brackish water membrane desalination processes. With detailed analyses and discussions, the ultimate purpose of the review is to shed light on the future direction of brackish water desalination using membrane processes.

Recent Findings

Brackish water has widely varying particulate matter and boron contents, posing great risks of membrane fouling and excessive boron levels to the membrane desalination processes. Recent advances in these four membrane processes largely focus on improving fouling resistance, boron rejection, water flux, and energy efficiency. Aquaporin membranes and thin-film composite polyamide membranes incorporated with nanoparticles exhibit excellent performances for RO and FO, whereas super-hydrophobic membranes prove their great potentials for MD. While recent advances in RO and ED process designs are orientated towards membrane fouling prevention by exploring respectively novel energy-saving membrane-based pre-treatment and reversal operation, recent studies on FO and MD are centered on reducing the energy costs by advancing the fertilizer-drawn concept and utilizing waste heat.

Summary

Membrane processes are dominating brackish water desalination, and this trend is hardly to change. Membranes based on nanoparticles and other novel materials are deemed the next membrane generation, and innovative membrane process designs have demonstrated great potentials for brackish water desalination. Nevertheless, further works are needed to scale up these novel membrane materials and designs.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5
Fig. 6
Fig. 7

Similar content being viewed by others

References

Papers of particular interest, published recently, have been highlighted as: • Of importance •• Of major importance

  1. •• Ahmed FE, Hashaikeh R, Hilal N. Solar powered desalination—technology, energy and future outlook. Desalination. 2019;453:54–76 This article reviews recent advances in membrane materials and process designs of RO and MD for desalination applications.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  2. • Voutchkov N. Energy use for membrane seawater desalination—current status and trends. Desalination. 2018;431:2–14 This article provides an insight into energy consumption of membrane processes for desalination applications.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  3. Hilal N and Wright CJ, Exploring the current state of play for cost-effective water treatment by membranes, npj Clean Water 1 (2018) 8.

  4. •• Jones E, Qadir M, van Vliet MTH, Smakhtin V, Kang S-m. The state of desalination and brine production: a global outlook. Sci Total Environ. 2019;657:1343–56 This paper reviews the current status and sheds light on the future direction of brackish water and seawater desalination processes with a particular focus on brine management.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  5. Stover R, Bill A. Isobaric energy recovery devices—past, present and future, in IDA World Congress. Perth: Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre; 2011. p. 1–13.

    Google Scholar 

  6. •• Qasim M, Badrelzaman M, Darwish NN, Darwish NA, Hilal N. Reverse osmosis desalination: a state-of-the-art review. Desalination. 2019;459:59–104 This paper provides an up-to-date comprehensive review on membrane materials and process designs of the RO desalination process.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. •• Anis SF, Hashaikeh R, Hilal N. Reverse osmosis pretreatment technologies and future trends: a comprehensive review. Desalination. 2019;452:159–95 This review paper provides the current status end future trends of pre-treatment for seawater and brackish water RO desalination process.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  8. Goh PS, Matsuura T, Ismail AF, Hilal N. Recent trends in membranes and membrane processes for desalination. Desalination. 2016;391:43–60.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. • Goh PS, Ismail AF. A review on inorganic membranes for desalination and wastewater treatment. Desalination. 2018;434:60–80 This review paper provides an insight into recent advances in inorganic membrane materials for desalination and wastewater treatment.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  10. Wang Y-N, Goh K, Li X, Setiawan L, Wang R. Membranes and processes for forward osmosis-based desalination: recent advances and future prospects. Desalination. 2018;434:81–99.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  11. Alghoul MA, Poovanaesvaran P, Sopian K, Sulaiman MY. Review of brackish water reverse osmosis (BWRO) system designs. Renew Sust Energ Rev. 2009;13:2661–7.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  12. •• Boulahfa H, Belhamidi S, Elhannouni F, Taky M, El Fadil A, Elmidaoui A. Demineralization of brackish surface water by reverse osmosis: the first experience in Morocco. J Environ Chem Eng. 2019:102937 This paper provides the evidence of greatly varied characteristics of brackish water and their influences on the performance of the RO process.

  13. • Iyama WA, Edori OS. Seasonal variation in water quality during dredging of brackish water habitat in the Niger Delta, Nigeria. Trends Appl Sci Res. 2014;9:153–9 This article demonstrates the great variation in characteristics of brackish water sources.

    Google Scholar 

  14. •• Ruiz-García A, Ruiz-Saavedra E. 80,000h operational experience and performance analysis of a brackish water reverse osmosis desalination plant. Assessment of membrane replacement cost. Desalination. 2015;375:81–8 This paper provides the results of a long brackish water RO desalination process at large-scale operation.

    Google Scholar 

  15. Goransson G, Larson M, Bendz D. Variation in turbidity with precipitation and flow in a regulated river system—river Gota Alv, SW Sweden. Hydrol Earth Syst Sci. 2013;17:2529–42.

    Google Scholar 

  16. • Rioyo J, Aravinthan V, Bundschuh J, and Lynch M, ‘High-pH softening pretreatment’ for boron removal in inland desalination systems, Separation and Purification Technology 205 (2018) 308–316. This paper elucidates the boron removal efficiency of brackish water membrane desalination processes and demonstrates the effectiveness of a method to increase boron rejection.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  17. Guan Z, Lv J, Bai P, Guo X. Boron removal from aqueous solutions by adsorption—a review. Desalination. 2016;383:29–37.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  18. Wang B, Guo X, Bai P. Removal technology of boron dissolved in aqueous solutions—a review. Colloids Surf A Physicochem Eng Asp. 2014;444:338–44.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  19. • Tagliabue M, Reverberi AP, Bagatin R. Boron removal from water: needs, challenges and perspectives. J Clean Prod. 2014;77:56–64 This review paper addresses the challenges to membrane desalination process with respects to boron removal.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  20. •• Tu KL, Nghiem LD, Chivas AR. Boron removal by reverse osmosis membranes in seawater desalination applications. Sep Purif Technol. 2010;75:87–101 This research paper elucidates the mechanism under boron removal by and boron penetration through the RO membrane.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  21. Fritzmann C, Löwenberg J, Wintgens T, Melin T. State-of-the-art of reverse osmosis desalination. Desalination. 2007;216:1–76.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  22. Greenlee LF, Lawler DF, Freeman BD, Marrot B, Moulin P. Reverse osmosis desalination: water sources, technology, and today’s challenges. Water Res. 2009;43:2317–48.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  23. Al-Karaghouli A, Kazmerski LL. Energy consumption and water production cost of conventional and renewable-energy-powered desalination processes. Renew Sust Energ Rev. 2013;24:343–56.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  24. • Li D, Yan Y, Wang H. Recent advances in polymer and polymer composite membranes for reverse and forward osmosis processes. Prog Polym Sci. 2016;61:104–55 This paper reviews the recent progress in membrane materials and membrane fabrications for FO desalination.

    Google Scholar 

  25. • Choi H-g, Yoon SH, Son M, Celik E, Park H, Choi H. Efficacy of synthesis conditions on functionalized carbon nanotube blended cellulose acetate membrane for desalination. Desalin Water Treat. 2016;57:7545–54 This paper investigates the influence of synthesis conditions on the properties and performance of carbon nanotube blended CA membranes to enhance water permeability and anti-fouling of the RO desalination process.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  26. •• Waheed S, Ahmad A, Khan SM, Gul S-e, Jamil T, Islam A, et al. Synthesis, characterization, permeation and antibacterial properties of cellulose acetate/polyethylene glycol membranes modified with chitosan. Desalination. 2014;351:59–69 This paper demonstrates the potential of chitosan as an antibacterial modifier to the RO membrane for desalination of high membrane fouling potential brackish water feeds.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  27. El Badawi N, Ramadan AR, Esawi AMK, El-Morsi M. Novel carbon nanotube–cellulose acetate nanocomposite membranes for water filtration applications. Desalination. 2014;344:79–85.

    Google Scholar 

  28. • Yu S, Cheng Q, Huang C, Liu J, Peng X, Liu M, et al. Cellulose acetate hollow fiber nanofiltration membrane with improved permselectivity prepared through hydrolysis followed by carboxymethylation. J Membr Sci. 2013;434:44–54 This paper investigates a novel method to improve the perm-selectivity of CA membranes for RO desalination.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  29. Worthley CH, Constantopoulos KT, Ginic-Markovic M, Pillar RJ, Matisons JG, Clarke S. Surface modification of commercial cellulose acetate membranes using surface-initiated polymerization of 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate to improve membrane surface biofouling resistance. J Membr Sci. 2011;385-386:30–9.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  30. Hadj Lajimi R, Ferjani E, Roudesli MS, Deratani A. Effect of LbL surface modification on characteristics and performances of cellulose acetate nanofiltration membranes. Desalination. 2011;266:78–86.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  31. Abedini R, Mousavi SM, Aminzadeh R. A novel cellulose acetate (CA) membrane using TiO2 nanoparticles: preparation, characterization and permeation study. Desalination. 2011;277:40–5.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  32. • Otitoju TA, Saari RA, Ahmad AL. Progress in the modification of reverse osmosis (RO) membranes for enhanced performance. J Ind Eng Chem. 2018;67:52–71 This paper reviews the recent progress in membrane materials and membrane fabrications for RO desalination of seawater and brackish water.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  33. •• Wu H, Tang B, Wu P. Optimizing polyamide thin film composite membrane covalently bonded with modified mesoporous silica nanoparticles. J Membr Sci. 2013;428:341–8 This paper investigates the effecacy of incorporating mesoporous silica nanoparticles into the thin film composite polyamide RO membrane for improving water flux and membrane fouling resistance.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  34. Yin J, Kim E-S, Yang J, Deng B. Fabrication of a novel thin-film nanocomposite (TFN) membrane containing MCM-41 silica nanoparticles (NPs) for water purification. J Membr Sci. 2012;423-424:238–46.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  35. Jadav GL, Singh PS. Synthesis of novel silica-polyamide nanocomposite membrane with enhanced properties. J Membr Sci. 2009;328:257–67.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  36. • Dong H, Zhao L, Zhang L, Chen H, Gao C, Winston Ho WS. High-flux reverse osmosis membranes incorporated with NaY zeolite nanoparticles for brackish water desalination. J Membr Sci. 2015;476:373–83 This article demonstrates the contribution of zeolite nanoparticles to fabricating high-flux thin film polyamide composite RO membrane for desalination of brackish water.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  37. Huang H, Qu X, Ji X, Gao X, Zhang L, Chen H, et al. Acid and multivalent ion resistance of thin film nanocomposite RO membranes loaded with silicalite-1 nanozeolites. J Mater Chem A. 2013;1:11343–9.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  38. Huang H, Qu X, Dong H, Zhang L, Chen H. Role of NaA zeolites in the interfacial polymerization process towards a polyamide nanocomposite reverse osmosis membrane. RSC Adv. 2013;3:8203–7.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  39. •• Kadhom M, Deng B. Thin film nanocomposite membranes filled with bentonite nanoparticles for brackish water desalination: a novel water uptake concept. Microporous Mesoporous Mater. 2019;279:82–91 This very recent paper elucidates the mechanism under the improved water flux of the thin film polyamide composite membrane for brackish water RO desalination.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  40. •• Mansor ES, Jamil TS, Abdallah H, Shaban AM. Highly thin film nanocomposite membrane based metal organic complexes for brackish water desalination. J Environ Chem Eng. 2018;6:5459–69 This paper investigates a novel nano material metal organic frawework for RO membranes to enhance their water flux and fouling resistance for brackish water desalination.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  41. Li W. Metal–organic framework membranes: production, modification, and applications. Prog Mater Sci. 2019;100:21–63.

    Google Scholar 

  42. Duan J, Pan Y, Pacheco F, Litwiller E, Lai Z, Pinnau I. High-performance polyamide thin-film-nanocomposite reverse osmosis membranes containing hydrophobic zeolitic imidazolate framework-8. J Membr Sci. 2015;476:303–10.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  43. •• Shaban M, Ashraf AM, AbdAllah H, Abd El-Salam HM. Titanium dioxide nanoribbons/multi-walled carbon nanotube nanocomposite blended polyethersulfone membrane for brackish water desalination. Desalination. 2018;444:129–41 This paper presents a novel RO membrane incorporated with nanoribbons/multi-walled carbon nanotubes to improve fouling resistance and boron removal of brackish water RO desalination.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  44. • Lee TH, Lee MY, Lee HD, Roh JS, Kim HW, Park HB. Highly porous carbon nanotube/polysulfone nanocomposite supports for high-flux polyamide reverse osmosis membranes. J Membr Sci. 2017;539:441–50 This paper explores a novel concept to increase water permeability of thin film composite polyamide RO membrane.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  45. • Fathizadeh M, Tien HN, Khivantsev K, Song Z, Zhou F, Yu M. Polyamide/nitrogen-doped graphene oxide quantum dots (N-GOQD) thin film nanocomposite reverse osmosis membranes for high flux desalination. Desalination. 2019;451:125–32 This original paper presents the investigation results on the exploration of graphene oxide quantum dots for fabrication of high flux RO membranes.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  46. •• Gai W, Zhao DL, and Chung T-S, Thin film nanocomposite hollow fiber membranes comprising Na+−functionalized carbon quantum dots for brackish water desalination, Water Res (2019). This paper demonstrates the great potentials of carbon quantum dots for the next generation of RO membrane for brackish water desalination.

  47. Lee KP, Arnot TC, Mattia D. A review of reverse osmosis membrane materials for desalination - development to date and future potential. J Membr Sci. 2011;370:1–22.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  48. •• Hu J, Pu Y, Ueda M, Zhang X, Wang L. Charge-aggregate induced (CAI) reverse osmosis membrane for seawater desalination and boron removal. J Membr Sci. 2016;520:1–7 This papers presents and proves the efficiency of a novel membrane material for improving boron removal of RO membrane for brackish water desalination.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  49. La Y-H, Diep J, Al-Rasheed R, Miller D, Krupp L, Geise GM, et al. Enhanced desalination performance of polyamide bi-layer membranes prepared by sequential interfacial polymerization. J Membr Sci. 2013;437:33–9.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  50. Zhang Y, Wan Y, Pan G, Wei X, Li Y, Shi H, et al. Preparation of high performance polyamide membrane by surface modification method for desalination. J Membr Sci. 2019;573:11–20.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  51. •• Zhao Y, Zhang Z, Dai L, Zhang S. Preparation of high water flux and antifouling RO membranes using a novel diacyl chloride monomer with a phosphonate group. J Membr Sci. 2017;536:98–107 This paper investigates the approach to modifying the support layer of the thin film composite polyamide RO membrane to increase its water flux and antifouling properties.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  52. Zhang C, Wei K, Zhang W, Bai Y, Sun Y, Gu J. Graphene oxide quantum dots incorporated into a thin film nanocomposite membrane with high flux and antifouling properties for low-pressure nanofiltration. ACS Appl Mater Interfaces. 2017;9:11082–94.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  53. • Song X, Zhou Q, Zhang T, Xu H, Wang Z. Pressure-assisted preparation of graphene oxide quantum dot-incorporated reverse osmosis membranes: antifouling and chlorine resistance potentials. J Mater Chem A. 2016;4:16896–905 This paper presents a novel membrane fabrication method for improved membrane resistance to fouling and chlorine attack of the thin film composite polyamide RO membranes.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  54. Ma R, Ji Y-L, Weng X-D, An Q-F, Gao C-J. High-flux and fouling-resistant reverse osmosis membrane prepared with incorporating zwitterionic amine monomers via interfacial polymerization. Desalination. 2016;381:100–10.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  55. Zhang Y, Wan Y, Pan G, Shi H, Yan H, Xu J, et al. Surface modification of polyamide reverse osmosis membrane with sulfonated polyvinyl alcohol for antifouling. Appl Surf Sci. 2017;419:177–87.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  56. Elimelech M, Phillip WA. The future of seawater desalination: energy, technology, and the environment. Science. 2011;333:712–7.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  57. • Ang WL, Nordin D, Mohammad AW, Benamor A, Hilal N. Effect of membrane performance including fouling on cost optimization in brackish water desalination process. Chem Eng Res Des. 2017;117:401–13 This paper analyzes the negative effects of membrane fouling on the cost of brackish water membrane desalination processes.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  58. Li M. Optimal plant operation of brackish water reverse osmosis (BWRO) desalination. Desalination. 2012;293:61–8.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  59. Avlonitis SA, Avlonitis D, and Panagiotidis T, Experimental study of the specific energy consumption for brackish water desalination by reverse osmosis. Vol. 36. 2012. 36–45.

  60. •• Khanzada NK, Khan SJ, Davies PA. Performance evaluation of reverse osmosis (RO) pre-treatment technologies for in-land brackish water treatment. Desalination. 2017;406:44–50 This very recent paper evaluates and compares the efficiency of various pre-treatment methods to prevent membrane fouling in the brackish water RO desalination process.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  61. •• Al-Obaidi MA, Alsarayreh AA, Al-Hroub AM, Alsadaie S, Mujtaba IM. Performance analysis of a medium-sized industrial reverse osmosis brackish water desalination plant. Desalination. 2018;443:272–84 This paper is a valuable demonstration of brackish water RO desalination at an industrial application.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  62. •• Akhondi E, Wu B, Sun S, Marxer B, Lim W, Gu J, et al. Gravity-driven membrane filtration as pretreatment for seawater reverse osmosis: linking biofouling layer morphology with flux stabilization. Water Res. 2015;70:158–73 This paper demonstrates the great potential of gravity-driven membrane pre-treatment before the RO process for brackish water desalination.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  63. •• Wu B, Suwarno SR, Tan HS, Kim LH, Hochstrasser F, Chong TH, et al. Gravity-driven microfiltration pretreatment for reverse osmosis (RO) seawater desalination: microbial community characterization and RO performance. Desalination. 2017;418:1–8 This paper demonstrates the great potential of gravity-driven membrane pre-treatment before the RO process for brackish water desalination.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  64. •• Ruiz-García A, Melián-Martel N, Mena V. Fouling characterization of RO membranes after 11years of operation in a brackish water desalination plant. Desalination. 2018;430:180–5 This paper provides an insight into membrane fouling of RO membranes for desalination of brackish water at large-scale level.

    Google Scholar 

  65. Duong HC, Duke M, Gray S, Nelemans B, Nghiem LD. Membrane distillation and membrane electrolysis of coal seam gas reverse osmosis brine for clean water extraction and NaOH production. Desalination. 2016;397:108–15.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  66. Duong HC, Chivas AR, Nelemans B, Duke M, Gray S, Cath TY, et al. Treatment of RO brine from CSG produced water by spiral-wound air gap membrane distillation—a pilot study. Desalination. 2015;366:121–9.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  67. Duong HC, Duke M, Gray S, Cath TY, Nghiem LD. Scaling control during membrane distillation of coal seam gas reverse osmosis brine. J Membr Sci. 2015;493:673–82.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  68. •• Giagnorio M, Ricceri F, Tiraferri A. Desalination of brackish groundwater and reuse of wastewater by forward osmosis coupled with nanofiltration for draw solution recovery. Water Res. 2019;153:134–43 This paper presents novel combined FO/NF process for low-energy treatment of brackish water to provide fresh water for irrigation.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  69. Zaviska F, Chun Y, Heran M, Zou L. Using FO as pre-treatment of RO for high scaling potential brackish water: energy and performance optimisation. J Membr Sci. 2015;492:430–8.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  70. Zhao S, Zou L, Mulcahy D. Brackish water desalination by a hybrid forward osmosis–nanofiltration system using divalent draw solute. Desalination. 2012;284:175–81.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  71. • Altaee A, Hilal N. High recovery rate NF–FO–RO hybrid system for inland brackish water treatment. Desalination. 2015;363:19–25 This paper demonstrates the potentials of combined FO process for high recovery and low membrane fouling treatment of brackish water for fresh water production.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  72. Martinetti CR, Cath TY, and A.E. Childress, Novel application of membrane distillation and forward osmosis for brackish water desalination, in Membrane Technology Conference and Exposition, (2007).

  73. Lutchmiah K, Verliefde ARD, Roest K, Rietveld LC, Cornelissen ER. Forward osmosis for application in wastewater treatment: a review. Water Res. 2014;58:179–97.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  74. Yip NY, Tiraferri A, Phillip WA, Schiffman JD, Elimelech M. High performance thin-film composite forward osmosis membrane. Environ Sci Technol. 2010;44:3812–8.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  75. Lu P, Li W, Yang S, Liu Y, Wang Q, Li Y. Layered double hydroxide-modified thin–film composite membranes with remarkably enhanced chlorine resistance and anti-fouling capacity. Sep Purif Technol. 2019;220:231–7.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  76. • Morales-Torres S, Esteves CMP, Figueiredo JL, Silva AMT. Thin-film composite forward osmosis membranes based on polysulfone supports blended with nanostructured carbon materials. J Membr Sci. 2016;520:326–36 This paper investigates the fabrication and performance of a novel thin film composite FO membrane.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  77. Wang Y, Ou R, Wang H, Xu T. Graphene oxide modified graphitic carbon nitride as a modifier for thin film composite forward osmosis membrane. J Membr Sci. 2015;475:281–9.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  78. • Park MJ, Phuntsho S, He T, Nisola GM, Tijing LD, Li X-M, et al. Graphene oxide incorporated polysulfone substrate for the fabrication of flat-sheet thin-film composite forward osmosis membranes. J Membr Sci. 2015;493:496–507 This paper presents a new membrane material for the FO desalination process to reduce the internal concentration polarization effect and hence increase the process water flux.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  79. Ghanbari M, Emadzadeh D, Lau WJ, Matsuura T, Davoody M, Ismail AF. Super hydrophilic TiO2/HNT nanocomposites as a new approach for fabrication of high performance thin film nanocomposite membranes for FO application. Desalination. 2015;371:104–14.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  80. Emadzadeh D, Lau WJ, Matsuura T, Rahbari-Sisakht M, Ismail AF. A novel thin film composite forward osmosis membrane prepared from PSf–TiO2 nanocomposite substrate for water desalination. Chem Eng J. 2014;237:70–80.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  81. Ma N, Wei J, Liao R, Tang CY. Zeolite-polyamide thin film nanocomposite membranes: towards enhanced performance for forward osmosis. J Membr Sci. 2012;405-406:149–57.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  82. •• An H-K, Lee C-G, Park S-J. Application of a nanofibrous composite membrane to the fertilizer-driven forward osmosis process for irrigation water use. Environ Technol. 2017;38:2700–8 This paper presents the incorporation of nanofibrous composite membrane into a fertilizer-drawn FO process for low-cost and energy-saving treatment of brackish water for irrigation purpose.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  83. Lau WJ, Gray S, Matsuura T, Emadzadeh D, Paul Chen J, Ismail AF. A review on polyamide thin film nanocomposite (TFN) membranes: history, applications, challenges and approaches. Water Res. 2015;80:306–24.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  84. Fuwad A, Ryu H, Malmstadt N, Kim SM, Jeon T-J. Biomimetic membranes as potential tools for water purification: preceding and future avenues. Desalination. 2019;458:97–115.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  85. •• Chun Y, Qing L, Sun G, Bilad MR, Fane AG, Chong TH. Prototype aquaporin-based forward osmosis membrane: filtration properties and fouling resistance. Desalination. 2018;445:75–84 This paper presents the filtration properties and mechanism and fouling resistance of the novel aquaporin FO membrane.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  86. •• Kocsis I, Sun Z, Legrand YM, and Barboiu M, Artificial water channels—deconvolution of natural aquaporins through synthetic design, npj Clean Water 1 (2018) 13. This paper provides fundamentals about the material, water transport mechanism, and antifouling properties of aquaporin as a novel membrane for brackish water desalination using the FO and RO processes.

  87. Chun Y, Zaviska F, Kim S-J, Mulcahy D, Yang E, Kim IS, et al. Fouling characteristics and their implications on cleaning of a FO-RO pilot process for treating brackish surface water. Desalination. 2016;394:91–100.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  88. • Xu W, Chen Q, Ge Q. Recent advances in forward osmosis (FO) membrane: chemical modifications on membranes for FO processes. Desalination. 2017;419:101–16 This paper provides a review on recent advances in membrane materials for FO desalination process.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  89. Li L, Wang X, Xie M, Wang H, Li X, Ren Y. EDTA-based adsorption layer for mitigating FO membrane fouling via in situ removing calcium binding with organic foulants. J Membr Sci. 2019;578:95–102.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  90. Kim S, Ou R, Hu Y, Zhang H, Simon GP, Hou H, et al. Fouling and cleaning of polymer-entwined graphene oxide nanocomposite membrane for forward osmosis process. Sep Sci Technol. 2019;54:1376–86.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  91. •• Bao X, Wu Q, Shi W, Wang W, Yu H, Zhu Z, et al. Polyamidoamine dendrimer grafted forward osmosis membrane with superior ammonia selectivity and robust antifouling capacity for domestic wastewater concentration. Water Res. 2019;153:1–10 This paper investigates a novel material for improving perm-selectivity and antifouling capacity of thin film composite polyamide FO membranes.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  92. •• Phuntsho S, Shon HK, Hong S, Lee S, Vigneswaran S. A novel low-energy fertilizer driven forward osmosis desalination for direct fertigation: evaluating the performance of fertilizer draw solutions. J Membr Sci. 2011;375:172–81 This paper demonstrates the fertilizer-drawn FO concept for low-energy treatment of brackish water for direct irrigation use.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  93. •• Suwaileh W, Johnson D, Hilal N. Brackish water desalination for agriculture: assessing the performance of inorganic fertilizer draw solutions. Desalination. 2019;456:53–63 This paper assesses the performance of the low-energy fertilizer-drawn FO process for desalination of brackish water for agriculture.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  94. •• Lambrechts R, Sheldon MS. Performance and energy consumption evaluation of a fertiliser drawn forward osmosis (FDFO) system for water recovery from brackish water. Desalination. 2019;456:64–73 This paper investigates the performance in terms of water flux, salt rejection, and energy saving of the fertilizer-drawn FO process for treatment of brackish water for irrigation purpose.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  95. Phuntsho S, Kim JE, Hong S, Ghaffour N, Leiknes T, Choi JY, et al. A closed-loop forward osmosis-nanofiltration hybrid system: understanding process implications through full-scale simulation. Desalination. 2017;421:169–78.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  96. • Kim JE, Phuntsho S, Chekli L, Hong S, Ghaffour N, Leiknes T, et al. Environmental and economic impacts of fertilizer-drawn forward osmosis and nanofiltration hybrid system. Desalination. 2017;416:76–85 This paper addresses the environmental and economic impacts of the novel low-energy fertilizer-drawn FO process coupled with NF for improved water quality for irrigation purpose.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  97. Zhang Y, Pinoy L, Meesschaert B, Van der Bruggen B. A natural driven membrane process for brackish and wastewater treatment: photovoltaic powered ED and FO hybrid system. Environ Sci Technol. 2013;47:10548–55.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  98. Malek P, Ortiz JM, Schulte-Herbrüggen HMA. Decentralized desalination of brackish water using an electrodialysis system directly powered by wind energy. Desalination. 2016;377:54–64.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  99. Strathmann H. Electrodialysis, a mature technology with a multitude of new applications. Desalination. 2010;264:268–88.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  100. • Duong HC, Ansari AJ, Nghiem LD, Pham TM, Pham TD. Low carbon desalination by innovative membrane materials and processes. Curr Pollut Rep. 2018;4:251–64 This article provides a comprehensive review on low carbon desalination using membrane processes.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  101. • Al-Karaghouli A, Kazmerski LL. Energy consumption and water production cost of conventional and renewable-energy-powered desalination processes. Renew Sust Energ Rev. 2013;24:343–56 This paper provides a comparison in water cost and energy consumption of various membrane processes for brackish water desalination.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  102. •• Campione A, Gurreri L, Ciofalo M, Micale G, Tamburini A, Cipollina A. Electrodialysis for water desalination: a critical assessment of recent developments on process fundamentals, models and applications. Desalination. 2018;434:121–60 This review paper provides comprehensive discussions over the fundamentals and recent developments of electrodialysis process.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  103. Bales C, Kovalsky P, Fletcher J, Waite TD. Low cost desalination of brackish groundwaters by capacitive deionization (CDI)—implications for irrigated agriculture. Desalination. 2019;453:37–53.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  104. Chang L, Hu YH. Surface-microporous graphene for high-performance capacitive deionization under ultralow saline concentration. J Phys Chem Solids. 2019;125:135–40.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  105. Choi J, Dorji P, Shon HK, Hong S. Applications of capacitive deionization: desalination, softening, selective removal, and energy efficiency. Desalination. 2019;449:118–30.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  106. Porada S, Weinstein L, Dash R, van der Wal A, Bryjak M, Gogotsi Y, et al. Water desalination using capacitive deionization with microporous carbon electrodes. ACS Appl Mater Interfaces. 2012;4:1194–9.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  107. AlMarzooqi FA, Al Ghaferi AA, Saadat I, Hilal N. Application of capacitive deionisation in water desalination: a review. Desalination. 2014;342:3–15.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  108. Porada S, Zhao R, van der Wal A, Presser V, Biesheuvel PM. Review on the science and technology of water desalination by capacitive deionization. Prog Mater Sci. 2013;58:1388–442.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  109. Shukla G, Shahi VK. Sulfonated poly(ether ether ketone)/imidized graphene oxide composite cation exchange membrane with improved conductivity and stability for electrodialytic water desalination. Desalination. 2019;451:200–8.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  110. Dzyazko Y, Rozhdestveskaya L, Zmievskii Y, Zakharov V, Myronchuk V. Composite inorganic anion exchange membrane for electrodialytic desalination of milky whey. Materials Today: Proceedings. 2019;6:250–9.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  111. •• Afsar NU, Shehzad MA, Irfan M, Emmanuel K, Sheng F, Xu T, et al. Cation exchange membrane integrated with cationic and anionic layers for selective ion separation via electrodialysis. Desalination. 2019;458:25–33 This paper presents a novel cation-exchange membrane with improved perm-selectivity for the ED desalination process.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  112. Chakrabarty T, Rajesh AM, Jasti A, Thakur AK, Singh AK, Prakash S, et al. Stable ion-exchange membranes for water desalination by electrodialysis. Desalination. 2011;282:2–8.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  113. Mulyati S, Takagi R, Fujii A, Ohmukai Y, Maruyama T, Matsuyama H. Improvement of the antifouling potential of an anion exchange membrane by surface modification with a polyelectrolyte for an electrodialysis process. J Membr Sci. 2012;417-418:137–43.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  114. Vaselbehagh M, Karkhanechi H, Mulyati S, Takagi R, Matsuyama H. Improved antifouling of anion-exchange membrane by polydopamine coating in electrodialysis process. Desalination. 2014;332:126–33.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  115. •• Ben Salah Sayadi I, Sistat P, and Tlili MM, Assess of physical antiscale-treatments on conventional electrodialysis pilot unit during brackish water desalination, Chemical Engineering and Processing: Process Intensification 88 (2015) 47–57. This paper investigates three different physical treatments to prevent membrane scaling caused by calcium carbonate during the ED desalination process.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  116. Turek M, Waś J, Mitko K. Scaling prediction in electrodialytic desalination. Desalin Water Treat. 2012;44:255–60.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  117. Zhao D, Lee LY, Ong SL, Chowdhury P, Siah KB, Ng HY. Electrodialysis reversal for industrial reverse osmosis brine treatment. Sep Purif Technol. 2019;213:339–47.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  118. •• Mei Y, Tang CY. Recent developments and future perspectives of reverse electrodialysis technology: a review. Desalination. 2018;425:156–74 This review paper introduces the principles and fundamentals of the reverse electrodialysis for low fouling desalination of brackish water.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  119. • Wang P, Chung T-S. Recent advances in membrane distillation processes: membrane development, configuration design and application exploring. J Membr Sci. 2015;474:39–56 This review paper provides background and fundamentals of the thermal-driven MD process for desalination applications.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  120. Alkhudhiri A, Darwish N, Hilal N. Membrane distillation: a comprehensive review. Desalination. 2012;287:2–18.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  121. •• Chamani H, Matsuura T, Rana D, Lan CQ. Modeling of pore wetting in vacuum membrane distillation. J Membr Sci. 2019;572:332–42 This paper provides an insight into membrane pore wetting phenomonon of the MD process for desalination applications.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  122. •• Li X, Zhang Y, Cao J, Wang X, Cui Z, Zhou S, et al. Enhanced fouling and wetting resistance of composite Hyflon AD/poly(vinylidene fluoride) membrane in vacuum membrane distillation. Sep Purif Technol. 2019;211:135–40 This paper investigates the efficiency of a super-hydrophobic polymer at preventing membrane pore wetting during the MD desalination process of brackish water.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  123. •• Rezaei M, Warsinger DM, Lienhard VJH, Duke MC, Matsuura T, Samhaber WM. Wetting phenomena in membrane distillation: mechanisms, reversal, and prevention. Water Res. 2018;139:329–52 This paper presents a detailed investigation into the mechanism of membrane pore wetting and methods to prevent it during the MD desalination process.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  124. •• Taylor CR, Ahmadiannamini P, Hiibel SR. Identifying pore wetting thresholds of surfactants in direct contact membrane distillation. Sep Purif Technol. 2019;217:17–23 This paper provides a method to identify the thresholds of surfactants to cause membrane pore wetting, thus emphasizing the necessary of removing surfactants before the MD process to protect it against membrane pore wetting.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  125. Wang Z, Lin S. Membrane fouling and wetting in membrane distillation and their mitigation by novel membranes with special wettability. Water Res. 2017;112:38–47.

    Google Scholar 

  126. •• Xiao Z, Zheng R, Liu Y, He H, Yuan X, Ji Y, et al. Slippery for scaling resistance in membrane distillation: a novel porous micropillared superhydrophobic surface. Water Res. 2019;155:152–61 This paper investigates a novel method to prevent membrane scaling during the MD desalination process at high water recovery. The results from this paper underpin the concept of combining MD with other membrane desalination process for high water recovery treatment of brackish water.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  127. Shao Y, Han M, Wang Y, Li G, Xiao W, Li X, et al. Superhydrophobic polypropylene membrane with fabricated antifouling interface for vacuum membrane distillation treating high concentration sodium/magnesium saline water. J Membr Sci. 2019;579:240–52.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  128. •• Lee E-J, Deka BJ, An AK. Reinforced superhydrophobic membrane coated with aerogel-assisted polymeric microspheres for membrane distillation. J Membr Sci. 2019;573:570–8 This paper assesses a novel membrane material for the MD process treating challenging brackish water feeds with high contents of membrane foulants.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  129. Yan H, Lu X, Wu C, Sun X, Tang W. Fabrication of a super-hydrophobic polyvinylidene fluoride hollow fiber membrane using a particle coating process. J Membr Sci. 2017;533:130–40.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  130. Xu Z, Liu Z, Song P, Xiao C. Fabrication of super-hydrophobic polypropylene hollow fiber membrane and its application in membrane distillation. Desalination. 2017;414:10–7.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  131. •• Wu C, Tang W, Zhang J, Liu S, Wang Z, Wang X, et al. Preparation of super-hydrophobic PVDF membrane for MD purpose via hydroxyl induced crystallization-phase inversion. J Membr Sci. 2017;543:288–300 This papers investigates the efficiency of super-hydrophobic polymers at reducing membrane fouling and preventing membrane pore wetting during the MD desalination process.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  132. Attia H, Alexander S, Wright CJ, Hilal N. Superhydrophobic electrospun membrane for heavy metals removal by air gap membrane distillation (AGMD). Desalination. 2017;420:318–29.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  133. Lu K-J, Zuo J, Chung T-S. Tri-bore PVDF hollow fibers with a super-hydrophobic coating for membrane distillation. J Membr Sci. 2016;514:165–75.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  134. Shan H, Liu J, Li X, Li Y, Tezel FH, Li B, et al. Nanocoated amphiphobic membrane for flux enhancement and comprehensive anti-fouling performance in direct contact membrane distillation. J Membr Sci. 2018;567:166–80.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  135. •• Yan K-K, Jiao L, Lin S, Ji X, Lu Y, Zhang L. Superhydrophobic electrospun nanofiber membrane coated by carbon nanotubes network for membrane distillation. Desalination. 2018;437:26–33 This paper presents a novel membrane fabrication methods for improved membrane properties to increase the performance of the MD desalination process.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  136. Zhang Y, Wang X, Cui Z, Drioli E, Wang Z, Zhao S. Enhancing wetting resistance of poly(vinylidene fluoride) membranes for vacuum membrane distillation. Desalination. 2017;415:58–66.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  137. Woo YC, Tijing LD, Park MJ, Yao M, Choi J-S, Lee S, et al. Electrospun dual-layer nonwoven membrane for desalination by air gap membrane distillation. Desalination. 2017;403:187–98.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  138. • Tijing LD, Woo YC, Shim W-G, He T, Choi J-S, Kim S-H, et al. Superhydrophobic nanofiber membrane containing carbon nanotubes for high-performance direct contact membrane distillation. J Membr Sci. 2016;502:158–70 This paper presents a novel membrane material and a novel membrane fabrication method to produce high performance membranes for MD desalination applications.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  139. Lee E-J, An AK, He T, Woo YC, Shon HK. Electrospun nanofiber membranes incorporating fluorosilane-coated TiO2 nanocomposite for direct contact membrane distillation. J Membr Sci. 2016;520:145–54.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  140. Ke H, Feldman E, Guzman P, Cole J, Wei Q, Chu B, et al. Electrospun polystyrene nanofibrous membranes for direct contact membrane distillation. J Membr Sci. 2016;515:86–97.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  141. Prince JA, Rana D, Matsuura T, Ayyanar N, Shanmugasundaram TS, Singh G. Nanofiber based triple layer hydro-philic/-phobic membrane—a solution for pore wetting in membrane distillation. Sci Rep. 2014;4:6949.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  142. Liao Y, Wang R, Tian M, Qiu C, Fane AG. Fabrication of polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) nanofiber membranes by electro-spinning for direct contact membrane distillation. J Membr Sci. 2013;425-426:30–9.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  143. •• Zhao L, Wu C, Lu X, Ng D, Truong YB, Xie Z. Activated carbon enhanced hydrophobic/hydrophilic dual-layer nanofiber composite membranes for high-performance direct contact membrane distillation. Desalination. 2018;446:59–69 This paper presents and evaluates the feasibility of the dual layer hydrophobic-hydrophilic membrane for the MD process with improved wetting resistance and water flux.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  144. Li K, Hou D, Fu C, Wang K, Wang J. Fabrication of PVDF nanofibrous hydrophobic composite membranes reinforced with fabric substrates via electrospinning for membrane distillation desalination. J Environ Sci. 2019;75:277–88.

    Google Scholar 

  145. •• Khayet M, García-Payo MC, García-Fernández L, Contreras-Martínez J. Dual-layered electrospun nanofibrous membranes for membrane distillation. Desalination. 2018;426:174–84 This paper assesses a novel membrane fabrication method to fabricate dual layer membrane with enhanced wetting resistance and water flux for the MD desalination process.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  146. Tijing LD, Woo YC, Johir MAH, Choi J-S, Shon HK. A novel dual-layer bicomponent electrospun nanofibrous membrane for desalination by direct contact membrane distillation. Chem Eng J. 2014;256:155–9.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  147. •• Li Q, Beier L-J, Tan J, Brown C, Lian B, Zhong W, et al. An integrated, solar-driven membrane distillation system for water purification and energy generation. Appl Energy. 2019;237:534–48 This pilot study demonstrates the feasibility of solar-driven MD for desalination of brackish water to provide fresh water in remote areas.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  148. Lee J-G, Kim W-S, Choi J-S, Ghaffour N, Kim Y-D. Dynamic solar-powered multi-stage direct contact membrane distillation system: concept design, modeling and simulation. Desalination. 2018;435:278–92.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  149. •• Duong HC, Xia L, Ma Z, Cooper P, Ela W, Nghiem LD. Assessing the performance of solar thermal driven membrane distillation for seawater desalination by computer simulation. J Membr Sci. 2017;542:133–42 This paper provides a deep analysis into the performance including water flux and energy efficiency of the MD process coupled with solar thermal energy.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  150. Chafidz A, Kerme ED, Wazeer I, Khalid Y, Ajbar A, Al-Zahrani SM. Design and fabrication of a portable and hybrid solar-powered membrane distillation system. J Clean Prod. 2016;133:631–47.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  151. •• Shim WG, He K, Gray S, Moon IS. Solar energy assisted direct contact membrane distillation (DCMD) process for seawater desalination. Sep Purif Technol. 2015;143:94–104 This paper provides a durable pilot operation of the solar-driven MD process for seawater and brackish water desalination to provide fresh water.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  152. Kim Y-D, Thu K, Choi S-H. Solar-assisted multi-stage vacuum membrane distillation system with heat recovery unit. Desalination. 2015;367:161–71.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  153. Zaragoza G, Ruiz-Aguirre A, Guillén-Burrieza E. Efficiency in the use of solar thermal energy of small membrane desalination systems for decentralized water production. Appl Energy. 2014;130:491–9.

    Google Scholar 

  154. Chafidz A, Al-Zahrani S, Al-Otaibi MN, Hoong CF, Lai TF, Prabu M. Portable and integrated solar-driven desalination system using membrane distillation for arid remote areas in Saudi Arabia. Desalination. 2014;345:36–49.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  155. •• Dow N, Gray S, J-d L, Zhang J, Ostarcevic E, Liubinas A, et al. Pilot trial of membrane distillation driven by low grade waste heat: membrane fouling and energy assessment. Desalination. 2016;391:30–42 This paper presents a pilot demonstration of waste heat-driven MD desalination process for fresh water supply with low-energy costs and low fouling propensity.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  156. Zhang Y, Liu L, Li K, Hou D, Wang J. Enhancement of energy utilization using nanofluid in solar powered membrane distillation. Chemosphere. 2018;212:554–62.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Funding

This research is funded by Vietnam Ministry of Science and Technology under grant number KC.09.39/16-20.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Le Quy Don Technical University, Hanoi, Vietnam

    Hung Cong Duong, Hai Thuong Cao & Thao Dinh Vu

  2. Centre for Technology in Water and Wastewater, University of Technology Sydney, Ultimo, NSW, 2007, Australia

    Hung Cong Duong

  3. Institute of Environmental Technology, Vietnam Academy of Science and Technology, Hanoi, Vietnam

    Thu Lan Tran

  4. Strategic Water Infrastructure Laboratory, School of Civil, Mining and Environmental Engineering, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW, 2522, Australia

    Ashley Joy Ansari

  5. School of Environmental Science and Technology, Hanoi University of Science and Technology, Hanoi, Vietnam

    Khac-Uan Do

Authors
  1. Hung Cong Duong
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Thu Lan Tran
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Ashley Joy Ansari
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Hai Thuong Cao
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Thao Dinh Vu
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Khac-Uan Do
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Khac-Uan Do.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of Interest

On behalf of all authors, the corresponding author states that there is no conflict of interest.

Human and Animal Rights and Informed Consent

This article does not contain any studies with human or animal subjects performed by any of the authors.

Additional information

Publisher’s Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

This article is part of the Topical Collection on Water Pollution

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Duong, H.C., Tran, T.L., Ansari, A.J. et al. Advances in Membrane Materials and Processes for Desalination of Brackish Water. Curr Pollution Rep 5, 319–336 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40726-019-00121-8

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s40726-019-00121-8

Keywords

Search

Navigation