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Membrane Water Treatment Volume 16, Number 4, July 2025 , pages 155-164 DOI: https://doi.org/10.12989/mwt.2025.16.4.155 |
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Enhanced zeolite-polysulfone membranes for regenerable and antifouling dye removal |
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Yasmina Afir, Nabila Cherifi, Adel Ouradi and Fatima Boukraa
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| Abstract | ||
| The growing environmental contamination from industrial dyes calls for more efficient and sustainable wastewater treatment technologies. This study presents a sustainble approach by developing polysulfone-based hybrid membranes, modified with natural zeolite which is a low-cost, eco-friendly material, at varying concentrations (0.5, 1, 2, and 3 wt%) using the phase inversion process. The use of zeolite as both a porogen and a hydrophilic agent is a key innovation that significantly enhances membrane performance. The membranes were characterized using SEM, TGA, and contact angle measurements, and their pure water permeability was tested. The membrane with 3 wt% zeolite achieved an outstanding pure water flux (PWF) of 151.5 L m-2 h-1 at 4 bar, marking a 30-fold improvement over unmodified polysulfone membranes. Performance tests with methylene blue (MB) and orange G dyes revealed that the optimized membrane (PSf/Z 3%) exhibited a flux recovery ratio (FRR%) of 86.31% and a 99.6% rejection rate for MB. This study not only demonstrates a substantial advancement in filtration performance but also highlights the environmental and cost benefits of using natural zeolite. By offering a scalable, efficient, and sustainable solution for dye removal, this research provides a practical approach to mitigating industrial pollution and reducing treatment costs. | ||
| Key Words | ||
| antifouling; nano-particles; polysulfone membrane; separation; water treatment | ||
| Address | ||
| Yasmina Afir: Laboratoire de Synthèse Macromoléculaire et Thioorganique Macromoléculaire, Faculté de Chimie, Université des Sciences et de la Technologie Houari Boumediene, USTHB, B.P 32 El-Alia, Algiers, Algeria Nabila Cherifi: Centre de Recherche Scientifique et Technique en Analyses Physico-chimiques (CRAPC), Zone Industrielle, BP 384 Bou-Ismail, Tipaza, Algeria/ Unité de Recherche en Analyses Physico-Chimiques des Milieux Fluides et Sols –(URAPC-MFS/ CRAPC), 11 Chemin Doudou Mokhtar, Ben Aknoun – Alger, Algeria Adel Ouradi: Laboratoire de Synthèse Macromoléculaire et Thioorganique Macromoléculaire, Faculté de Chimie, Université des Sciences et de la Technologie Houari Boumediene, USTHB, B.P 32 El-Alia, Algiers, Algeria/ Laboratoire Chimie Physique Moléculaire et Macromoléculaire, Université Saad Dahlab Blida1, Route de Soumaa, BP 270, Blida, 09000, Algeria Fatima Boukraa: Faculté de Chimie, Université des Sciences et de la Technologie Houari Boumediene, USTHB, B.P 32 El-Alia, Algiers, Algeria | ||
