Cross flow microfiltration of oil-water emulsions using clay based ceramic membrane support and TiO 2 composite membrane

Abstract

The main objective of this work is to study the effect of cross flow filtration conditions on the separation of oily wastewater using ceramic support and TiO 2 membrane. Firstly, the low cost clay based ceramic membrane support was prepared by uniaxial compaction method using combination of pyrophyllite, quartz, feldspar, kaolin, ball clay and calcium carbonate along with PVA as a binder. Subsequently, TiO 2 composite membrane was fabricated via hydrothermal route employing TiO 2 sol derived from TiCl 4 and NH 4 OH solution. Cross flow microfiltration investigations were carried out by utilizing oil-water emulsion concentration of 200 mg/L at three distinct applied pressures (69–207 kPa) and three cross flow velocities (0.0885, 0.1327, and 0.1769 m/s). Compared to ceramic support, TiO 2 composite membrane demonstrates better performance in terms of flux and removal efficiency of oil and also the rate of flux decline during filtration operation is lower due to highly hydrophilic surface of the TiO 2 membrane. TiO 2 membrane displays the oil removal efficiency of 99% in the entire range of applied pressures investigation, while ceramic support shows 93–96% of oil removal.