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Removal of microplastics from industrial wastewater utilizing an ultrafiltration composite membrane rGO/PAN application
Summary
Scientists created a new type of filter, made from a special material combined with graphene, that can capture microplastic particles from factory wastewater in a single step. This matters because it's a simpler, reusable way to keep tiny plastic bits out of water systems, which could help reduce the microplastics that eventually end up in our environment, food, and drinking water.
ABSTRACT Plastic material recycling generates large amounts of industrial wastewater, and for economic reasons, recycled material producers utilize closed systems in which the process water is recirculated multiple times. Wastewater containing microplastics is most often treated with hybrid processes where the final process is generally a membrane process. This study presents the results of composite membranes made of polyacrylonitrile with the addition of reduced graphene oxide (rGO/PAN) utilized for microplastic removal from industrial wastewater. Studies have shown that larger amounts of rGO (from 0.11% to 0.83% w/w) added to the PAN matrix produce a greater number of similar-sized pores (~150 nm), which enables the separation of the colloid formed in the aqueous FeCl 3 solution (rejection > 82%) and, more importantly, the microplastics. An important feature of the studied rGO/PAN composite membranes is their anti-fouling properties and the ease of cake layer cleaning, which allows them to be reused. This study has shown that the multi-stage treatment of wastewater containing microplastics can be replaced with a single membrane process using rGO/PAN composite membranes.