MORE | Fall 2020

Zwitterionic Poly (Arylene Ether Sulfone) Membranes for Treatment of Reverse Osmosis Brine by Pervaporation

RO, a commercial process to produce freshwater from seawater produces concentrated brine solutions which cannot be further purified by RO. The aim of this research is to purify RO brine by pervaporation using zwitterionic poly (arylene ether sulfone) membranes. The researcher aims at testing the salt rejection and pervaporation performance of 25% and 50% charge content membranes using RO brine. Membrane characteristics will be determined by structural and chemical characterizations. Membrane performance will be assessed using a dead-end filtration cell and the pervaporation performance will be assessed using a lab-scale pervaporation cell.