POLYAMIDE THIN FILM

NANOCOMPOSITE MEMBRANE
INCORPORATED WITH CARBON
NITRIDE FOR FORWARD OSMOSIS
DESALINATION
AIZAT ABDUL AZIZ
MKK 163051
SUPERVISOR: DR. GOH PEI SEAN
CO-SUPERVISOR: PROF DR. AHMAD FAUZI ISMAIL
 Content

Introduction

Literature review

Methodology

Expected Results

Conclusion
Introduction
Background of study

71% of Earth covered by water

 Growth of global population
Total population by year
10

9
2015: 7 billion peoples 2030: 8 billion peoples
8
POPULATION, BIL

0
2000 2005 2010 2015 2020 2025 2030

YEARS

Source: United Nations, 2015.

 Solutions to fresh water
shortage
Various resources considered:
• Construct new reservoir
• Create and develop new method to gain water from
seawater, brackish water and wastewater.
• Desalination

Two types of desalination

1. Thermal desalination
2. Membrane desalination
Forward Osmosis and
Reverse Osmosis
 Thin Film Composite
• Most promising membrane technology used in
desalination field.
• Superior separation performance over wide range of
temperature and pH.
• Fabricated from the interfacial polymerization (IP)
between monomers and organic solvent on active
layer of the porous substrate.
• Polyamide layer is responsible for rejecting salt.
 Polyamide Thin Film
Nanocomposite (TFN)
• Usage of nanoparticles in polymer substrate and polyamide
(PA) layer:
• Improving mechanical strength, hydrophilicity, surface
charges, porosity and anti-fouling properties.
• Example of nanoparticles: silver, alumina, silica, zinc
oxide, titanium oxide and graphene oxide.

This research will be using Carbon Nitride (CN) and

protonated Carbon Nitride (pCN) as a nanoparticles. It will be
embedded inside the PSf substrates and PA layer.
 Problem statement

• Fulfilled water demand

• Reverse Osmosis (RO) shortage:
• High energy consumption
• Membrane fouling
• Forward osmosis (FO) shortage:
• Internal concentration polarization (ICP)
• Loss of draw solutes
• Thin film nanocomposite (TFN) shortage:
• Agglomeration of nanoparticles.
 Objectives of study

1. To fabricate and characterize TFN membrane

incorporated with CN and pCN.
2. To evaluate the desalination performance of the
TFN membrane with different loading of CN
and pCN in term of water flux, reverse salt flux
and salt rejection by using RO dead-end
permeation system and FO system.
 Scope of study
1. To fabricate and characterize TFN membrane
incorporated with CN and pCN.
• Prepare by IP of MPD and TMC with nanomaterials
(CN and pCN) in PSf substrates and TMC solution
• Characterization:
 FESEM
 Zeta potential
 Contact angle goniometer
2. To evaluate the desalination performance of the TFN
membrane with different loading of CN and pCN in term of
water flux, reverse salt flux and salt rejection by using RO
dead-end permeation system and FO system.
1. Loading of nanomaterials (CN and pCN) will be using
0.05%, 0.1% and 0.15% in TMC solution and dope
solution.
2. Evaluation of TFN properties in RO system and
determination of S parameter for water permeability
and sodium chloride (NaCl) rejection.
3. Performance evaluation (water flux, flux recovery,
reverse draw solute) using RO dead-end permeation
system and FO system.
 Significance of study

• Improve research field on the membrane properties

embedded with nanoparticles.
• CN is expected to improve the hydrophilicity of the
membrane.
• Protonation of CN is expected to reduce
agglomeration of the nanoparticles.
Literature review
 Desalination

18 000 desalination plant

86.8 mil m3/day

300 mil people

• International Desalination Association (IDA)

 Forward Osmosis
RO Characteristic FO
Hydraulic pressure Pressure Osmotic pressure

Draw solution: High

concentration of salt
Seawater concentration Solution
Feed solution: low concentration
of salt

High energy Energy consumption Low energy

Usage of high pressure tend to Internal concentration

Fouling issue
fouling the membrane polarization

Simple design involving high Complex system with two tank

Design system
pressure system and two low pressure pump
Thin Film Composite

Forming PA layer on the top of porous substrate through an IP method.

 Thin Film Nanocomposite
Embedded nanomaterials inside the substrates or PA layer

Why use nanomaterials?

• Increase the hydrophilicity
• Fouling resistance
• Minimize ICP
• Increasing hydrophilicity of the surface interaction
will lower the ICP. ( Rana et al. 2010)
 Thin Film Nanocomposite
Nanomaterials Substrate PA layer formation Loading of nanomaterials Ref.

Silica Oxide
PEI MPD & TMC 0 - 0.3% in substrate Tian et al.
(SiO2)

Graphene Oxide (GO) P35 MPD & TMC 0 – 0.1% in MPD Fathizadeh et al.

HNT 17.5% PSf MPD & TMC 0 – 1 % in substrate Ghanbari et al.

Carbon Nanofibers
Cellulose triacetate - 0 – 1% in substrate Dabaghian et al.
(CNF)

SiO2 18% PSf MPD & TMC 0 – 0.1% in MPD Peyki et al.

Titanium Oxide (TiO2) 16.5 % PSf MPD & TMC 0 – 0.9% in substrate Lau et al.

Imogolite nanotubes
15% PSf MPD & TMC 0.33 – 1% in substrate Pan et al.
(INTs)

MWCNT 16% PSf MPD & TMC 0.01 – 0.1% in MPD Amini et al.

Zeolite 15.5% PSf MPD & TMC 0.02 – 0.4% in TMC Ma et al.
 Why Carbon Nitride?

• Hydrophilicity
• Easy to fabricate
• Stable
 Carbon Nitride
• CN formed diamond-like mechanical properties and can
withstand chemical and thermal reaction.
• Strong covalent bond between carbon and nitrogen (tri-s-
triazine).
• Have the potential to enhance hydrophilicity of the
substrate.
 Cont.
• According to Wan Azelee et al., acid treated
nanoparticles (+ve charge) will have better interaction
on PA layer (-ve charge).
• pCN could have greater interaction with PA layer.
• Thus, will reduce the agglomeration of nanoparticles in
PA layer.
Methodology
 Research Design
Fabricating neat Synthesis of
membrane Acid treatment
nanomaterials

Thin film
composite Thin film
characterization
nanocomposite

Membrane
characterization

Performance
evaluation
 Materials Selection
PSf substrate:
• Polysulfone (PSf) polymer
• N-methyl-2-pyrrolidinone (NMP)
• Polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP)
PA layer:
• M-phenylenediamine (MPD)
• 1,3,5-benzenetricarbonyl trichloride (TMC)
• N-Hexane
Synthesize of CN and pCN:
• Melamine
• Hydrochloric acid
FO and RO test:
• Sodium chloride (NaCl)
 Synthesis of Carbon Nitride
• Thermal condensation method
Preparation of PSf substrate
and polyamide rejection layer
RO
 Membrane and Nanomaterial
Characterization
Membrane Nanomaterials

• FESEM-morphology • TEM- morphological

• Contact Angle- structure
wettability • XRD
• Zeta potential- • ATR-FTIR- functional
surface charge group and chemical
change
 Evaluation of Membrane
Performance
• RO dead-end filtration system

V
J
Am  t

J
A
P

c f  cp
R 100%
cf
• FO testing
V feed m feed /  feed
Jv  
Am  t Am  t

Vt  ct  Vo  co
Js 
Am  t
• Determination of S parameter
 Expected Results

• NaCl rejection > 95%

• TFN water flux > TFC water flux
 Conclusion
• RO and FO system would help in desalination
industry.
• TFC can generate a good water permeation and
high salt rejection.
• TFN could increase the performance of the TFC
membrane with higher water flux without
sacrificing the salt rejection.