Nanohybrid membrane in algal-membrane photoreactor: Microalgae cultivation and wastewater polishing

• Published in: Chinese journal of chemical engineering Vol. 27; no. 11; pp. 2799 - 2806
• Main Authors: Chong, Woon Chan, Mohammad, Abdul Wahab, Mahmoudi, Ebrahim, Chung, Ying Tao, Kamarudin, Kamrul Fakir, Takriff, Mohd Sobri
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier B.V 01-11-2019; Chemical Engineering Programme, Faculty of Engineering and Built Environment, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, 43600 Bangi, Selangor, Malaysia; Department of Chemical Engineering, Lee Kong Chian Faculty of Engineering and Science, Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman, Jalan Sungai Long, Bandar Sungai Long, Cheras, 43000 Kajang, Selangor, Malaysia%Chemical Engineering Programme, Faculty of Engineering and Built Environment, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, 43600 Bangi, Selangor, Malaysia; Research Center for Sustainable Process Technology (CESPRO), Faculty of Engineering and Built Environment, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, 43600 Bangi, Selangor, Malaysia%Department of Chemical Engineering and Petroleum Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Technology and Built Environment, UCSI University, No.1, Jalan Menara Gading, UCSI Heights, Cheras, 56000 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
• Subjects: Algal-membrane photoreactor; Microalgal cultivation; Nanohybrid membrane; Nutrient recovery; Wastewater polishing; Algal-membrane photoreactor; Wastewater polishing; Nutrient recovery; Microalgal cultivation; Nanohybrid membrane
• ISSN: 1004-9541; 2210-321X
• DOI: 10.1016/j.cjche.2019.05.015

Microalgae cultivation has gained tremendous attention in recent years due to its great potential in green biofuel production and wastewater treatment application. Membrane technology is a great solution in separating the microalgae biomass while producing high quality of permeate for recycling. The main objective of this study was to investigate the filtration performance of Ag/GO-PVDF (silver/graphene oxide-polyvinylidene fluoride) membrane in an algal-membrane photoreactor (A-MPR) by benchmarking with a commercial PVDF (com-PVDF) membrane. In this study, Chlorella vulgaris microalgae was cultivated in synthetic wastewater in an A-MPR for ammoniacal-nitrogen and phosphorus recovery and the wastewater was further filtered using Ag/GO-PVDF and com-PVDF membranes to obtain high quality water. Spectrophotometer was used to analyze the chemical oxidation demand (COD), ammoniacal nitrogen (NH3-N) and phosphate (PO43−). The concentration of proteins and carbohydrates was measured using Bradford method and phenol-sulfuric acid method, respectively. The COD of the synthetic wastewater was reduced from (180.5 ± 5.6) ppm to (82 ± 2.6) ppm due to nutrient uptake by microalgae. Then, the Ag/GO-PVDF membrane was used to further purify the microalgae cultivated wastewater, resulting in a low COD permeate of (31 ± 4.6) ppm. The high removal rate of proteins (100%) and carbohydrates (86.6%) as the major foulant in microalgae filtration, with low membrane fouling propensity of Ag/GO-PVDF membrane is advantageous for the sustainable development of the microalgae production. Hence, the integrated A-MPR system is highly recommended as a promising approach for microalgae cultivation and wastewater polishing treatment.
•An integrated microalgae cultivation and wastewater bioremediation system•High rejections of proteins, carbohydrates, COD and suspended solids•Ag/GO-PVDF membrane showed great fouling resistance in algal-membrane photoreactor.•No leaching of silver element from the Ag/GO-PVDF membrane.