Advancements and challenges in reaping dual benefits of ultrafiltration technology: Fouling mitigation and emerging contaminants elimination
Heli Tang, Shuchang Huang, Chi Zhang, Wenxin Shi, Bing Zhang
Abstract
Ultrafiltration (UF) technology has been extensively utilized in the treatment of drinking water and reclaimed water, yielding remarkable achievements. However, the challenges of membrane fouling and the limited efficacy in removing emerging pollutants/contaminants (EPs) have hindered its further advancement. Consequently, numerous studies have been conducted to overcome these technical bottlenecks. Although several reviews have been published in this field, most of them are focused on specific subfields or provide unilateral reports on research progress related to mitigating membrane fouling or removing EPs. In this review, we present a comprehensive summary of research progress in UF water treatment with dual-enhancement strategies for controlling membrane fouling and facilitating EPs removal. Firstly, bibliometric analysis was employed to identify research trends and hotspots within this field. Subsequently, various dual-enhancement strategies for UF were summarized, including altering operating conditions, pre-treatment methods prior to UF, membrane modification techniques, and membrane functionalization approaches. Finally, we addressed the limitations or shortcomings observed in previous studies on dual-enhancement strategies while also provided prospects for future directions. This review not only offers valuable insights into the application and development of UF technology in drinking water/reclaimed water treatment but also significantly contributes towards promoting its engineering application.