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Imtiaz A, Othman MHD, Jilani A, Khan IU, Kamaludin R, Iqbal J, Al-Sehemi AG. Challenges, Opportunities and Future Directions of Membrane Technology for Natural Gas Purification: A Critical Review. MEMBRANES 2022; 12:membranes12070646. [PMID: 35877848 PMCID: PMC9321681 DOI: 10.3390/membranes12070646] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/06/2022] [Revised: 06/01/2022] [Accepted: 06/09/2022] [Indexed: 12/03/2022]
Abstract
Natural gas is an important and fast-growing energy resource in the world and its purification is important in order to reduce environmental hazards and to meet the required quality standards set down by notable pipeline transmission, as well as distribution companies. Therefore, membrane technology has received great attention as it is considered an attractive option for the purification of natural gas in order to remove impurities such as carbon dioxide (CO2) and hydrogen sulphide (H2S) to meet the usage and transportation requirements. It is also recognized as an appealing alternative to other natural gas purification technologies such as adsorption and cryogenic processes due to its low cost, low energy requirement, easy membrane fabrication process and less requirement for supervision. During the past few decades, membrane-based gas separation technology employing hollow fibers (HF) has emerged as a leading technology and underwent rapid growth. Moreover, hollow fiber (HF) membranes have many advantages including high specific surface area, fewer requirements for maintenance and pre-treatment. However, applications of hollow fiber membranes are sometimes restricted by problems related to their low tensile strength as they are likely to get damaged in high-pressure applications. In this context, braid reinforced hollow fiber membranes offer a solution to this problem and can enhance the mechanical strength and lifespan of hollow fiber membranes. The present review includes a discussion about different materials used to fabricate gas separation membranes such as inorganic, organic and mixed matrix membranes (MMM). This review also includes a discussion about braid reinforced hollow fiber (BRHF) membranes and their ability to be used in natural gas purification as they can tackle high feed pressure and aggressive feeds without getting damaged or broken. A BRHF membrane possesses high tensile strength as compared to a self-supported membrane and if there is good interfacial bonding between the braid and the separation layer, high tensile strength, i.e., upto 170Mpa can be achieved, and due to these factors, it is expected that BRHF membranes could give promising results when used for the purification of natural gas.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aniqa Imtiaz
- Advanced Membrane Technology Research Centre, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Johor Bahru 81310 UTM, Johor, Malaysia; (A.I.); (R.K.)
- School of Chemical and Energy Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Johor Bahru 81310 UTM, Johor, Malaysia
| | - Mohd Hafiz Dzarfan Othman
- Advanced Membrane Technology Research Centre, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Johor Bahru 81310 UTM, Johor, Malaysia; (A.I.); (R.K.)
- School of Chemical and Energy Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Johor Bahru 81310 UTM, Johor, Malaysia
- Correspondence: (M.H.D.O.); or (A.J.)
| | - Asim Jilani
- Centre of Nanotechnology, King Abdul-Aziz University, Jeddah 21589, Saudi Arabia;
- Correspondence: (M.H.D.O.); or (A.J.)
| | - Imran Ullah Khan
- Department of Chemical and Energy Engineering, Pak-Austria Fachhochshule, Institute of Applied Sciences & Technology, Khanpur Road, Mang, Haripur 22650, Pakistan;
| | - Roziana Kamaludin
- Advanced Membrane Technology Research Centre, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Johor Bahru 81310 UTM, Johor, Malaysia; (A.I.); (R.K.)
- School of Chemical and Energy Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Johor Bahru 81310 UTM, Johor, Malaysia
| | - Javed Iqbal
- Centre of Nanotechnology, King Abdul-Aziz University, Jeddah 21589, Saudi Arabia;
| | - Abdullah G. Al-Sehemi
- Research Center for Advanced Materials Science (RCAMS), King Khalid University, P.O. Box 9004, Abha 61413, Saudi Arabia;
- Department of Chemistry, College of Science, King Khalid University, P.O. Box 9004, Abha 61413, Saudi Arabia
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Optimization of Aquaporin Loading for Performance Enhancement of Aquaporin-Based Biomimetic Thin-Film Composite Membranes. MEMBRANES 2021; 12:membranes12010032. [PMID: 35054558 PMCID: PMC8777877 DOI: 10.3390/membranes12010032] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/07/2021] [Revised: 12/22/2021] [Accepted: 12/24/2021] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
The aquaporin-based biomimetic thin-film composite membrane (ABM-TFC) has demonstrated superior separation performance and achieved successful commercialization. The larger-scale production of the ABM membrane requires an appropriate balance between the performance and manufacturing cost. This study has systematically investigated the effects of proteoliposome concentration, protein-to-lipid ratio, as well as the additive on the separation performance of ABM for the purpose of finding the optimal preparation conditions for the ABM from the perspective of industrial production. Although increasing the proteoliposome concentration or protein-to-lipid ratio within a certain range could significantly enhance the water permeability of ABMs by increasing the loading of aquaporins in the selective layer, the enhancement effect was marginal or even compromised beyond an optimal point. Alternatively, adding cholesterol in the proteoliposome could further enhance the water flux of the ABM membrane, with minor effects on the salt rejection. The optimized ABM not only achieved a nearly doubled water flux with unchanged salt rejection compared to the control, but also demonstrated satisfactory filtration stability within a wide range of operation temperatures. This study provides a practical strategy for the optimization of ABM-TFC membranes to fit within the scheme of industrial-scale production.
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Aquaporin-Containing Proteopolymersomes in Polyelectrolyte Multilayer Membranes. MEMBRANES 2020; 10:membranes10050103. [PMID: 32443530 PMCID: PMC7281279 DOI: 10.3390/membranes10050103] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2020] [Revised: 05/13/2020] [Accepted: 05/14/2020] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
The field of membranes saw huge developments in the last decades with the introduction of both polyelectrolyte multilayer (PEM)-based membranes and biomimetic membranes. In this work, we combine these two promising systems and demonstrate that proteopolymersomes (PP+) with the incorporated aquaporin protein can be distributed in a controlled fashion using PEMs, even on the inner surface of a hollow fiber membrane. In this way, various proteopolymersome multilayers (PPMs) are fabricated using PP+ as the positively charged species in combination with the polyanions poly(styrene 4-sulfonate) (PSS) and poly(acrylic acid) (PAA). It is shown by reflectometry through alternately adsorbing the polyanions and PP+ that, for both PAA and PSS, a good layer growth is possible. However, when the multilayers are imaged by SEM, the PAA-based PPMs show dewetting, whereas vesicular structures can only be clearly observed in and on the PSS-based PPMs. In addition, membrane permeability decreases upon coating the PPMs to 2.6 L∙m−2∙h−1∙bar−1 for PAA/PP+ and 7.7 L∙m−2∙h−1∙bar−1 for PSS/PP+. Salt retentions show that PAA/PP+ layers are defective (salt retentions <10% and high molecular weight cut-off (MWCO)), in line with the observed dewetting behavior, while PPMs based on PSS show 80% MgSO4 retention in combination with a low MWCO. The PSS/PP+ membranes show a Donnan-exclusion behavior with moderate MgCl2 retention (50%–55%) and high Na2SO4 retention (85%–90%) indicating a high amount of negative charge present within the PPMs. The corresponding PEMs, on the other hand, are predominately positively charged with MgCl2 retention of 97%–98% and Na2SO4 retention of 57%–80%. This means that the charge inside the multilayer and, thus, its separation behavior can be changed when PP+ is used instead of a polycation. When comparing the PPM membranes to the literature, similar performances are observed with other biomimetic membranes that are not based on interfacial polymerization, but these are the only ones prepared using a desired hollow fiber geometry. Combining PEMs and biomimetic approaches can, thus, lead to relevant membranes, especially adding to the versatility of both systems.
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Górecki R, Reurink DM, Khan MM, Sanahuja-Embuena V, Trzaskuś K, Hélix-Nielsen C. Improved reverse osmosis thin film composite biomimetic membranes by incorporation of polymersomes. J Memb Sci 2020. [DOI: 10.1016/j.memsci.2019.117392] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
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Turken T, Sengur‐Tasdemir R, Sayinli B, Urper‐Bayram GM, Ates‐Genceli E, Tarabara VV, Koyuncu I. Reinforced thin‐film composite nanofiltration membranes: Fabrication, characterization, and performance testing. J Appl Polym Sci 2019. [DOI: 10.1002/app.48001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Turker Turken
- Environmental Engineering Department, Civil Engineering FacultyIstanbul Technical University Istanbul Turkey
- National Research Center on Membrane Technologies Istanbul Turkey
| | - Reyhan Sengur‐Tasdemir
- National Research Center on Membrane Technologies Istanbul Turkey
- Nanoscience and Nanoengineering DepartmentIstanbul Technical University Istanbul Turkey
| | - Burcu Sayinli
- National Research Center on Membrane Technologies Istanbul Turkey
- Nanoscience and Nanoengineering DepartmentIstanbul Technical University Istanbul Turkey
| | - Gulsum Melike Urper‐Bayram
- Environmental Engineering Department, Civil Engineering FacultyIstanbul Technical University Istanbul Turkey
- National Research Center on Membrane Technologies Istanbul Turkey
| | - Esra Ates‐Genceli
- Environmental Engineering Department, Civil Engineering FacultyIstanbul Technical University Istanbul Turkey
- National Research Center on Membrane Technologies Istanbul Turkey
| | - Volodymyr V. Tarabara
- Department of Civil and Environmental EngineeringMichigan State University East Lansing Michigan
| | - Ismail Koyuncu
- Environmental Engineering Department, Civil Engineering FacultyIstanbul Technical University Istanbul Turkey
- National Research Center on Membrane Technologies Istanbul Turkey
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