Carbon nanofibre microfiltration membranes tailored by oxygen plasma for electrocatalytic wastewater treatment in cross-flow reactors

Rashed, AO; Huynh, C; Merenda, A; Qin, S; Maghe, M; Kong, L; Kondo, T; Dumée, LF; Razal, JM

Carbon nanofibre microfiltration membranes tailored by oxygen plasma for electrocatalytic wastewater treatment in cross-flow reactors

Rashed, AO Huynh, C Merenda, A

Qin, S Maghe, M Kong, L Kondo, T Dumée, LF Razal, JM

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Publisher:: Elsevier
Publication Type:: Journal Article
Citation:: Journal of Membrane Science, 2023, 673, pp. 121475
Issue Date:: 2023-05-05

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Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	Rashed, AO
dc.contributor.author	Huynh, C
dc.contributor.author	Merenda, A https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9998-0330
dc.contributor.author	Qin, S
dc.contributor.author	Maghe, M
dc.contributor.author	Kong, L
dc.contributor.author	Kondo, T
dc.contributor.author	Dumée, LF
dc.contributor.author	Razal, JM
dc.date.accessioned	2023-10-09T04:56:30Z
dc.date.available	2023-10-09T04:56:30Z
dc.date.issued	2023-05-05
dc.identifier.citation	Journal of Membrane Science, 2023, 673, pp. 121475
dc.identifier.issn	0376-7388
dc.identifier.issn	1873-3123
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/172591
dc.description.abstract	The engineering of electrocatalytic membrane reactors provides potential perspectives to integrate membrane separation with electrocatalytic technology for efficient removal of emerging organic pollutants from wastewater. Here, electro-responsive microfiltration carbon nanofibre (CNF) membranes were synthesized by electrospinning of poly(acrylonitrile) PAN and subsequent carbonization, followed by oxygen plasma treatment to induce their surface wettability and reactivity for electrocatalytic water treatment. The electrocatalytic performance of CNF membranes was fine-tuned via oxygen plasma treatment to yield reaction kinetic constants up to 29.6 × 10−3 and 15.6 × 10−3 min−1 against methylene blue (MB) and acetaminophen (ACP), respectively, which were 1.4–1.8 times higher than that exhibited by pristine CNF membranes. The water permeance across CNF membrane was gradually enhanced with increasing the plasma exposure time up to 5 min to exhibit 4.65 × 103 L m−2 h−1.bar−1, while the removal efficiency of MB and ACP was significantly improved to reach 99 and 91%, respectively during combined microfiltration and electrocatalytic reaction, which was 2.4–10.3 times higher than that achieved during microfiltration alone. The achieved performance of oxygen plasma treated CNF membranes was attributed to their enhanced wettability (water contact angle ∼24°) and raised electro-oxidation capacity (oxygen evolution potential ∼1.6 V) with introducing oxygen-containing groups on the membrane surface. This work offers an effective scalable fabrication methodology to engineer flexible and functional CNF membranes with excellent electrocatalytic performance towards cost-effective water treatment.
dc.language	en
dc.publisher	Elsevier
dc.relation.ispartof	Journal of Membrane Science
dc.relation.isbasedon	10.1016/j.memsci.2023.121475
dc.rights	info:eu-repo/semantics/embargoedAccess
dc.subject	03 Chemical Sciences, 09 Engineering
dc.subject.classification	Chemical Engineering
dc.subject.classification	34 Chemical sciences
dc.subject.classification	40 Engineering
dc.title	Carbon nanofibre microfiltration membranes tailored by oxygen plasma for electrocatalytic wastewater treatment in cross-flow reactors
dc.type	Journal Article
utslib.citation.volume	673
utslib.for	03 Chemical Sciences
utslib.for	09 Engineering
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology/School of Civil and Environmental Engineering
utslib.copyright.status	embargoed	*
utslib.copyright.embargo	2025-05-01T00:00:00+1000Z
dc.date.updated	2023-10-09T04:56:30Z
pubs.publication-status	Published
pubs.volume	673

Abstract:

The engineering of electrocatalytic membrane reactors provides potential perspectives to integrate membrane separation with electrocatalytic technology for efficient removal of emerging organic pollutants from wastewater. Here, electro-responsive microfiltration carbon nanofibre (CNF) membranes were synthesized by electrospinning of poly(acrylonitrile) PAN and subsequent carbonization, followed by oxygen plasma treatment to induce their surface wettability and reactivity for electrocatalytic water treatment. The electrocatalytic performance of CNF membranes was fine-tuned via oxygen plasma treatment to yield reaction kinetic constants up to 29.6 × 10−3 and 15.6 × 10−3 min−1 against methylene blue (MB) and acetaminophen (ACP), respectively, which were 1.4–1.8 times higher than that exhibited by pristine CNF membranes. The water permeance across CNF membrane was gradually enhanced with increasing the plasma exposure time up to 5 min to exhibit 4.65 × 103 L m−2 h−1.bar−1, while the removal efficiency of MB and ACP was significantly improved to reach 99 and 91%, respectively during combined microfiltration and electrocatalytic reaction, which was 2.4–10.3 times higher than that achieved during microfiltration alone. The achieved performance of oxygen plasma treated CNF membranes was attributed to their enhanced wettability (water contact angle ∼24°) and raised electro-oxidation capacity (oxygen evolution potential ∼1.6 V) with introducing oxygen-containing groups on the membrane surface. This work offers an effective scalable fabrication methodology to engineer flexible and functional CNF membranes with excellent electrocatalytic performance towards cost-effective water treatment.

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http://hdl.handle.net/10453/172591