Session: Analytical Division Poster:

Water shortage is a growing concern, as there is a decline in available water sources as the population increases. There are urgent needs to develop efficient ways to remove contaminants from wastewater to obtain clean water. To solve this issue, filtration membranes using graphene-based nanostructures have received increased attention. In this work, reduced graphene oxide membranes are synthesized for wastewater purification and studied using forward osmosis. The filtration efficiency of the membranes has been evaluated based on their pore sizes, mass loadings, heating temperatures, heating times, and RGO interlayer spacings. The structures of the membranes are examine using FTIR, XRD and XPS. The performance of RGO membranes is superior to a commercial cellulose triacetate (CTA) membrane, with reverse flux selectivity 7 times better than that of CTA. The potential of the RGO membranes for wastewater purification, crucial for large scale applications has also been examined, which shows over 99% rejection of wastewater components. Our research holds great promise for large scale use of the membranes for seawater desalination and wastewater purification.

Daniel Nde

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