Mostafa Dadashi Firouzjaei

Membrane-based household water treatment (HWT) systems are increasingly promoted for the decentralized control of microbial contamination, including enteric viruses. However, virus removal is still typically evaluated using nominal pore size and the average log reduction value (LRV) obtained under controlled laboratory conditions. In household use, membranes are typically subjected to intermittent operation, hydraulic fluctuations, variable feedwater quality, fouling evolution, and inconsistent maintenance. From a reliability perspective, virus retention can be viewed as three interacting contributions: structural retention, interaction-mediated retention, and fouling-mediated retention, each of which may change under operating conditions. We therefore propose a reliability-centered framework that distinguishes removal capacity from virus protection reliability and evaluates performance as a time-dependent reliability profile rather than a single or average LRV. The framework introduces measurable indicators, including threshold compliance, minimum LRV, breakthrough frequency, magnitude and duration, recovery, and protective service life. It also distinguishes transient transport-mediated breakthrough, in which process disruption temporarily increases virus passage without permanent membrane damage, from integrity-mediated failure, in which physical deterioration of the membrane barrier causes a more persistent loss of protection. This framework provides a basis for evaluating how consistently and for how long membrane-based HWT systems sustain protective viral removal.

Over the past decade, 2D MXenes have garnered tremendous attention for membrane applications owing to their exceptional hydrophilicity, tunable surface chemistry, and antifouling properties. However, translating MXene‐based membranes from laboratory demonstrations to practically relevant manufacturing remains challenging because scalable fabrication routes are still limited. Herein, we demonstrate a roll‐to‐roll nonsolvent‐induced phase separation (R2R‐NIPS) process for fabricating Ti ₃ C ₂ T _x /polysulfone (PSF) mixed‐matrix ultrafiltration membranes in large sheet format (196 × 84 cm; geometric area ≈1.65 m ² ). Incorporation of 1 wt% MXene produced more open and interconnected membrane substructures, enhanced apparent wettability (contact angle reduced from 90° for PSF to 62°), a more negative surface charge, and subsurface flake embedding confirmed by characterization. These features yielded a water flux of 206 LMH (31% higher than pristine PSF) with 97.6% humic acid rejection ( n = 3 batches, p < 0.01 for flux; p < 0.05 for rejection), while batch‐to‐batch variability remained <5%. Rather than claiming a measured thermodynamic phase diagram, we interpret the observed morphology as consistent with faster demixing during R2R‐NIPS. This processing methodology—documenting practical parameter choices such as casting speed, wet thickness, and bath circulation—provides a feasible route toward larger‐scale MXene membrane production for water purification.

Mo-based DTM MXenes (Mo ₂ TiC ₂ T _x and Mo ₂ Ti ₂ C ₃ T _x ) exhibit strong antibacterial performance through nanoknives and oxidative stress, offering a promising pathway to mitigate antibiotic-resistant Gram-negative bacteria.

This study focuses on developing and evaluating electro‐conductive polyamide‐imide (PAI) ultrafiltration membranes with a stable metallic coating that can tackle the dual challenges of dye removal and membrane fouling in wastewater treatment applications. The Ag‐coated PAI membranes exhibit high electrical conductivity (exceeding 5.6 × 10 ⁴ S cm ⁻¹ ), enabling the use of an applied electric potential to enhance dye removal efficiency and mitigate membrane fouling via electrochemical mechanisms. The electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) test confirm the high conductivity of the membranes. Meanwhile, linear sweep voltammetry (LSV) revealed the presence of the oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) and the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) on the membrane surface. These findings provide valuable insights into the electrochemical potential for fabricating electro‐conductive membranes (ECMs). The Ag‐PAI membranes demonstrate remarkable dye rejection, with rates reaching 97% for reactive red 120 (RR120) and 90% for reactive black (RB) at an applied voltage of 7 V, while maintaining a consistent permeate flux of ≈100 LMH. The membranes also show significantly improved resistance to organic fouling, with the flux recovery ratio (FRR) increasing from 49.14% for pristine PAI to 80.41%, representing a 31% enhancement. The enhanced antifouling performance is attributed to gas bubble formation during voltage application, which disrupted the accumulation of the fouling cake layer. Together, these mechanisms effectively enhance the overall performance of the membrane.

Integrating biocidal nanoparticles (NPs) into polyamide (PA) membranes shows promise for enhancing resistance to biofouling. Incorporating techniques can tailor thin‐film nanocomposite (TFN) membranes for specific water purification applications. In this study, silver‐based metal–organic framework Ag‐MOFs (using silver nitrate and 1,3,5‐benzentricarboxylic acid as precursors) are incorporated into PA membranes via three different methods: i) incorporation, ii) dip‐coating, and iii) in situ ultrasonic techniques. The characterizations, such as top‐surface and cross‐section scanning and transmission microscopy, reveal that the incorporation methods for the modified TFN membranes substantially control morphology and surface characteristics. For example, the in situ ultrasonically interlayered Ag‐MOFs showed the largest pores (average pore diameter of 14 Å ± 0.1), resulting in the highest water permeance (water flux of 10.9 LMH/bar for Na ₂ SO ₄ ). It also show superior antifouling and anti‐biofouling performance, with a flux recovery ratio (FRR) of 94.1% in both fouling tests due to its improved surface hydrophilicity and the antibacterial properties of incorporated Ag‐MOFs. Conversely, the surface‐grafted dip‐coated Ag‐MOFs offered the highest salt rejection, attributed to its highly negatively charged surface and a dense PA network with narrow pores (average pore diameter of 10 Å ± 0.06).

This study investigates the application of innovative co-polyamide (Co-PA) membranes in the pressure-retarded osmosis (PRO) process. The Co-PA membranes were synthesized via a polycondensation reaction of a mixture of m-phenylenediamine (MPD) and piperazine (PIP) with trimesoyl chloride (TMC). Characterization using attenuated total reflectance-Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FTIR) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) confirmed chemical modifications in the membranes, while Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) demonstrated increased surface roughness with PIP incorporation. Results showed that incorporating 1.5 wt% PIP significantly improved PRO performance, achieving a remarkable power density of 10.22 W m⁻² and a 41.5% increase in water flux compared to the pristine TFC membrane. Additionally, XPS analysis demonstrated an increase in the degree of crosslinking, reducing reverse salt flux by 36.7%. A life cycle assessment of PRO systems was conducted to evaluate the environmental impact of the technology with developed membranes. The results confirm the environmental benefits of this novel membrane synthesis approach, indicating a reduction in cumulative energy demand (CED) and a shift towards more sustainable energy sources. This research highlights the potential of Co-PA membranes to revolutionize PRO technology, offering sustainable solutions for energy generation and water treatment. The findings contribute valuable insights into the environmental implications of PRO, which are essential for developing sustainable PRO systems.