TECH OFFER

Carbon Quantum Dots Based Brackish Water Reverse Osmosis Membranes

KEY INFORMATION

TECHNOLOGY CATEGORY:
Environment, Clean Air & Water - Filter Membrane & Absorption Material
TECHNOLOGY READINESS LEVEL (TRL):
LOCATION:
Singapore
ID NUMBER:
TO174526

TECHNOLOGY OVERVIEW

According to the United Nations, half of the world's population grapples with water scarcity for at least a month each year. To meet heightened demands for clean water, treatment processes are crucial in turning unusable water into a supply that is safe for drinking, sanitation, and industrial use.

For reverse osmosis thin film composite (TFC) membranes bear tiny pores that allow select molecules to pass through while blocking out the rest. However, their ability to block contaminants tends to impede water flow, yielding a lower volume of purified water from the initial supply. The reverse is also true. Enhanced water permeability typically reduces the membrane’s selectivity against unwanted chemicals. To maximise the production of clean water from brackish water, membranes that can overcome these drawbacks must be engineered.

This technology offer describes an improved, highly permeable TFC membrane for the desalination of brackish water through reverse osmosis (RO), as well as a method for production thereof. Here, functionalised carbon quantum dots (CQDs) are synthesized and incorporated into the selective layer of the membrane.

The technology provider is currently seeking commercial entities interested to license this technology for commercialization.

TECHNOLOGY FEATURES & SPECIFICATIONS

CQDs are highly hydrophilic materials that have a large surface area that can be functionalised to enhance water permeability. Groups used for functionalisation resemble other membrane components like m-phenylene diamine (MPD), enabling easy incorporation and polymerisation.

Performance

  • Control: Conventional membrane
  • Pure Water Permeability (PWP): 3.87 LMH/bar and NaCl rejection: 98.6%
  • CQD Membrane before post-treatment:
  • Pure Water Permeability (PWP): 5.50 LMH/bar and NaCl rejection: 98.0% against a 2000 ppm NaCl feed solution at 15 bar
  • 42.1% higher PWP and a similar salt (NaCl) rejection compared to control membrane
  • CQD Membrane after post-treatment:
  • PWP: 10.13 LMH/bar and NaCl rejection of 98.9% against a 2000 ppm NaCl solution at 15 bar
  • 261% higher pure water permeability (PWP) and a similar salt (NaCl) rejection compared to control membrane

POTENTIAL APPLICATIONS

This technology can be used for brackish water desalination. Brackish water or water with salinity in between that of freshwater and seawater is purified through reverse osmosis, which combines pressure and semi-permeable membranes to separate salt from water. It is applicable in the following industries (non-exhaustive):

  • Drinking water
  • Agriculture (for irrigation)
  • Petrochemical

Simple and energy-efficient, this technology’s global market size reached US$6.9 billion in 2017 and is on track for a compounded annual growth rate of 10 percent from 2020 to 2025.

Unique Value Proposition

  • Energy consumption for brackish water desalination can be reduced
  • Higher productivity from the desalination process
  • Reuses water that is otherwise unsuitable for use in a particular application; This leads to less wastage of water that is already available
  • Membrane module can directly replace an existing similar module already in use
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