ABSTRACT
Due to a significant increase in the global population and the constantly deteriorating quantity and quality of water, a resourceful and optimal approach is necessary to overcome problems related to wastewater treatment and the techniques associated with it. However, some studies suggest that only 4% of the total wastewater is treated for its reuse. The contaminants released from the various pharmaceutical and agricultural industries lead to problems like bioaccumulation, biomagnification, and reduced biochemical oxygen demand to carbon oxygen demand ratio, among others. Many promising technologies used for water purification that those that exhibit excellent potential in the production of potable water for human consumption. Membrane-based technology is considered to be the most crucial and fundamental method for separating and extracting pollutants present in contaminated water. A wide range of membranes, including nanofiltration, microfiltration, ultrafiltration, reverse osmosis, or hybrid membranes, are used alone or in combination with techniques like electrochemical oxidation processes, photochemical procedures, or radiation treatments for water purification. In the last few decades, tremendous research has been carried out on the development of membrane-based techniques with enhanced water decontamination potential and remarkable characteristics like stability, reduced costs and antifouling properties. This chapter reviews various membrane and membrane-based processes used in wastewater treatment along with their advantages, limitations, and future prospects.
