ABSTRACT
The impact from the discharge of wastewaters from various sources like domestic, industrial, and agriculture has turn out to be more toxic in recent years and has therefore attracted researchers’ interest. The inadequate availability of fresh water has triggered the demand to extract fresh water from various non-traditional sources. Water is being extracted using various conventional technologies. However, the quality of the product water obtained from these technologies has constrained its acceptability. Membranes, on the other hand, can be tailored for a multitude of operations and applications because of their flexibility and the quality of product water.
This chapter highlights some advanced and mostly used membrane technologies such as hydrostatic pressure-driven membranes, osmotic pressure-driven membranes, electrical-driven membranes, thermal-driven membranes, membrane bioreactors (MBRs), including self-sufficient as well as hybrid or integrated systems, for treatment and reclamation of various water sources. Some advanced technologies like graphene membranes, self-forming dynamic membranes, metal organic framework (MOF), and nanostructured membranes have also been discussed. The working principles of these membranes and their performance on the basis of heavy metal removal, water recuperation, or reclamation, together with resource recovery, is elaborated on in detail. This chapter aims to consolidate the relevant information and literature associated with membrane technology being used as a versatile tool for heavy metal removal and wastewater treatment, along with the identification of loopholes and current study gaps and areas or zones of improvement available in this field.
