Synthesis of novel fly ash based geo-polymeric membranes for the treatment of textile waste water

• DOI: 10.1007/s13762-021-03527-4
• Publication Date: 2021-07-17T21:02:56Z
• Authors: B. Ahmad; M. R. Dilshad; B. Haider; M. M. Anwar; H. Ali; S. M. A. Gilani; H. B. Ahmad; M. Farooq
• Keywords: 02 engineering and technology; 0204 chemical engineering; 7. Clean energy; 6. Clean water

Fabrication of inorganic membranes from waste fly ash through geo-polymerization process is a quite novel technique. In this research work, fly ash (having Si/Al ratio of 1.9) based geo-polymeric membranes were prepared for the treatment of textile waste water which is the major cause of environmental pollution. Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) was added as a pore foaming agent having 5, 10 and 15 volume % in the geo-polymer slurry. Sodium hydroxide and sodium silicate were added as chemical activators to initiate the geo-polymerization process. The prepared geo-polymeric membranes were characterized for FTIR spectroscopy, optical microscopy, porosity, compressive strength and water filtration analysis using three different types of textile waste water namely, bleaching water, dyeing water and a mixture of bleaching and dyeing water. Water flux and percentage rejection of impurities like TSS, TDS, COD, pH and electrical conductivity were determined for all the three types of textile waste water. The prepared membranes demonstrated high values of compressive strength and surface porosity. The prepared membranes also demonstrated high water flux along with good results for rejection of impurities, especially against TSS removal, where efficiency was more than 99 percent. Out of all the membranes, the membrane having 15% H2O2 exhibited the best water flux and percentage rejection of impurities for all the types of textile waste water.