In situ generated micro-bubbles enhanced membrane antifouling for separation of oil-in-water emulsion

Membrane fouling has been considered as the greatest challenge for membrane separation especially in oil/water separation process. Novel strategies for reducing membrane fouling are highly important for membrane separation. In this study, a novel membrane antifouling method in oil/water separation was proposed through in situ generated micro-bubbles. The fouling reduced process was realized by combination of membrane separation and catalytic reaction . Oxygen micro-bubbles were in situ generated by the decomposition of hydrogen peroxide (H 2 O 2 ) under the catalysis of manganese oxide nanoparticles , which were loaded on the surface of carbonized PAN (cPAN) nanofibrous membrane. In situ generated micro-bubbles significantly inhibited the surface deposition of rejected oils through hydrophobic interaction between micro-bubbles and oils. Membrane permeability was significantly reduced to 909 ± 286 Lm −2 h −1 bar −1 (3% of its initial data) after 65 min of continuous oil-in-water separation. However, it remains as high as 14755 ± 1930 Lm −2 h −1 bar −1 (67.6% of initial data) with the presence of H 2 O 2 , which was 16.2 times higher. The current study presents a potential approach to achieve continuous oil/water emulsion separation with reduced membrane fouling and advance the practical application of membranes for oil/water separation.