This disclosure provides water processing apparatuses, systems, and methods for recovering purified water and concentrated brine from wastewater. The water processing apparatuses, systems, and methods utilize ionomer membrane technology to separate water vapor from volatiles of a wastewater stream. The wastewater stream is evaporated into a gas stream including water vapor and volatiles of the wastewater stream in an evaporation container. The gas stream is delivered to a water separation module spatially separated from and fluidly coupled to the evaporation container. The water vapor of the gas stream is separated out in the water separation module while the volatiles are rejected. The water vapor can be collected into purified water while concentrated brine from the wastewater stream is left behind in the evaporation container.

A pervaporation membrane may be an acid-resistant polybenzidimazole (PBI) membrane. The acid-resistant PBI membrane may be a PBI membrane chemically modified by a process selected from the group consisting of sulfonation, phosphonation, cross-linking, N-substitution, and/or combinations thereof. The membrane may be thermally stabilized. A method for the dehydration of an acid material may include the steps of: contacting an acidic aqueous solution with a membrane of an acid-resistant polybenzidimazole; taking away a permeate stream rich in water; and taking away a concentrate steam rich in the acid material. The acidic aqueous solution may be acetic acid.

An integrated forward osmosis-membrane distillation (FO-MD) module and systems and methods incorporating the module is disclosed providing higher efficiencies and using less energy. The FO-MD module is osmotically and thermally isolated. The isolation can prevent mixing of FO draw solution/FO permeate and MD feed, and minimize dilution of FO draw solution and cooling of MD feed. The module provides MD feed solution and FO draw solution streams that flow in the same module but are separated by an isolation barrier. The osmotically and thermally isolated FO-MD integrated module, systems and methods offer higher driving forces of both FO and MD processes, higher recovery, and wider application than previously proposed hybrid FO-MD systems.

The invention relates to a membrane distillation device, comprising at least one condensation/evaporation stage, which comprises at least one condensation unit and at least one evaporation unit and to which vapor is fed and through which a liquid to be concentrated flows, wherein each condensation unit comprises a first vapor chamber that is bounded at least partially by a condensation wall and to which the fed vapor is supplied and each evaporation unit comprises a second vapor chamber that is bounded at least partially by a vapor-permeable, liquid-tight membrane wall, and in each condensation/evaporation stage at least one flow channel is provided, which is formed between such a condensation unit and such an evaporator unit adjacent to said condensation unit and which conducts the liquid to be concentrated, and thus the liquid to be concentrated is heated by means of the condensation wall, and vapor arising from the liquid to be concentrated enters the second vapor chamber through the membrane wall. At least one condensation/evaporation stage is expanded by an integrated apparatus for preheating the liquid to be concentrated, which apparatus comprises at least one additional vapor chamber, to which the vapor fed to the condensation/evaporation stage is supplied and in which the vapor is condensed, whereby the liquid to be concentrated is preheated.

Membranes are provided for energy efficient purification of alcohol by pervaporation. Such membranes include a nanofibrous scaffold in combination with a barrier layer. The membranes also include zeolites in the barrier layer. The membranes may, in embodiments, also include a substrate.

Device for producing pure water, where the water to be purified is caused to be membrane distilled using one or more units (1), wherein each of the units comprises a space which on its one side comprises a first disc-shaped wall (4,4) and on its other side a membrane (3,3) through which gaseous water can pass but not liquid water, and a second disc-shaped wall (5,10), which walls are disposed on different sides of and at a distance from the membrane, wherein water is led in between the first wall (4,4) and the membrane (3,3), and wherein the second wall (5,10) is caused to be colder than the water. The invention is characterized in that the first disc-shaped wall (4,4) is also a membrane through which gaseous water can pass but not liquid water, in that two adjacent membranes (3, 4; 3 4) are supported by a common frame (6), in that the space between the membranes is provided with an inlet opening (7,7) for water to be purified and an outlet opening (8,8), in that the second wall (5,10) is a part of a chamber (9) formed by two parallel walls, in that the chamber is provided with an inlet opening (11,11) for water which is colder than the water to be purified and provided with an outlet opening (12,12), and in that chambers (9,9) are arranged in parallel with the membranes at both sides of the frame (6).

A vacuum membrane distillation module includes a center core; a plurality of hollow fiber membranes; an shell which cylindrically houses the bundle of hollow fiber membranes and the center core; at least one circumferential retaining structures retaining the ends of the plurality of hollow fiber membrane; at least one end cap housing the at least one circumferential retaining structures; at least one supporting rod extending in a longitudinal direction; a potting material, which is contained between (i) an inner boundary formed by the outer surface of the center core, and (ii) a peripheral boundary formed by the inner surface of the least one circumferential retaining structure; and at least one of (i) the outer surface of the at least one end section of the center core and (ii) the inner surface of the least one circumferential retaining structure comprises an adaptation to enhance strength of bonding with the potting material.

Titanium carbide (Ti.sub.3C.sub.2T.sub.x) MXene nanocomposite spacers can be incorporated into membrane distillation systems. For example, a method can include selectively etching aluminum layers from layered ternary carbide powder by adding the ternary carbide powder in etchant to form a slurry. Additionally, the method can include centrifuging the slurry and washing the slurry until reaching a pH condition. Subsequent to reaching the pH condition, the method can include collecting a Ti.sub.3C.sub.2T.sub.x MXene supernatant from the slurry. The method can further include vacuum drying the supernatant to produce Ti.sub.3C.sub.2T.sub.x MXene powder. The method can include mixing the MXene powder with additional materials to form a nanocomposite ink with Ti.sub.3C.sub.2T.sub.x MXene nanofillers. The method can further include printing a pattern with the nanocomposite ink to form a Ti.sub.3C.sub.2T.sub.x MXene nanocomposite spacer.

A multi-stage sweeping gas membrane distillation (MS-SGMD) system and a method of use are provided. The MS-SGMD includes a plurality of modules, wherein each module includes a feed chamber fluidically coupled to a feed line and a carrier gas line, wherein the feed line introduces a liquid feed into the feed chamber from a liquid feed tank, and wherein the carrier gas line introduces a carrier gas into the feed chamber. Each module includes a sweeping gas chamber fluidically coupled to a sweeping gas line and a sweeping gas return line, wherein a sweeping gas is passed through the sweeping gas chamber. Each module further includes a membrane separating the feed chamber from the sweeping gas chamber, wherein the membrane allows transportation of vapor from the feed chamber to the sweeping gas chamber while blocking liquid from moving from the feed chamber to the sweeping gas chamber.

The present invention relates to an olefins-paraffins separation process in feed stream containing hydrocarbons with 2 to 4 carbon atoms by facilitated transport membrane specific to olefins, comprising a step (a) of feeding the feed stream containing hydrocarbons with 2 to 4 carbon atoms into distillation column and at least 1 stage of membrane unit connected to distillation column at the feed of distillation column and at least 1 stage of membrane unit connected to the side draw of distillation column and a step (b) of separating a portion of feed stream that is passed from the membrane unit, at least 1 stream is the product stream that mostly comprising olefins and at least 1 stream that mostly comprising paraffins.