Development of a sustainable ground water treatment system for nitrate removal using novel surface modified adsorbents - Project No 4.1.17-13/14

Project Member(s): Vigneswaran, S., Loganathan, P.

Funding or Partner Organisation: CRC for Contamination Assessment and Remediation of the Environment (CRC CARE)

Start year: 2014

Summary: Groundwater in many parts of Australia has a high concentration of nitrate. Many treatment methods such as adsorption, reverse osmosis, denitrification of which adsorption is a sustainable solution. Cost-effective carbon based adsorbents have low adsorption capacities and requires surface modification. In this study we will modify agricultural by-products and meso-porous silica by a combination of processes such as protonation, amination and metal incorporation to produce high adsorption capacity. We will also develop a cost effective membrane adsorption system that operates under gravity and has smart adaptive cleaning. This study is very important to small community water supplies in remote Australia and in developing countries. Novel surface modified adsorbents based on agricultural by-products and silica based mesoporus materials together with cost-effective gravity fed membrane systems are investigated in this project with the goal of developing a robust and cost effective treatment system process for the supply of potable water to remote communities.

Publications:

Jamil, S, Loganathan, P, Khan, SJ, McDonald, JA, Kandasamy, J & Vigneswaran, S 2021, 'Enhanced nanofiltration rejection of inorganic and organic compounds from a wastewater-reclamation plant’s micro-filtered water using adsorption pre-treatment', Separation and Purification Technology, vol. 260, pp. 118207-118207.
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Kalaruban, M, Loganathan, P, Kandasamy, J & Vigneswaran, S 2018, 'Submerged membrane adsorption hybrid system using four adsorbents to remove nitrate from water', Environmental Science and Pollution Research, vol. 25, no. 21, pp. 20328-20335.
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Kalaruban, M, Loganathan, P, Shim, W, Kandasamy, J & Vigneswaran, S 2018, 'Mathematical Modelling of Nitrate Removal from Water Using a Submerged Membrane Adsorption Hybrid System with Four Adsorbents', Applied Sciences, vol. 8, no. 2, pp. 194-194.
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Kalaruban, M, Loganathan, P, Shim, WG, Kandasamy, J, Naidu, G, Nguyen, TV & Vigneswaran, S 2016, 'Removing nitrate from water using iron-modified Dowex 21K XLT ion exchange resin: Batch and fluidised-bed adsorption studies', SEPARATION AND PURIFICATION TECHNOLOGY, vol. 158, pp. 62-70.
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Keywords: nitrate, adsorbents, surface modification, water reuse

FOR Codes: Urban and Industrial Water Management, Wastewater Treatment Processes, Membrane and Separation Technologies, Separation¿¿technologies, Terrestrial systems and management not elsewhere classified

Acknowledgement of Country

UTS acknowledges the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation, the Boorooberongal people of the Dharug Nation, the Bidiagal people and the Gamaygal people, upon whose ancestral lands our university stands. We would also like to pay respect to the Elders both past and present, acknowledging them as the traditional custodians of knowledge for these lands.