Design of omniphobic interfaces for membrane distillation – A review

• Published in: Water research (Oxford) Vol. 162; pp. 64 - 77
• Main Authors: Lu, Kang Jia, Chen, Yuanmiaoliang, Chung, Tai-Shung
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Elsevier Ltd 01.10.2019
• Subjects: Anti-wetting; distillation; industrial wastewater; Industrial wastewater treatment; Low surface energy; Membrane distillation; Omniphobic interfaces; Re-entrant structure; salinity; surface tension; water reuse; Omniphobic interfaces; Anti-wetting; Re-entrant structure; Membrane distillation; Industrial wastewater treatment; Low surface energy
• ISSN: 0043-1354; 1879-2448; 1879-2448
• DOI: 10.1016/j.watres.2019.06.056

Membrane distillation (MD) has a great potential in treating high salinity industrial wastewater due to its unique characteristics. Nevertheless, the implementation of MD for industrial wastewater reclamation must be conducted with precaution because low-surface-tension contaminates in feed solutions may easily wet the membranes. In recent years, omniphobic membranes that exhibit strong repellence towards liquids with a wide range of surface tensions have been proposed as a promising solution to deal with the wetting problem. In this paper, we aim to provide a comprehensive review of omniphobic interfaces and illustrate their fundamental working principles, innovative design approaches and novel applications on membrane distillation. The review may provide insights in designing stable solid-liquid-vapor interfaces and serve as a guidance for the development of robust anti-wetting membranes for industrial wastewater reclamation via membrane distillation. [Display omitted] •Fundamentals of designing robust omniphobic surfaces.•Novel fabrication methods to create re-entrant structures and low surface energy coatings.•A comprehensive summary of omniphobic membranes for membrane distillation.•Challenges and perspectives of omniphobic membranes for industrial wastewater treatment.