Songchen Xie, Xinmiao Zhang, Chenlin Zhang, Yuelian Peng, Zhixia Li, Dunshang Jin, Jaka Sunarso, Femiana Gapsari
Landfill leachate (LFL) is highly challenging to treat due to its elevated concentrations of organic and inorganic pollutants, which easily lead to membrane fouling and wetting. This study systematically evaluates the treatment performance of direct contact membrane distillation (DCMD) for nanofiltration (NF) brine of LFL, with a focus on the roles of coagulation-heating/filtration pretreatment and membrane type. Four membranes—pristine PTFE and PVDF, as well as composite membranes PVA-PAA/PTFE (hydrophilic modification) and Teflon/PVDF (hydrophobic modification)—were studied in terms of anti-fouling and anti-wetting behavior. The results indicated that the pretreatment process led to a reduction in the concentration of humic acid-like substances, as evidenced by a significant decrease in fluorescence intensity at Ex/Em = 350/440 nm in the 3D-EEM spectra. This reduction in substances contributed to mitigating membrane fouling, as demonstrated by a lower flux decline (14.5 %) and stable permeate electrical conductivity (<3 μS cm−1) during DCMD using the PVA-PAA/PTFE membrane. Compared with pristine membranes, the composite membranes exhibited superior performance, i.e., the PVA-PAA/PTFE membrane achieved COD and ammonia nitrogen removal rates of 97 % and 99.9 %, respectively, while the Teflon/PVDF membrane showed only a 5.4 % flux decline and maintained permeate electrical conductivity below 3 μS cm−1. These findings highlight the synergistic effect of targeted pretreatment and membrane modification in enhancing the efficiency, stability, and fouling resistance of membrane distillation for landfill leachate treatment. © 2025 Elsevier B.V.
SINOPEC Beijing Research Institute of Chemical Industry, Beijing, 100013, China; State Key Laboratory of Materials Low-Carbon Recycling, Beijing University of Technology, Beijing, 100124, China; Research Centre for Sustainable Technologies, Faculty of Engineering, Computing and Science, Swinburne University of Technology, Sarawak, Kuching, 93350, Malaysia; Department of Mechanical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Brawijaya University, MT Haryono 167, Malang, 65145, Indonesia
