A Brief Review of Micellar Enhanced Ultra filtration (MEUF) Techniques for Treatment of Wastewater in India

Abstract

In this paper, we have reviewed the application and efficiency of Miceller Enhanced Ultrafiltration (MEUF) method which is used to remove Heavy Metals, Dyes, Polyaromatic Hydrocarbons (PAH), Novel Compounds, Chromium, Phosphorous and Phenolic Compounds. It uses various surfactants like Hexadecylpyridinium chloride (CPC), Sodium Dodecyl Sulphate (SDS), Hexadecyltrimethyl Ammonium Bromide (CTAB), Oxyethylated Methyl Dodecanoate (OMD) and Alkylpolyglucoside (APG). These surfactants are retained after the process to be reused. Bisorption, Coagulation, polyelectrolyte enhanced ultrafiltration, Reserve Osmosis, Nanofitration are some of the methods that are used for the treatment of wastewater. Available research focused on the removal of metals, phenol, organic & inorganic materials, aromatic hydrocarbons by MEUF mainly on the type of surfactant used, surfactant concentration, applied pressure, operating time and pH. Formation of surfactant micelle and mechanisms for the attraction between micelle and metal ions are ignored during the research study on MEUF. It has been reported that MEUF combines the efficacy and simplicity of the conventional options with the operational flexibility of membranebased separation. MEUF could be used for removal of wastewater provided the pollutants have low molecular weight. Higher reagent and electrical costs are reported in conventional MEUF method as compared to the hybrid process with MEUF. The hybrid process requires fewer surfactants. MEUF is considered a better alternative to the typically available membrane separation processes. The advantages of this method over other methods are high removal efficiency, low energy consumption, and easy operation. The selection of surfactant for the removal purpose is based on the target pollutants.