Kablan Ebah , Hala Bensalah , Souad Nekhlaoui , Marya Raji , Rachid Bouhfid , Abou el kacem Qaiss
{"title":"Smart and flexible PVDF/SEBS membranes reinforced with pyrolytic carbon black nanoparticles from waste tires for enhanced wastewater remediation","authors":"Kablan Ebah , Hala Bensalah , Souad Nekhlaoui , Marya Raji , Rachid Bouhfid , Abou el kacem Qaiss","doi":"10.1016/j.jwpe.2025.107469","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<div><div>Industrial development has led to the generation of environmental contaminants, raising global concerns. With the advancement of structurally complex systems, smart and flexible membranes have gained significant attention for treating contaminated wastewater. This study develops a flexible and intelligent piezocatalytic composite membrane reinforced with 2D carbon nanoparticles derived from the pyrolysis and activation of ground tire rubber (GTR). The membranes, based on polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF), were fabricated using non-solvent induced phase separation (NIPS) by incorporating styrene-ethylene-butylene-styrene (SEBS) at 7.5 wt.% and 2D carbon nanoparticles at varying concentrations (0.5 to 5 wt.%). The size distribution of the carbon nanoparticles and the morphological properties of the membranes were characterized using atomic force microscopy (AFM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The mechanical, electrical, and thermal properties of the membranes were evaluated through tensile tests, electrical conductivity measurements, Raman spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and contact angle (CA) analysis. The incorporation of 2D carbon nanoparticles facilitated the transformation of PVDF into the piezoelectric β-phase, with the 3 wt.% carbon-doped membrane exhibiting exceptional mechanical and thermal properties. This membrane also demonstrated a significant increase in electrical conductivity, from 10⁻¹¹ S cm⁻¹ to 10⁻⁵ S cm⁻¹. Furthermore, the membrane achieved remarkable degradation efficiencies of 79.07% for methylene blue (MB) and 94.56% for toxic rhodamine B (RhB). This work highlights the successful production of 2D carbon nanoparticles from tire waste and their application in creating polymorphic piezocatalytic membranes with high piezoelectric performance and pollutant degradation capabilities. The findings open new perspectives for membrane-based piezocatalysis as a promising approach for wastewater purification.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":17528,"journal":{"name":"Journal of water process engineering","volume":"72 ","pages":"Article 107469"},"PeriodicalIF":6.3000,"publicationDate":"2025-03-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Journal of water process engineering","FirstCategoryId":"5","ListUrlMain":"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2214714425005410","RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"工程技术","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"ENGINEERING, CHEMICAL","Score":null,"Total":0}
Smart and flexible PVDF/SEBS membranes reinforced with pyrolytic carbon black nanoparticles from waste tires for enhanced wastewater remediation
Industrial development has led to the generation of environmental contaminants, raising global concerns. With the advancement of structurally complex systems, smart and flexible membranes have gained significant attention for treating contaminated wastewater. This study develops a flexible and intelligent piezocatalytic composite membrane reinforced with 2D carbon nanoparticles derived from the pyrolysis and activation of ground tire rubber (GTR). The membranes, based on polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF), were fabricated using non-solvent induced phase separation (NIPS) by incorporating styrene-ethylene-butylene-styrene (SEBS) at 7.5 wt.% and 2D carbon nanoparticles at varying concentrations (0.5 to 5 wt.%). The size distribution of the carbon nanoparticles and the morphological properties of the membranes were characterized using atomic force microscopy (AFM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The mechanical, electrical, and thermal properties of the membranes were evaluated through tensile tests, electrical conductivity measurements, Raman spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and contact angle (CA) analysis. The incorporation of 2D carbon nanoparticles facilitated the transformation of PVDF into the piezoelectric β-phase, with the 3 wt.% carbon-doped membrane exhibiting exceptional mechanical and thermal properties. This membrane also demonstrated a significant increase in electrical conductivity, from 10⁻¹¹ S cm⁻¹ to 10⁻⁵ S cm⁻¹. Furthermore, the membrane achieved remarkable degradation efficiencies of 79.07% for methylene blue (MB) and 94.56% for toxic rhodamine B (RhB). This work highlights the successful production of 2D carbon nanoparticles from tire waste and their application in creating polymorphic piezocatalytic membranes with high piezoelectric performance and pollutant degradation capabilities. The findings open new perspectives for membrane-based piezocatalysis as a promising approach for wastewater purification.
期刊介绍:
The Journal of Water Process Engineering aims to publish refereed, high-quality research papers with significant novelty and impact in all areas of the engineering of water and wastewater processing . Papers on advanced and novel treatment processes and technologies are particularly welcome. The Journal considers papers in areas such as nanotechnology and biotechnology applications in water, novel oxidation and separation processes, membrane processes (except those for desalination) , catalytic processes for the removal of water contaminants, sustainable processes, water reuse and recycling, water use and wastewater minimization, integrated/hybrid technology, process modeling of water treatment and novel treatment processes. Submissions on the subject of adsorbents, including standard measurements of adsorption kinetics and equilibrium will only be considered if there is a genuine case for novelty and contribution, for example highly novel, sustainable adsorbents and their use: papers on activated carbon-type materials derived from natural matter, or surfactant-modified clays and related minerals, would not fulfil this criterion. The Journal particularly welcomes contributions involving environmentally, economically and socially sustainable technology for water treatment, including those which are energy-efficient, with minimal or no chemical consumption, and capable of water recycling and reuse that minimizes the direct disposal of wastewater to the aquatic environment. Papers that describe novel ideas for solving issues related to water quality and availability are also welcome, as are those that show the transfer of techniques from other disciplines. The Journal will consider papers dealing with processes for various water matrices including drinking water (except desalination), domestic, urban and industrial wastewaters, in addition to their residues. It is expected that the journal will be of particular relevance to chemical and process engineers working in the field. The Journal welcomes Full Text papers, Short Communications, State-of-the-Art Reviews and Letters to Editors and Case Studies