Application of a lyotropic liquid crystal nanofiltration membrane for hydraulic fracturing flowback water: Selectivity and implications for treatment
2017
Dischinger, Sarah M. | Rosenblum, James | Noble, Richard D. | Gin, Douglas L. | Linden, Karl G.
A thin-film composite, bicontinuous cubic lyotropic liquid crystal polymer (TFC QI) membrane with uniform-size, ionic nanopores was studied for the treatment of hydraulic fracturing flowback water. The TFC QI membrane performance was compared to those of a commercial nanofiltration (NF) membrane (NF270) and a commercial reverse osmosis (RO) membrane (SW30HR) for the filtration of flowback water from the Denver-Julesburg Basin. The permeability, salt rejection, and organic solute rejection for each membrane was evaluated. The results illustrate that the TFC QI membrane maintained its performance to a similar degree as the commercial NF and RO membranes while demonstrating a unique selectivity not observed in the commercial membranes. Specifically, the TFC QI membrane rejected 75% of the salt while recovering 9.6% of the dissolved organic carbon (DOC) and 50% of the water. Of particular interest was the recovery of labile DOC, which was assessed through biodegradation experiments. Analysis following biodegradation of the TFC QI membrane permeate demonstrates the membrane's ability to recover labile DOC in a reduced-saline permeate. Improved recovery of labile DOC (increased to 22%) was demonstrated by reducing the pH of the flowback water. Therefore, the selectivity of the TFC QI membrane provides an opportunity to recover resources from hydraulic fracturing flowback.
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