MABMEM: Development of a “Material Toolbox for the Production of High-Performance Ultrafiltration (UF) Membranes for Water Treatment (MABMEM)"

The research project "Material Toolbox for the Production of High-Performance Ultrafiltration (UF) Membranes for Water Treatment (MABMEM)" focuses on the development of new, high-performance membranes for sustainable raw and wastewater treatment. Under the leadership of BASF SE and with the further participation of its subsidiary company inge watertechnologies GmbH, the chairs of Technical Chemistry and Mechanical Process Engineering / Water Technology at the University of Duisburg-Essen, the research institutes Helmholtz-Zentrum Geesthacht and IWW, and the water suppliers Enwor and OOWV, the project makes a significant contribution to the resource-saving use of water.

Objective

The aim of the project is to develop and provide a material selection box for the production of improved Multibore® ultrafiltration membranes for more efficient water treatment. With this aim in mind, the MABMEM consortium addresses the following key aspects of the funding measure: 

• Materials for membranes with increased selectivity and variably adjustable separation limit
• Materials for membranes with improved permeability
• Materials for more resistant membranes (chemical, mechanical)
• Membranes with additional functions for the separation of specific substance classes and trace substances

Focus of work

By designing and introducing tailor made additives, novel polyethersulfone (PESU) membranes with significantly improved membrane properties such as surface hydrophilicity, porosity  and chemical resistance are being developed. Also, within this project the use of polyphenylenesulfone (PPSU) as novel membrane matrix material in combination with these additives is being explored. BASF SE synthesizes the additives and conducts pre-screening in flat-sheet membranes in order to evaluate their impact on membrane properties. The aim is to improve fouling behaviour and to introduce the potential for the binding of metal ions.

The task of the University of Duisburg-Essen is to establish optimal conditions for the production of ultrafiltration membranes from new materials and to elucidate the structure formation as well as to optimize and characterize the membranes made of different new materials and material combinations. The Helmholtz Centre Geesthacht provides insights into the rheology of spinning solutions and produces single fibers for testing. inge watertechnologies GmbH spins Multibore® fibers and manufactures laboratory and demonstrator modules. The IWW carries out the process engineering evaluation of the newly developed UF membranes by testing demonstrator modules under real conditions.