Abstract:
Wastewater reclamation plants using reverse osmosis as the final polishing treatment produce reverse
osmosis concentrate (ROC), which consists of high salinity, nutrients and (recalcitrant) organics. The
ROC collected from the water reclamation plant in Sydney was treated with a micro filtration
(MF)–GAC hybrid system that removed natural and synthetic organics prior to its discharge into the
environment. The MF–GAC hybrid system’s performance was studied in terms of trans-membrane
pressure (TMP) development, and organics removal. These features were measured using liquid
chromatography–organic carbon detection (LC–OCD), Fluorescence Excitation-Emission matrix
(F-EEM), and Liquid chromatography with tandem mass spectroscopy (LC–MS). Adding GAC into the
membrane reactor reduced the TMP by reducing membrane fouling both through mechanical scouring
and pre-adsorption of organics. F-EEM confirms the removal of humics-like and fulvic-like compounds
by GAC from ROC. Pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) were also removed by the
MF–GAC hybrid system.
