
Prof. Zhaoyang Liu
Hamad Bin Khalifa University (HBKU), Qatar
Title: Oil contaminate removal from wastewater with novel anti-fouling membranes
Abstract:
Oil contamination is typically caused by oil and gas-related activities
such as vessel accidents, which can pollute waterways as well as the
environment and endanger the ecosystem. Tanker ship cleaning contributes to oil
spills, which have a negative impact on coastal countries due to prolonged
service disruption. It is critical for coastal countries to develop efficient
oil contaminate removal technology. There are various oil/water separation
technologies, such as gravity separation, hydrocyclones, air flotation, and
membrane filtration, among others. Among these, membrane filtration has been
shown to produce high-quality effluent. Commercial membranes, on the other
hand, still face some practical issues, such as a high propensity for membrane
fouling when dealing with oily wastewater. We developed a novel anti-fouling
filtration membrane for oil/water separation in this study. The membrane was
made of inorganic nanofibers, which have low membrane fouling, high permeation
flux, and long-term durability. This study's findings could pave the way for
new membrane filtration applications in the oil and gas industry.
Biography:
Dr. Zhaoyang Liu is a
Senior Scientist at Water Center at Qatar Environment and Energy Research
Institute (QEERI). His expertise involves the development and optimization of
advanced processes and materials for water treatment. His research work is
frequently cited internationally (h-index 41, as of July 2022). To align with
the nation and institute's vision for water security, Dr. Liu is currently
leading the development of oil/water separation technology research project.
The developed oil/water separation technology has multiple applications,
including offshore oil spill cleanup, produced water treatment, and onshore
seawater intake purification (in the event of oil spill) for desalination
plants. He served as an Editorial Board Member for Scientific Reports – a
Nature journal, as a result of his research standing within the global water
treatment community.