Employing magnetism of FeO and hydrophilicity of ZrO to mitigate biofouling in magnetic MBR by FeO-coated ZrO/PAN nanocomposite membrane.

The aim of this research is benefiting from the synergistic effect of the simultaneous presence of FeO and ZrO in the form of FeO-coated ZrO (FeO@ZrO) nanoparticles within the structure of PAN membrane to reduce membrane fouling. The role of FeO nanoparticles in increasing the pore size and magnetic saturation as well as the role of ZrO in decreasing surface roughness and hydrophobicity can mitigate membrane fouling in magnetic-assisted membrane bioreactors. For this purpose, FeO, ZrO, and FeO@ZrO nanoparticles were embedded into PAN membrane structure and magnetic ( M), hydrophilic ( M), and magnetic-hydrophilic ( M) membranes were synthesized.