contaminated water [37]. Electrospinning is one of the versatile methods to produce
interconnected porous structure which has been useful for many commercial applications. The interconnected porous structure is beneficial for filtering the microorganisms from the contaminated water. Nowadays, the electrospun polymeric
nanofibrous membranes have been used for different areas of water treatment
process especially for removing the microorganisms and separation of oil-water
emulsion [38]. It has been established that high voltage should be applied to the
polymer solution during the electrospinning process which leads to the formation of
a higher electrostatic field and eventually produces the nanofibers [39, 40]. The
opposite charges are connected to the metal collector which is wrapped with
aluminum foil. The environmental condition (temperature and humidity) and the
electrospinning parameters influenced the quality of the resulting nanofibers. The
syringe needle, polymer solution, flow rate, and collector are the important
electrospinning parameters which can influence the nanofibrous properties. The
bead-free nanofibrous membrane can be obtained by optimizing spinning solution
viscosity, concentration, molecular weight, and tip to collector distance [40]. The
low-density and interconnecting open-pore nanostructures of the electrospun fibrous
membrane are the main advantages of using water purification treatment. The
electrospun nanofibrous membrane in filtration application has some other advantages, namely, high flux, low operating pressure, low cost, light weight, textile-like
structure, good retention of multivalent anions salts, and cost-effective maintenance.
5 Cellulose Acetate Nanofibrous Membrane for Water
Treatment
Cellulose acetate is one of the best biocompatible Food and Drug Administrationapproved polymers and has drawn great attention for water filtration applications
[41]. The electrospun cellulose acetate nanofibrous membrane not only filters the
microorganisms, but it may also remove the chromium, metal ions, and toxic organic
hydrocarbons [42]. The magnetic nanoparticles immobilized on cellulose acetate
nanofibrous membrane have been fabricated for the removal of lead from polluted
water [43]. The highly interconnected porous cellulose acetate nanofibrous membrane with uniform distribution is observed in Fig. 1a. The average fiber diameter of
the cellulose acetate nanofibrous membrane is found to be 110 Æ 30 nm. Hence,
uniform, continuous, smooth, and interconnected porous nanosized fibers are present
in the electrospun cellulose acetate membrane which is mainly suitable to filter the
microorganisms present in the water. Flux and selectivity are the two factors to
analyze the functionality of the membrane. The above two factors are mainly
depends on the wettability, pore size, porosity, pressure drop and thickness of the
electrospun membrane [44]. The wettability of the solid surface plays a main role in
water purification treatment. The electrospun cellulose acetate nanofibrous membrane contact angle is found to be 50.2
in 0 s as seen in Fig. 2. Increasing the time
Biopolymer-Based Nanofibrous Membrane for Water Purification Treatment
231
interconnected porous structure which has been useful for many commercial applications. The interconnected porous structure is beneficial for filtering the microorganisms from the contaminated water. Nowadays, the electrospun polymeric
nanofibrous membranes have been used for different areas of water treatment
process especially for removing the microorganisms and separation of oil-water
emulsion [38]. It has been established that high voltage should be applied to the
polymer solution during the electrospinning process which leads to the formation of
a higher electrostatic field and eventually produces the nanofibers [39, 40]. The
opposite charges are connected to the metal collector which is wrapped with
aluminum foil. The environmental condition (temperature and humidity) and the
electrospinning parameters influenced the quality of the resulting nanofibers. The
syringe needle, polymer solution, flow rate, and collector are the important
electrospinning parameters which can influence the nanofibrous properties. The
bead-free nanofibrous membrane can be obtained by optimizing spinning solution
viscosity, concentration, molecular weight, and tip to collector distance [40]. The
low-density and interconnecting open-pore nanostructures of the electrospun fibrous
membrane are the main advantages of using water purification treatment. The
electrospun nanofibrous membrane in filtration application has some other advantages, namely, high flux, low operating pressure, low cost, light weight, textile-like
structure, good retention of multivalent anions salts, and cost-effective maintenance.
5 Cellulose Acetate Nanofibrous Membrane for Water
Treatment
Cellulose acetate is one of the best biocompatible Food and Drug Administrationapproved polymers and has drawn great attention for water filtration applications
[41]. The electrospun cellulose acetate nanofibrous membrane not only filters the
microorganisms, but it may also remove the chromium, metal ions, and toxic organic
hydrocarbons [42]. The magnetic nanoparticles immobilized on cellulose acetate
nanofibrous membrane have been fabricated for the removal of lead from polluted
water [43]. The highly interconnected porous cellulose acetate nanofibrous membrane with uniform distribution is observed in Fig. 1a. The average fiber diameter of
the cellulose acetate nanofibrous membrane is found to be 110 Æ 30 nm. Hence,
uniform, continuous, smooth, and interconnected porous nanosized fibers are present
in the electrospun cellulose acetate membrane which is mainly suitable to filter the
microorganisms present in the water. Flux and selectivity are the two factors to
analyze the functionality of the membrane. The above two factors are mainly
depends on the wettability, pore size, porosity, pressure drop and thickness of the
electrospun membrane [44]. The wettability of the solid surface plays a main role in
water purification treatment. The electrospun cellulose acetate nanofibrous membrane contact angle is found to be 50.2
in 0 s as seen in Fig. 2. Increasing the time
Biopolymer-Based Nanofibrous Membrane for Water Purification Treatment
231