develop newer electrode materials with less energy consumption, as well as implement the system integration with sustainable energy sources for enhanced oily
wastewater treatment performance.
Membrane technology has been playing an increasingly important role in the oily
wastewater treatment, especially for the post-treatment stages. However, the current
membrane technology can only cope with small volume treatment, which is less than
190 m
3 /day (Zeng et al. 2007). In addition, membrane technology also suffers from
the membrane fouling issues. Frequent process interruptions are required for membrane cleaning or replacement of the new membranes, which leads to more economic
loss. Hence, the research on the development of membranes from readily recyclable
materials with high separation capacity and oil fouling resistance is crucial
(Hosseinzadeh and Mohammadi 2014). In recent years, innovative efforts in the
development of functionalized materials with unique wettability properties for oily
wastewater treatment have been reported, such as activated carbon/iron oxide
composite (Ngarmkam et al. 2011), nanocellulose aerogel (Cervin et al. 2012),
reduced graphene oxide foam (Niu et al. 2012), and poly(acrylamide) hydrogel
(Xue et al. 2011). These materials exhibit different unique wettability properties
suitable for oil–water separation, such as (1) superoleophilic and superhydrophobic,
(2) underwater superhydrophilic and superoleophobic, (3) superoleophobic and
superhydrophilic, and (4) switchable wettability (Wang et al. 2015; Chen and Xu
2013). The incorporation of these materials in the development of membranes could
be interesting to improve the oil–water separation performance of the membranes.
Lastly, the economic analysis of the advanced treatment technologies is essential
to identify the feasibility of scaling up the technologies for large scale industrial use.
However, the economic analysis on these technologies are still limited. Today, most
of the studies on the advanced oily wastewater treatment technologies are still in
small or laboratory scale. Therefore, future studies should focus on the pilot scale
research and comprehensive economic analysis so that the technologies can be
scaled up for industrial applications.
11.7 Conclusion
The direct discharge of oily wastewater would pollute the water sources which
consequently affects the environment and the health of the surrounding community.
The effects of water pollution have been widely discussed and efforts have been
devoted to the development of the treatment technologies for oily wastewater to
combat these challenges. In this chapter, we have reviewed various types of oil
wastewater treatment technologies, which include the conventional oily wastewater
treatment technologies and advanced technologies such as membrane, electrochemical, and hybrid technologies. The advanced technologies have shown some promising results and could be the future trends for the commercial implementation of
oily wastewater treatment. However, the operative support from the organization and
11 Oily Wastewater Treatment
377
wastewater treatment performance.
Membrane technology has been playing an increasingly important role in the oily
wastewater treatment, especially for the post-treatment stages. However, the current
membrane technology can only cope with small volume treatment, which is less than
190 m
3 /day (Zeng et al. 2007). In addition, membrane technology also suffers from
the membrane fouling issues. Frequent process interruptions are required for membrane cleaning or replacement of the new membranes, which leads to more economic
loss. Hence, the research on the development of membranes from readily recyclable
materials with high separation capacity and oil fouling resistance is crucial
(Hosseinzadeh and Mohammadi 2014). In recent years, innovative efforts in the
development of functionalized materials with unique wettability properties for oily
wastewater treatment have been reported, such as activated carbon/iron oxide
composite (Ngarmkam et al. 2011), nanocellulose aerogel (Cervin et al. 2012),
reduced graphene oxide foam (Niu et al. 2012), and poly(acrylamide) hydrogel
(Xue et al. 2011). These materials exhibit different unique wettability properties
suitable for oil–water separation, such as (1) superoleophilic and superhydrophobic,
(2) underwater superhydrophilic and superoleophobic, (3) superoleophobic and
superhydrophilic, and (4) switchable wettability (Wang et al. 2015; Chen and Xu
2013). The incorporation of these materials in the development of membranes could
be interesting to improve the oil–water separation performance of the membranes.
Lastly, the economic analysis of the advanced treatment technologies is essential
to identify the feasibility of scaling up the technologies for large scale industrial use.
However, the economic analysis on these technologies are still limited. Today, most
of the studies on the advanced oily wastewater treatment technologies are still in
small or laboratory scale. Therefore, future studies should focus on the pilot scale
research and comprehensive economic analysis so that the technologies can be
scaled up for industrial applications.
11.7 Conclusion
The direct discharge of oily wastewater would pollute the water sources which
consequently affects the environment and the health of the surrounding community.
The effects of water pollution have been widely discussed and efforts have been
devoted to the development of the treatment technologies for oily wastewater to
combat these challenges. In this chapter, we have reviewed various types of oil
wastewater treatment technologies, which include the conventional oily wastewater
treatment technologies and advanced technologies such as membrane, electrochemical, and hybrid technologies. The advanced technologies have shown some promising results and could be the future trends for the commercial implementation of
oily wastewater treatment. However, the operative support from the organization and
11 Oily Wastewater Treatment
377