Development of an Advanced Membrane-Based Wastewater Treatment Process for Remediation of High-Salinity Wastewater from the Petroleum Industry

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Scarcity of clean, fresh water is an issue of immediate and grave concern. It adversely impacts people from both developing and developed countries and the United Nations has predicted that in just over a decade, nearly half the world population will experience persistent water shortages. The treatment of such waste streams is a growing and necessary practice that not only curtails their adverse effects on the environment and our well-being, but also improves available water resources for reuse. Such waste streams are inherently complex with inconstant compositions, which vary with temporal and geologic conditions, but their elevated salinity remains one of the key limitations for treatment and reuse. Desalination has been extensively studied and employed for accession of freshwater supplies and reduction of adverse environmental impacts of saline industrial wastewater, and membrane-based processes have attracted the attention of researchers and policy makers from both academia and industry.Petro-Techna International Ltd and Lambton College have joined forces to develop a low-cost, high-performance, and durable nano-engineered composite membrane for direct contact membrane distillation (DCMD) applications for efficient treatment of high-salinity industrial wastewater associated with the oil and gas industry. Th aim of theresearch project is to synthesize and optimize a series of highly hydrophobic, nano-composite membranes with high porosity, superior anti-fouling and wetting properties, excellent mechanical and chemical stability and low cost for treatment of high salinity wastewater associated with oil and gas activities. The successful completion of this collaboration will significantly benefit Petro-Techna International Ltd. and has the potential to increase their annual revenue and technical and professional workforce.