Is there any wastewater treatment that uses liquid membrane extraction?

Reply 1# *a*ebing: Is liquid membrane extraction also considered a membrane technology? It is a separation technique and can only be considered an auxiliary method for wastewater treatment; so what happens to the material after separation?

First of all, the liquid film technology is a great thing. The difference between the liquid film method and phase extraction lies in: (1) differences in the operational procedure: In phase extraction, the extraction phase is mixed with the phase to be extracted in order to facilitate mass transfer, followed by separation; after separation, a regenerating agent is mixed with the extraction phase to carry out separation and the regeneration of the extractant ； In liquid film technology, the regenerant and extractant are mixed to form an emulsified liquid film (or a solid support is used to create a supported liquid film), which is then mixed with the phase to be extracted in order to facilitate mass transfer and complete the extraction process. When the regenerant becomes saturated, the extractant is regenerated through demulsification. (2) Principle difference: Phase extraction relies on mass transfer between phases, resulting in a slower rate ； The separation structure used in membrane technology – the liquid membrane – is very thin, only a few dozen nanometers thick; as a result, the mass transfer rate is several orders of magnitude higher than that of traditional phase extraction. It is this advantage that enables liquid membrane technology to be regarded as the second-generation membrane technology following solid membrane (ultrafiltration, reverse osmosis) technology. (3) Difference in processing rate and efficiency: Liquid film mass transfer is fast, allowing separation to be completed in just a few seconds to minutes; it offers high efficiency, with separation generally achievable using only one stage. However, liquid film treatment technology has not yet been applied on a large scale, mainly due to limitations such as liquid film stability, emulsification, and demulsification methods. There are still some small-scale applications; the Shenyang Institute of Chemical Technology has carried out projects in this area, but I haven’t been to the sites to see them, so I’m not aware of their actual performance. I’ve omitted some opinions in the hope it will be helpful.