Membrane reactors are designed to enhance chemical reactions by confining a catalyst to a specific space and employing advanced separation techniques. Different types of membrane reactors are being developed for process intensification, including photocatalytic, inorganic, and enhanced membrane reactors such as sorption, biogas-lift, and water-gas-shift reactors. More advanced types of membrane reactors, namely membrane bioreactors (MBR), involve biological catalysts and systems such as enzymes or activated sludge or algae. Membrane bioreactors typically use microfiltration (MF) or ultrafiltration (UF) systems with flat-sheet, tubular, or hollow-fiber membrane modules. However, alternative processes like nanofiltration (NF), membrane distillation (MD), and forward osmosis (FO) have been explored as alternatives to traditional MF/UF membrane bioreactors.
Compared with domestic wastewater treatment, there is a stronger need for more efficient processes in industrial effluent treatment. Although a large number of MBR systems have been developed for this purpose, knowledge communication and transfer should be promoted to allow a better understanding of the application of MBR for industrial wastewater treatment. This special issue on “Membrane bioreactor for advanced water and wastewater treatment” aims to collect the latest advances, achievements, breakthroughs, challenges, and future development needs of different membrane bioreactors such as activated sludge-based MBR, algal MBR, fungal MBR, enzymatic MBR, and reactive photocatalytic membrane reactors as well as high retention bioreactors. Emphasis is placed on the development of novel membrane bioreactors to improve process efficiency and stability for water reuse and resource recovery.
The themes of this research topic include, but are not limited to:
1. Novel membrane bioreactor design and configuration
2. Fouling characterization, visualization, and foulant identification.
3. Process intensification and modelling
4. High retention NF/MD/FO membrane bioreactors
5. Mechanisms of the removal of emerging pollutants from wastewater by membrane bioreactor
6. Biofilm MBR.
7. Anaerobic membrane bioreactor.
8. Microbial Fuel Cell and reactive membrane-based bioreactors
9. Economic analysis of the membrane bioreactors
Keywords: Membrane reactor, membrane bioreactor (MBR), Reactive membrane bioreactors, Anaerobic MBR, Biocatalytic membrane, nanofiltration membrane bioreactors, membrane distillation membrane bioreactors, forward osmosis membrane bioreactors, Membrane fouling, Process optimization
Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.
