Summary

Sponsored by the Membrane Technology Task Committee of the Environmental Council of the Environmental and Water Resources Institute of ASCE.

Membrane Technology and Environmental Applications explains the use of membrane materials as a direct, effective, and sustainable way to address environmental problems. Membranes are a core technology for separating material mixtures, such as wastewater and saltwater, and offer significant advantages over other technologies. Membrane technologies are relatively simple in concept and operation, flexible, and compatible with integrated systems in many environments. They can also minimize the use of treatment chemicals, the production of residuals, and energy consumption.

This volume provides in-depth technical information on the fundamentals, applications, and recent advances of membrane technology, including state-of-the-art reviews of current research, critical analysis of new processes and materials, and avenues for further study. Chapters examine environmental applications such as treatment of drinking water, wastewater, and industrial wastewater; water reclamation and reuse; desalination; removal of arsenic and emerging contaminants; treatment of greywater and rainwater, and the production of bioproducts from wastewater sludge. New research is described on such topics as membrane fouling, process enhancement, membrane biofilm reactors, nanomaterials, and new separation techiques. Chapters contain extensive illustrations, case studies, summary tables, and up-to-date references.

For practicing engineers, environmental and treatment-plant managers, and government officials, this volume is an essential guide for designing and implementing membrane technologies. Educators, graduate and undergraduate students, and researchers involved in environmental engineering and science will find this book to be a valuable learning tool and reference.

Choice Review

This is a reference book, a summary of the state of the art, and a good review of the literature. The editors and the 46 chapter authors are almost all from academic institutions. The volume is divided into 23 chapters. The first four chapters (140 pages) are a general introduction, and each of the remainder covers a specific application area, ranging from drinking water treatment to biofilm reactors. The introductory chapters are comprehensive yet require a basic prior understanding. For example, the concept of molecular weight cut off is explained only in a figure caption, and does not appear in the index. The introductory chapters do not mention concentration polarization; this topic appears only in a specialized chapter on arsenic removal. Although design parameters are summarized in the context of individual applications, the book does not include a description of a design procedure. A listing of acronyms or the inclusion of the acronyms in the index would have been useful. Nevertheless, this is a comprehensive source of information on current applications and new developments in the field. Summing Up: Recommended. Graduate students, researchers/faculty, and professionals/practitioners. D. A. Vaccari Stevens Institute of Technology