Carbon nanotube membrane for water desalination
by Hiren D. Raval, Jaydev M. Gohil
International Journal of Nuclear Desalination (IJND), Vol. 3, No. 4, 2009

Abstract: This is a review of carbon nanotube membranes with an emphasis on their water desalination applications. Particular attention is given to carbon nanotube preparation, types and properties. The concept of desalination in the context of carbon nanotubes is discussed. The different processes for the manufacture of carbon nanotube membranes are electric arc discharge, laser ablation and Chemical Vapour Deposition (CVD). Out of these, the CVD method is widely used because of its certain characteristics. Different types of carbon nanotubes, such as aligned carbon nanotubes, Multiwalled Carbon Nanotube (MWNT)/active carbon combination electrodes, MWNT/polysulfone (PS) blend membranes, carbonised hot-pressed carbon nanotube electrodes, aligned carbon nanotubes, alumina-supported carbon nanotubes and ceria nanoparticles-supported carbon nanotubes, are discussed with their application and performance. While the research in this area is in its infancy, it is growing at a considerable pace. The challenges to this technology are the reduction in capital cost, understanding of the exact mechanism for water transport, and scale-up. This technology has a potential to replace state-of-the-art desalination technology based on polymeric membranes or thermal desalination.

Online publication date: Fri, 09-Oct-2009

The full text of this article is only available to individual subscribers or to users at subscribing institutions.

 
Existing subscribers:
Go to Inderscience Online Journals to access the Full Text of this article.

Pay per view:
If you are not a subscriber and you just want to read the full contents of this article, buy online access here.

Complimentary Subscribers, Editors or Members of the Editorial Board of the International Journal of Nuclear Desalination (IJND):
Login with your Inderscience username and password:

Username:        Password:          Forgotten your password?

Want to subscribe?
A subscription gives you complete access to all articles in the current issue, as well as to all articles in the previous three years (where applicable). See our Orders page to subscribe.

If you still need assistance, please email subs@inderscience.com