Advancing hydrophobic desalination membranes using initiated chemical vapor deposition (iCVD) v/

Abstract

Hydrophobic membranes are the central component of membrane distillation (MD) desalination systems. Optimizing their design is crucial for efficient desalination. There are many requirements on MD membranes. These include high liquid entry pressure (LEP) and high permeability to water vapor. There are many available manufacturing methods for producing hydrophobic membranes. An important subset of these methods use surface modification to prepare hydrophobic composite membranes. The many options for MD membrane design results in lack of consensus about how to achieve optimal performance. In this thesis we use initiated chemical vapor deposition (iCVD) to study how surface modification parameters and membrane morphology contribute to MD membrane performance. We introduce new models and analysis methods to support experimental results. This work informs hydrophobic MD membrane design by clarifying the roles of different membrane elements. By advancing MD technology, we increase capacity to produce fresh water for society.