Photocatalytic membrane reactors (PMRs) in water and wastewater treatment. A review

The paper presents an overview of the hybrid photocatalysis-membrane processes and their possible applications in water and wastewater treatment. Different configurations of photocatalytic membrane reactors (PMRs) are described and characterized. They include PMRs with photocatalyst immobilized on/in the membrane and reactors with catalyst in suspension. Advantages and disadvantages of the hybrid photocatalysis-membrane processes in terms of permeate flux, membrane fouling and permeate quality are discussed. Moreover, a short introduction to the heterogeneous photocatalysis and membrane processes as unit operations is given.