Our paper titled Steroid hormone micropollutant removal from membrane bioreactor effluents using single-walled carbon nanotube composite nanofiber membranes has been accepted for publication in Chemical Engineering Journal (2025 IF of 13.5).
Han-Ya Lin, my colleague and a final-year Ph.D. student at KIT-IAMT, performed rigorous experiments and wrote most of the paper. I contributed in several aspects (time keeping, organic matter analysis, and text revision).
This paper highlights the challenges of introducing novel technologies (such as dynamic adsorption by carbon nanotubes) into real-world water treatment, specifically micropollutant removal.
Beyond the safety concerns, the shortcomings of this technology include i) the competition from organic matter for adsorption, as well as ii) high specificity (which means, the technology cannot remove different types of micropollutants in a complex water matrix).
These issues emphasize that carbon nanotube adsorption is not potential or promising. It is nowhere near replacing the “big names” − ozonation or powdered activated carbon adsorption − for micropollutant removal.
In a field where novel materials or processes are frequently promoted, this paper discusses why it is important to take a step back.