Forward Osmosis (FO) holds promise for treating heavy metal-contaminated groundwater, yet a suitable draw solution hinders its widespread use. This study introduced a novel draw solution (DS) for the FO process by combining hydrophilic macromolecule polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) with trivalent-charged complex EDTA-2Na. Remarkably, the incorporation of 0.7 g/L PVA into 0.3 M EDTA-2Na not only increased water flux by 24.2 %, attributed to the hydrophilic interaction between the FO membrane and the hydroxyl groups of PVA, but also significantly reduced reverse salt flux by 67.1 %, from 3.80 GMH to 1.25 GMH. This reduction can be attributed to the extended conformation of the polymer macromolecule at pH 8, acting as an effective barrier in the FO process, thereby restraining the electrophilic sodium ions of EDTA-2Na from reversing to the feed side. Moreover, the hydrophilic macromolecule coupled with the trivalent-charged complex DS has been easily regenerated by nanofiltration (NF) with a high recovery efficiency of 96 % and minimal energy input. Furthermore, the FO- NF process achieved high-quality permeate water (arsenic <0.0014 mg/L, lead <0.0029 mg/L, and iron <0.0157 mg/L) suitable for drinking water from heavy metal-contaminated groundwater. The present study therefore illustrates a facile and rational approach for integrating PVA into an EDTA-2Na solution that exhibits superior performance for heavy metal removal in groundwater via FO. © 2025 Elsevier Ltd.

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), pervasive and toxic chemicals were found at alarming levels within living organisms and in the environment. PFAS causes several health risks such as impairment of the immune system and cancer. The distinct structural characteristics of covalent organic frameworks (COFs) including high surface area, low density, hierarchical porosity, and a rich array of active sites establish them as highly promising platforms for the adsorption and catalytic degradation of PFAS. This review outlines the current advances in chemical strategies for synthesizing stable COFs and highlights their emerging applications in the removal of PFAS. A comprehensive overview of PFAS, including their classification, regulatory landscape, and associated health risks was also documented. This review outlines the efficiency of various conventional techniques for eliminating long chain and short chain PFAS from water. A comparative study was established to show the viability of COF for PFAS remediation. Additionally, the chemistry of COF along with the factors controlling PFAS removal has been thoroughly demonstrated. This review paper discusses the design, synthesis, and application of COFs in the removal of PFAS. Various case studies of PFAS removal were also illustrated along with the experimental conditions to show the potentiality of these frameworks. Finally, the review concludes by examining the underlying mechanisms of PFAS capture by COFs and outlining future research directions. © 2025 Elsevier B.V.

Superhydrophobic coatings have broad applications across various fields but often face challenges, such as complexity, high cost, low mechanical/thermal stability, toxicity, and environmental hazards. In this study, we demonstrate a simple, scalable, eco-friendly, and durable spray-coating method using bioadhesive shellac and octadecyltrichlorosilane (OTS)-modified silica nanoparticles to create superhydrophobic surfaces. The silica nanoparticles impart superhydrophobicity by forming hierarchical micro/nanostructures and reducing surface free energy, while shellac ensures strong adhesion of the nanoparticles to a wide range of substrates, including nonwoven polypropylene fibers, glass, plastic, metal, wood, cotton, and concrete. The coating exhibits excellent superhydrophobic performance with a large contact angle (162.1°), a small sliding angle (4°), and low contact angle hysteresis (4°). The coated surface retains its superhydrophobicity even after 50 cycles of sandpaper abrasion, heat exposure up to 150 °C, and contact with acidic environments (pH ∼4.2). These biocompatible and eco-friendly superhydrophobic coatings hold promise for use in applications where safety and environmental protection are critical, such as in antifouling, food packaging, and agricultural/biomedical fields. © 2025 American Chemical Society.

In the context of environmental concerns, microplastic (MPs) pollution emerges as one of the burning issues. The goal of this multifaceted analysis is to provide an up-to-date picture of MPs in the aquatic system with an emphasis on the marine environment. As of now, the growing concern of MP is due to high level fragmentation. The high surface area to volume ratio, crystallinity, and functional groups of MPs allows them to interact with a broad assortment of pollutants, including heavy metals, antibiotics, and persistent organic compounds. Understanding the origin, source, and fate of MPs in the marine environment is challenging, however, crucial for better management and regulation of MPs. Various spectroscopic and microscopic techniques can be applied to analyze MPs. This review article demonstrates the concept of MP lifecycle and footprint covering transport mechanism and pathways, possible characterization, degradation, and remediation processes. Additionally, the ecological and environmental impacts of MPs along with future directions were also highlighted. Thus, fostering global collaboration and innovative research and development can pave the path towards a healthier and cleaner earth for future generations. © The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2025.

Artificial intelligence (AI) has emerged as a prominent tool in the modern day. The utilization of AI and advanced language models such as chat generative pre-trained transformer (ChatGPT) and Bard is not only innovative but also crucial for handling challenges related to water research. ChatGPT is an AI chatbot that uses natural language processing to create humanlike conversations. ChatGPT has recently gained considerable public interest, owing to its unique ability to simplify tasks from various backgrounds. Similarly, Google introduced Bard, an AI-powered chatbot to simulate human conversations. Herein, we investigated how ChatGPT and Bard (AI powdered chatbots) tools can impact water research through interactive sessions. Typically, ChatGPT and Bard offer significant benefits to various fields, including research, education, scientific publications, and outreach. ChatGPT and Bard simplify complex and challenging tasks. For instance, 50 important questions about water treatment/desalination techniques and 50 questions about water harvesting techniques were provided to both chatbots. Time analytics was performed by ChatGPT 3.5, and Bard was used to generate full responses. In particular, the effectiveness of this emerging tool for research purposes in the field of conventional water treatment techniques, advanced water treatment techniques, membrane technology and seawater desalination has been thoroughly demonstrated. Moreover, potential pitfalls and challenges were also highlighted. Thus, sharing these experiences may encourage the effective and responsible use of Bard and ChatGPT in research purposes. Finally, the responses were compared from the perspective of an expert. Although ChatGPT and Bard possess huge benefits, there are several issues, which are discussed in this study. Based on this study, we can compare the abilities of artificial intelligence and human intelligence in water sector research. © 2023

An increase in population leads to an increase in the water demand. Technological advancements are racing to address water shortages. Recent advances in deep learning (DL), machine learning (ML), and artificial intelligence (AI) have enabled us to effectively manage water scarcity as well as optimize, model, automate, and predict water treatment processes. Additionally, computer-assisted support to complicated problems related to water chemistry, and membrane applications. In the sector of water treatment and desalination processes, various models such as Support Vector Machines (SVM), Random Forest (RF), Genetic Algorithms (GA), K-Nearest Neighbors (KNN), time series models, and Multi-Layer Perceptron (MLP) have been applied to address the issues ranging from optimization of treatment processes to predictive modeling as well as failure/fault detection. Presently, water quality forecasting lacks the much-needed precision and accuracy. Thus, a highly versatile MLP is engineered and designed to approximate any continuous functions and may solve issues that are not linearly separable. Typically, MLPs are used for pattern classification, forecasting performance, and approximation. This review paper presents automatic forecasting of water quality and desalination processes efficiency which resolves the issue of missing values from the data sets. Moreover, this paper examines a wide range of peer-reviewed, vital water-based applications using DL, ML, and AI, including membrane separation, water quality, and performance efficiency. A thorough review of MLP applications in water treatment and seawater desalination is presented here. Furthermore, the conventional modeling approaches are compared with the MLP model. It will also highlight the drawbacks that hinder the implementation of real-world water treatment and desalination processes. In conclusion, the latest developments in membrane processes, seawater desalination, and MLP-based water treatment have been summarised. © 2024

There is growing interest in membrane distillation (MD) as a means of desalinating seawater with 100 % theoretical salt rejection which has the capacity to address freshwater scarcity. MD has huge potential for commercial applications owing to its low operating temperature and pressure requirements. However, wetting polymeric membranes inhibits water permeance and lowers salt rejection. MXene nanosheet-incorporated polyvinylidene (PVDF) membranes have been constructed for enhanced vapor transport with high water repellence and antiwetting properties. MXene nanosheets in PVDF polymeric matrices are responsible for their high super-hydrophobicity, which can mitigate membrane fouling and wetting during the MD process. As far as experimental outcomes are concerned, the pristine PVDF membrane exhibited severe wetting with salt leakage. Ti3C2Tx MXene nanosheets allow the formation of hierarchical polymeric micro/nanostructures, changing the intrinsic hydrophilicity to super-hydrophobicity. Surface engineering of a PVDF membrane with MXene nanosheets enables efficient saline desalination during the MD process. The surface-engineered MXene/PVDF membrane demonstrated a high-water contact angle of 143° with extremely high self-cleaning characteristics as compared to that of pristine PVDF membrane. As far as the performance of the membrane is concerned, the water flux of the pristine PVDF membrane decreased from 6.5 LMH to 6 LMH after the 14th hour which can be attributed to partial pores wetting during MD operation. Eventually, the pristine PVDF membrane exhibited a continuous salt flux (SF) increase. However, MXene/PVDF membrane showed stable water flux (8 LMH) and negligible SF. The study therefore demonstrates a facile and holistic approach for constructing MXene-based PVDF membranes that exhibit superior antiwetting performance during MD operation. © 2024 Elsevier B.V.

Membrane performance, regarding water flux and water recovery during membrane distillation (MD), is crucial during desalination. In this study, the membrane performance was improved using 3D-printed macro-structured feed spacers. Typically, 3D-printed feed spacers offer maximum flexibility for designing favorable geometrical transformations. The role of 3D-printed spacers in enhancing the permeate flux and recovery in direct contact membrane distillation (DCMD) has been thoroughly investigated. A comparative assessment was performed for various designs of 3D printed feed spacers with varying hydraulic diameters and filament thicknesses. An economical, biocompatible, and highly robust 3D-printed membrane spacer was developed using polylactic acid (PLA), which has a high elastic modulus. PLA is a biodegradable and environmentally friendly material. The thermal stability of PLA materials is advantageous for temperature-driven MD processes. PLA filaments were subjected to thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) for evaluating thermal stability. It provides structural support for the membranes and enhances mass movement through the membrane surface. In addition, these 3D-printed membrane spacers employing PLA have proven superior to conventional layouts in performance. These 3D-printed feed spacers were rationally designed to create a high flow disruption, which can lead to increased turbulence, thereby increasing the permeate flux. The overall results suggest that the 3D printed spacers can be ranked like TR˃DI ≈ SQ ˃ CR in terms of water flux. Eventually, the presence of 3D-printed spacers may prevent the external foulant layer onto the surface of membrane. Thus, the 3D printed spacers were ranked as TR˃DI ≈ CR≈ SQ for fouling mitigation ability. Furthermore, the used PVDF membrane with 3D printed spacers indicates lower hydrophobicity reduction, 11–14%. Therefore, this paper illustrates a facile approach to designing 3D-printed feed spacers that exhibit increased membrane performance in MD operation. © 2024 Institution of Chemical Engineers