Marta Izquierdo

• PhD
• Professor (Associate) at University of Valencia

Membrane contactors offer a promising feasible alternative to conventional desorption units due to their higher surface-to-volume ratio and operational flexibility. In this regard, a hollow fibre membrane contactor (HFMC) was coupled to a biogas desulphurisation reactor at pilot scale to recover the dissolved CH4 (D-CH4) present in the liquid efflu...

The use of deep eutectic solvents (DESs) for the preparation of polymer membranes for environmental separation technologies is comprehensively reviewed. DESs have been divided into five categories based on the hydrogen bond donor (HBD) and acceptor (HBA) that are involved in the production of the DESs, and a wide range of DESs’ physicochemical char...

Novel membrane crystallisation processes resolve the mixing challenge on conventional crystallisers, by providing fixed interfacial area over which supersaturation is controlled for nucleation. Moreover, the membrane surface is thought to reduce interfacial energy and encourage micromixing. In this regard, a novel membraneassisted reactive crystall...

Superhydrophobic poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) membranes were obtained by a surface treatment consisting of oxygen plasma activation followed by functionalisation with a mixture of silica precursor (SiP) (tetraethyl-orthosilicate [TEOS] or 3-(triethoxysilyl)-propylamine [APTES]) and a fluoroalkylsilane (1H,1H,2H,2H-perfluorooctyltriethoxysilane)...

Characterisation of the fouling attached to PVDF membranes treating an anaerobic effluent for dissolved CH4 recovery was carried out. A commercial flat-sheet PVDF membrane and a PVDF functionalised by grafting of organofluorosilanes (mPVDF) that increased its hydrophobicity were subjected to a continuous flux of an anaerobic reactor effluent in lon...

A three-step surface modification consisting of activation with NaOH, functionalisation with a silica precursor and organofluorosilane mixture (FSiT), and curing was applied to a poly(vinylidene fluoride) (PVDF) membrane for the recovery of dissolved methane (D-CH4) from aqueous streams. Based on the results of a statistical experimental design, th...

A degassing contactor using a flat sheet membrane module (FM) was operated in sweep gas mode to study the performance of several commercial polymer membranes, both dense (polydimethylsiloxane, PDMS) and microporous (polypropylene, PP, and polyvinylidenefluoride, PVDF), for the recovery of dissolved methane from water. Non-steady state experiments w...

The use and depletion of fossil fuels raised the interest in biofuels like biobutanol. Clostridium acetobutylicum DSM 792 is capable of producing biobutanol through ABE fermentation. Butanol production can be influenced by low sugar concentrations, like those obtained after hydrolysis of pre-treated lignocellulosic biomass. This study aimed to eval...

Vacuum and nitrogen as sweep gas were used simultaneously (combination mode) to generate the driving force in a microporous polypropylene membrane contactor for the recovery of dissolved methane from water. Experiments were carried out under different liquid flow-rates (5.0–28.0 L h⁻¹), N2 flow-rates (0.5–1.5 L h⁻¹) and vacuum pressures (0–480 mbar...

The influence of the addition of granular activated carbon (GAC) to the anaerobic treatment of wastewater with a mixture of ethanol and 1-ethoxy-2-propanol (E2P), which are typical pollutants from flexographic/printing industry, was evaluated. For this purpose, reactor performance and microbial community were assessed in two continuous stirred tank...

The recovery of dissolved methane (D-CH4) from the effluent of anaerobic reactors avoids greenhouse gas diffuse emissions and can enhance energy production in wastewater treatments plants. The objective of this work was to evaluate the feasibility of the combined used of N2 sweep gas and vacuum (combination mode) for the removal of D-CH4 from water...

A full-scale biotrickling filter (BTF) treating acetone air emissions of wood-coating activities showed difficulties to achieve outlet concentrations lower than 125 mg C m⁻³, especially for high inlet concentrations and oscillating emissions. To solve this problem, a laboratory investigation on acetone removal was carried out simulating typical ind...

A polypropylene membrane contactor was used for the recovery of dissolved methane from an anaerobic reactor effluent. Effect of operational parameters, operation mode and fouling on long-term operation was studied using vacuum pressure or N2 as sweep gas. Results were analyzed based on the mass transfer estimations. Lower performance was observed i...

The anaerobic degradation of 2-propanol, an important industrial solvent, was scaled-up from batch assays to a pilot expanded granular sludge bed (EGSB) reactor at 25°C. Batch studies indicated that 2-propanol followed Haldane kinetics, with a maximum rate at 10 g COD L⁻¹. Concentrations as high as 25 g COD L⁻¹ did not inhibit the degradation of et...

The performance, fouling and feasibility of a polydimethylsiloxane hollow fibre membrane module for in situ methane degasification from the effluent of an Expanded Granular Sludge Bed anaerobic reactor has been investigated. Experiments at different operational conditions were carried out (liquid flow, sweep gas flow and vacuum pressure) with maxim...

The performance and feasibility of a pilot unit of biotrickling filter (BTF) for the treatment of industrial emissions polluted by styrene was investigated for one year at a fiber reinforced plastic industrial site. The pilot unit was packed with a structured material with a volume of 0.6 m³. Monitoring results have shown successful treatment of th...

The feasibility of an emergent technology for in situ removal/recovery of methane from the effluent of an Expanded Granular Sludge Bed (EGSB) anaerobic reactor has been studied. For this purpose, the performances of two commercial hollow fibre degassing contactors with different membrane materials – microporous (polypropylene, PP) and non-porous (p...

The capacity of activated carbon as a buffer pretreatment combined with biotrickling filtration for volatile organic compound (VOC) removal has been studied. The adsorption capacity of commercial activated carbons for m-xylene, acetone and n-butyl acetate (typical paint solvents) was evaluated, including the response to the interchanging of adsorbe...

Els codis QR (Quick Response) són codis de barra àmpliament utilitzats en aplicacions comercials i de màrqueting per incloure enllaços a pàgines web, entre altres coses. En l'actualitat un gran nombre de dispositius electrònics com telèfons intel·ligents o tauletes compten amb aplicacions capaces de capturar aquesta informació, permetent al seu usu...

The performance of Posidonia oceanica for copper(II) biosorption in the presence of EDTA was investigated in batch and column experiments. In batch mode, copper(II) uptake in the presence of EDTA was lower than in its absence for the pH range 1.5–6.0. The decrease in the copper(II) uptake, attributed to the change in the chemical speciation of copp...

Copper(II) biosorption in the presence of complexing agents (CA) onto orange peel (OP) and chemically modified OP (OPH+, OPNa+, and OP(Na+)(H+)) was studied. The study of the effect of pH showed that OPH+ presented a copper(II) uptake similar to OP in the pH range 1.5–6.0, whereas OPNa+ and OP(Na+)(H+) showed the highest copper(II) uptake in the pH...

BACKGROUND: The applicability of biosorption for the treatment of metal plating wastewater is adversely affected by the presence of complexing agents. To investigate this limitation on the removal of copper(II) onto peat, batch and column experiments were carried out using EDTA as the model complexing agent. The influence of pH and copper(II):EDTA...

As(III) removal from dilute aqueous solutions by biosorption onto pellets of the white rot fungus Phanerochaete chrysosporium was investigated. The As(III) uptake capacity was evaluated at low initial concentrations (0.2–1 mg/L) which revealed that the P. chrysosporium pellets were only slightly less efficient than the well studied adsorbent granul...

A systematic approach was used to characterize the biosorption of copper(II) onto two biosorbents, Posidonia oceanica and peat, focusing on the interaction mechanisms, the copper(II) sorption–desorption process and the thermal behavior of the biosorbents. Sorption isotherms at pH 4–6 were obtained and the experimental data were fitted to the Langmu...

The effect of using ground tire rubber (GTR) as an adsorptive material in the removal of a 2:1:1 weight mixture of n-butyl acetate, toluene and m-xylene by using a peat biofilter under different intermittent conditions was investigated. The performance of two identical size biofilters, one packed with fibrous peat alone and the other with a 3:1 (vo...

Removal of a mixture of oxygenated and aromatic VOCs by using a biofilter packed with peat or peat/ground tire rubber under transient loading.

BACKGROUND: Painting and wood finishing is one industrial sector affected by the European Union environmental regulations on volatile organic compound (VOC) air emissions. The painting process typically results in high flow rates with low VOC concentrations, so biotrickling filtration could be an economical alternative for controlling air emissions...

The aim of this work was to determine the hydrodynamic dispersion coefficient at different interstitial velocities for its application in a mass transport model to predict heavy metal biosorption onto Posidonia oceanica and peat. Tracing experiments with lithium chloride (LiCl) were performed in biosorbent packed beds of 10 and 27 cm length and flo...

BACKGROUND: The performance of peat for copper sorption was investigated in batch and fixed‐bed experiments. The effect of pH was evaluated in batch experiments and the experimental data were fitted to an equilibrium model including pH dependence. Hydrodynamic axial dispersion was estimated by tracing experiments using LiCl as a tracer. Six fixed‐b...

Biosorption of copper from aqueous solutions by Posidonia oceanica was investigated in batch and fixed-bed experiments. Batch experiments were conducted to evaluate the removal equilibrium at pH 5.0 and 6.0; experimental data were fitted to Langmuir model with maximum uptake capacities of 56.92 and 85.78 mg g(-1), respectively. Five column experime...

Comparison between laboratory and pilot biotrickling filtration of air emissions from painting and wood finishing

In this work, fixed bed column experiments were performed with the aim of evaluating the Cu uptake capacity of two biosorbents. The marine phanerogam Posidonia oceanica, a waste from local beach cleaning practices at Denia (Spain), and locally available organic sediment, a highly mineralized peat from Torreblanca (Spain) were used. Column runs were...

This paper evaluates the application of several biosorbents for Ni removal from aqueous solutions in the absence and in the presence of EDTA. Fixed bed experiments were performed (Ni influent concentration, 2 mg dm; EDTA doses, 0, 5, and 10 mg dm; pH=7) to study the process feasibility as refining after conventional physicochemical treatment. In ab...

BACKGROUND: This paper evaluates the use of several biosorbents for Cu removal from aqueous solutions in the absence and presence of ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA). The objective was to determine the applicability of the sorption process after conventional physicochemical wastewater treatment, or as primary treatment, replacing the physicoc...

An upflow packed bed reactor at laboratory scale has been operated for a continuous period of 5 months to investigate the technical feasibility of biological nitrate removal applied to the effluent of the coagulation-sedimentation wastewater of a metal-finishing industry. The reactor was fed with industrial wastewater in a five-fold dilution to rep...

Three laboratory-scale peat biofilters were operated at 90 s empty bed residence time (EBRT) for over a year. Biodegradation of ethyl acetate, toluene, or a 1:1 mixture were investigated. In first stage, inlet concentration was progressively increased from 0.4 to 4.5 g/m(3). The maximum elimination capacity (EC) found for ethyl acetate was 190 gC/m...

Despite numerous studies on hydrochar use, its application in water treatment for pathogen removal remains unexplored. In this study, we evaluated the efficiency of hydrochar produced from crop residue of maize for water treatment by determining Escherchia coli breakthrough from sand columns supplemented with hydrochar. To enhance the adsorptive ca...