Modern Approaches in Water Treatment: Emerging Technologies and Future Directions

Abstract

Water is the basis for human survival and socioeconomic development, but rapid population growth, rise in industries, and agriculture pose a threat to the quality and availability of freshwater resources. The greater part of international water treatment techniques seeks to ensure that the drinking water is safe through coagulation, flocculation, sedimentation, filtration, disinfection, and pH correction processes. While their reliability has been amassed over the years, these techniques have huge limitations in terms of scalability, efficiency, and ability to adjust to new, emerging contaminant risks. Some of the state-of-the-art technologies in terms of water treatment, discussed in this paper, include nanotechnology, membrane filtration, advanced oxidation processes, and biological treatments. Nanotechnology utilizes Nano adsorbents and catalytic materials to remove contaminants efficiently with antibacterial effects. On the other hand, advanced membrane filtration technology improves water flux and antifouling properties while raising contaminant rejection. AOPs use hydroxyl radicals to degrade organic and inorganic pollutants effectively. Biological treatments utilize microorganisms for biodegradation and hence are sustainable and effective. This paper therefore, discusses the outcomes of such innovative methods in terms of efficiency, application, and future potential to underline recent developments and future prospects of water treatment technologies. Application of these innovative approaches into water treatment frameworks will enhance water purification by surmounting the drawbacks of the conventional techniques that ensure reliable supplies of clean water globally. The paper has focused on in-depth analysis of the processes being developed in improving water quality and access with respect to global health and socio-economic development.

Keywords

• wastewater treatment
• nano-technology
• biological methods
• modern membrane technologies
• oxidation process