Water is a vital element for life and the environment. Water pollution has been
documented as a contributor to a wide range of health problems. In recent years, the
water quality levels have suffered great deterioration because of rapid social and
economic development and because it is used to "dump" a wide range of pollutants.
This book entitled "Membranes for Water and Wastewater Treatment" contains featured
research papers dealing with recent developments and advances in all aspects related to
membranes for water and wastewater treatment: membrane processes, combined
processes (including one membrane step), modified membranes, new materials, and the
possibility to reduce fouling and to improve the efficiency of enhanced processes. The
papers compiled in this Special Issue can be read as a response to the current needs and
challenges in membrane development for water and wastewater treatment.
Half of the research articles correspond to concrete and practical applications of the use
of membrane processes in different fields of the industry, with the aim of treating and
conditioning water and wastewater. The studies reveal the treatment of industrial
streams, mining, recycled paper industry, olive mill, urban wastewater, etc. Another
important percentage of studies are related to membrane modification processes, with
the aim of obtaining new materials with better performance in the separation processes,
thus describing the use of membranes modified with chitosan, nanoparticles, and other
organic compounds. This field also includes studies related to fouling and its modeling.
