The 16th National Congress of the Italian Society of Chemistry (XXVI Congresso Nazionale della Società Chimica Italiana) took place from 10 to 14 September in Paestum, SA, Italy.
Dr. Raffaella Mancuso from partner University of Calabria (Università della Calabria, Italy) presented research results used in the frame of VicInAqua: "Acryloxyalkyltriethylammonium Bromides: Useful Starting Materials for the Preparation of Polymeric Membrane Coatings with Anti-biofouling Properties".
Membranes are key components of the VicInAqua concept of reusing water for aquaculture and irrigation. So far, conventional anti-biofouling membranes are chemically treated to prevent biofouling, that is to say the accumulation of microorganisms, plants, algae, or animals on their wetted surfaces.
However, due to the reuse of water in fish farming, the VicInAqua partners decided to avoid cleaning chemicals and rather develop a self-cleaning membrane bio-reactor (MBR) system instead. Unlike conventional membranes, the novel VicInAqua membranes will not merely act as physical separation but rather serve as active nano structured catalytic system to enable decomposition of organic foulants and continuous scouring of the membrane surface. As an additional benefit, potential microbiological pollutants can partially be detoxified.
The work presented by Dr. Mancuso at the 16th National Congress of the Italian Society of Chemistry paves the way towards successful preparation of materials for the development of antimicrobial coatings for commercial membranes with antifouling / anti-biofouling properties.
Event website (in Italian)