Environmental challenges in water pollution by oil and technological solutions in ceramic membranes through oil-water...

Oil pollution in aquatic systems presents serious environmental and regulatory challenges, which in turn drives the demand for effective and sustainable separation technologies. Ceramic membranes have emerged as advanced materials for oil-water separation, owing to their exceptional thermal, chemical, and mechanical stability. This review presents a comprehensive analysis of ceramic membrane technologies, with a particular emphasis on performance-driven evaluations of surface-modified membranes. It critically examines innovations in surface engineering that transform membranes into variants such as hydrophilic, superhydrophilic, oleophobic, superoleophobic, amphiphobic, and superamphiphobic, each offering distinct advantages in terms of permeability, fouling resistance, and emulsion selectivity. These surface modifications are evaluated based on key metrics including flux, durability, and scalability, providing practical guidance for real-world applications. To enable a comprehensive performance assessment, the review introduces six analytical frameworks for evaluating fouling resistance, chemical independence, adaptive operation, oil-flux efficiency, hybrid system sustainability, and overall eco-efficiency. The work further explores the integration of ceramic membranes with adsorptive, oxidative, and electro-assisted pretreatments, demonstrating how these frameworks enable the quantitative evaluation of system-level performance and sustainability. Key challenges, including fouling, high fabrication costs, and industrial scale-up, are addressed, and strategies for developing low-cost and environmentally friendly membranes are proposed. Ultimately, a strategic roadmap that links material innovation, hybrid integration, and sustainability metrics positions ceramic membranes as a transformative solution to the persistent challenge of oil-water pollution.