Cellulose and Its Derivatives for Membrane Separation Processes

Membrane technology is widely used for producing drinking water from different sources, such as groundwater, brackish water, and seawater. This is of particular interest in arid regions where natural water resources are scarce. Membrane technology has attractive features such as continuous separation process, low energy consumption, no chemical uses, and tunable membrane properties. Due to these unique characteristics, membrane technology is also widely incorporated in other areas such as pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, food, and chemical industries. Membranes can be broadly classied into two categories: biological and synthetic membranes. Synthetic membranes can be subdivided into organic and inorganic membranes. The basic components of organic membranes are polymers and that of inorganic membranes are ceramics. This chapter focuses on the fabrication of polymeric membranes based on cellulose and its derivatives.