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Polyfluoroalkyl and perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are ecotoxic amphiphilic compounds containing alkyl-fluorinated chains terminated with weak acid moieties, and hence difficult to be degraded or removed from water sources. Direct contact membrane distillation (DCMD) was used for concentrating and removing of perfluoropentanoic acid (PFPeA) compounds from model contaminated water using commercially available poly (tetrafluoroethylene) (PTFE) membranes. The membranes were characterised for surface morphology, roughness, contact angle and pore size distribution before and after the DCMD test to investigate and evaluate membrane fouling. During the DCMD test performed for 6 h using 10 ppm PFPeA solution, the membrane exhibited progressive increased flux (from 17 to 43 kg m -2 h -1 ) and decreased PFPeA rejection (from 85 to 58%), as the feed temperature was increased from 50 to 70 °C. Further, the feed/retentate side showed a 1.8, 2.1 and 2.8-fold increase in PFPeA concentration tested at feed temperatures 50, 60, and 70 °C, respectively. The permeate side contained less than 1 ppm of PFPeA revealing that the PFPeA moved across the PTFE membrane during DCMD, which is attributed to progressive surface diffusion over time. This study opens a new route to concentrate and remove amphiphilic molecules, such as PFAS, from source points, relevant to landfill leachates or surface waters. The study also points at gaps in materials science and surface engineering to be tackled to deal with PFAS compounds efficiently., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

This research focused on combined organic-inorganic fouling and cleaning studies of forward osmosis (FO) membranes. Various organic/inorganic model foulants such as sodium alginate, bovine serum albumin (BSA) and silica nanoparticles were applied to polyamide-polyethersulfone FO hollow fiber membranes fabricated in our laboratory. In order to understand all possible interactions, experiments were performed with a single foulant as well as combinations of foulants. Experimental results suggested that the degree of FO membrane fouling could be promoted by synergistic effect of organic foulants, the presence of divalent cations, low cross-flow velocity and high permeation drag force. The water flux of fouled FO hollow fibers could be fully restored by simple physical cleaning. It was also found that hydrodynamic regime played an important role in combined organic-inorganic fouling of FO membranes., (Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)