What is Universiti Malaysia Sabah

Membrane distillation is a process driven by the vapour pressure gradient of water to allow the permeation of water vapours through the microporous hydrophobic membrane while retaining other non-volatile components present in the feed. In this chapter, the utilization of membrane distillation as promising membrane technology for the application of clean water production at offshores and small islands are discussed. One of the main challenges of membrane distillation is that the production rate is low compared to the membrane areas used as the process performance is mainly influenced by the membrane characteristics. Thus, the ideal membrane should possess distinct characteristics that are the most suitable exclusively for membrane distillation application. This chapter also highlights the nanofibre membrane as one of the excellent options as it can be fabricated to exhibit hydrophobic, thin, and open pores characteristics.