Hokkaido University · Environmental Science
Professor Katsuki Kimura's research lab specializes in membrane technology for water and wastewater treatment, with a primary focus on understanding and mitigating membrane fouling—particularly irreversible fouling—through fundamental studies on membrane and organic matter interactions. The lab investigates advanced processes such as membrane bioreactors (MBRs), direct membrane filtration (DMF), and chemical enhanced backwashing (CEB) to improve membrane stability and longevity in real-world applications. Their work also includes the removal of emerging contaminants like pharmaceuticals from municipal wastewater using analytical techniques such as GC/MS, aiming to enhance treatment efficiency and sustainability. The lab's research bridges materials science, environmental engineering, and water resource management to develop practical, scalable solutions for sustainable water treatment.
Figures are computed from collected data and may differ slightly.
The main obstacle for wider use of membrane bioreactors (MBRs) for wastewater treatment is membrane fouling (i.e., deterioration of membrane permeability),which increases operating costs. For more efficient control of membrane fouling in MBRs, an understanding of the mechanisms of membrane fouling is important. However, there is a lack of information on membrane fouling in MBRs, especially information on features of components that are responsible for the fouling. We conducted a pilot-scale expe
The elimination of six acidic pharmaceuticals (clofibric acid, diclofenac, ibuprofen, ketoprofen, mefenamic acid, and naproxen) in a real wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) using an activated sludge system and membrane bioreactors (MBRs) was investigated by using a gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS) system for measurement of the compounds. Limited information is available for some of the tested pharmaceuticals at present. Solid retention times (SRTs) of the WWTP and the two MBRs were 7,
Direct membrane filtration (DMF) of municipal wastewater using a microfiltration membrane was investigated to capture organic matter. In contrast to the expectation that membrane fouling cannot be controlled in DMF of domestic wastewater, it was possible to stably continue membrane filtration with relatively high membrane fluxes (∼20 LMH) for >200 h by applying chemically enhanced backwash (CEB), whereas approximately 75% of the organic matter in wastewater could be recovered. Off-line chemical
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