Development and Performance Evaluation of WO₃/ZnO Composite Membranes for Antibiotics Wastewater Treatment

Muhammad Itsar Hanif (Department of Chemical Engineering Faculty of engineering Dipnegoro University)
Andri Cahyo Kumoro (Department of Chemical Engineering, Diponegoro University)
Tutuk Djoko Kusworo (Department of Chemical Engineering, Diponegoro University)

Waste Technology
Vol 14, No 1 (2026)

The contamination of water resources with pharmaceutical pollutants, particularly tetracycline (TC), has become a pressing environmental issue. This poses a significant threat to ecosystems and public health, as untreated wastewater can lead to the spread of antibiotic resistance. In this study, we explore the potential of PVDF-based membranes integrated with WO₃/ZnO composites for effectively removing TC and COD from wastewater. Membranes with varying concentrations of WO₃/ZnO (0.25%, 0.75%, 1.25%) were evaluated in terms of flux, pollutant rejection efficiency, and pore properties. Among the tested membranes, MV-3 (PVDF neat 13% + WO₃/ZnO 1.25%) demonstrated the best performance, achieving 98.28% rejection for TC and 87.72% for COD. Additionally, MV-3 exhibited the highest porosity (67.81%), although flux decreased moderately. This highlights the trade-off between high rejection efficiency and flux but demonstrates that the addition of WO₃/ZnO to PVDF membranes can provide a balanced solution for efficient wastewater treatment.