Therefore, work to modify PAC has been done by Hong et al. [51].
They implemented a process combining surfactant-modified powdered
activated carbon (SM-PAC) with ultrafiltration to treat water
containing anionic contaminants, and obtained a good performance at
different removal efficiency of various anionic impurities. But little
information about the membrane fouling was presented. For the
uncertain impact of PAC on the membrane fouling, modifying PAC or
replacing novel adsorbent to guarantee the contaminant removal and
the fouling reduction may be an effective measure for the amphibolous
view.
And although PAC is so widely studied, a new absorbent should be
developed for membrane fouling control, e.g. carbon black, which is
modified by the manufacture, is demonstrated to be a better selection
in river water ultrafiltration than PAC [51].