Supporting Information

Recovery of water from concentration of copper mining effluents using direct

contact membrane distillation
Yecid P. Jimeneza,b*, Mathias Ulbrichtb

a Departamento de Ingeniería Química y Procesos de Minerales, Facultad de Ingeniería,

Universidad de Antofagasta, Av. Angamos 601, Antofagasta, Chile

b Lehrstuhl für Technische Chemie II, Universität Duisburg-Essen, 45117 Essen, Germany

* Corresponding author. Tel.: +56 55 2637902; E-mail address: yecid.jimenez@uantof.cl

 Table S1. Used membranes (information on nominal pore size, material and support provided by company, all other values measured)

Thermal
Nominal Air flow Experimental Experimental Liquid entry conductivity
pore size Thickness Initial contact Contact angle [L/min·cm ];2 mean flow pore max. pore size pressure for 348 Isostrain
Membrane code [µm] Material Support [µm] Porosity [%] angle [°] after 5 min [°] p = 0.93 bar size [µm] [µm] water [bar] [W·m-1·K-1]

D845 (GVS) 0.2 PTFE PET/PE 165±8.6 59.7±3.7 141.3±1 139.7±1.1 8.44±0.03 0.236±0.002 0.507±0.005 3.40±0.25 0.134

PVDF 0.2 (GVS) 0.2 PVDF PET 161±0.6 55.1±0.4 163.4±3.4 161.1±1.3 4.64±0.11 0.362±0.002 0.897±0.016 2.62±0.05 0.111

PVDF 0.8 (GVS) 0.8 PVDF PET 203.2±0.7 53.5±0.7 13.3±0.13 1.156±0.035 2.410±0.09 0.79±0.07

3M unlaminated 0.2 PVDF yes 85±1 77.1±0.7 99.4±0.4 94.6±0.5 2.65±0.04 0.238±0.003 0.588±0.052 3.23±0.02 0.071

3M laminated 0.2 PVDF yes 254±2.2 59±0.8 81.7±2.1 76.7±2 3.84±0.12 0.21±0.005 0.508±0.011 3.03±0.11 0.104
Table S2. Low and high levels for the feed temperature, mass fraction of copper sulphate (wCuSO4)
and pH factors used in the experimental design

Factor
Test Feed Temp./°C wCuSO4 pH
1 40 0.00005 2
2 60 0.00005 2
3 40 0.0001 2
4 60 0.0001 2
5 40 0.00005 3
6 60 0.00005 3
7 40 0.0001 3
8 60 0.0001 3
Table S3. Operational conditions and response variables of the first and second stage of the
experimental tests

First stage Second stage

Operational - Hot feed flow rate: 700 - Hot inlet temperature: 60 °C.
conditions mL/min; corresponding to - Hot feed flow rate: 700
average linear velocity: 121.4 mL/min; corresponding to
mm/s. average linear velocity: 121.4
- Coolant fluid: Deionized mm/s.
water. - Coolant fluid: Deionized
- Coolant inlet temperature: 20 water.
°C. - Coolant inlet temperature: 20
- Coolant flow rate: 700 °C.
mL/min; corresponding to - Coolant flow rate: 700
average linear velocity: 111.0 mL/min; corresponding to
mm/s. average linear velocity: 111.0
- Flow regime: Counter- mm/s.
current. - Flow regime: Counter-current.

Response - Water flux. - Water flux.

variables - Copper concentration in the
feed / retentate at the end of
the tests.
- Sulfuric acid concentration in
the feed / retentate at the
end of the tests
- Copper, iron, chloride and
sulfuric acid concentrations in
the feed at the end of the
tests.