The Nametech project is funded under the European Commission's 7th Framework Programme and harnesses the benefits of nanotechnology to bring about improvements in membrane filtration for advanced water treatment. The general objective is to strengthen the European membrane market by making nanotechnology available to major European membrane manufactures. The Nametech project, which started in September 2009, has a term of 3 years. The total budget is 2.6 million euros, with TNO’s share 258,000 euros.

Reaching commercialisation

The project brings together all the elements required to transfer nanotechnology to the field of water treatment, not just to laboratory-scale testing but actual commercialisation. The broad engineering and application know-how of the partners will be brought together to reduce cost and optimise process intensification strategies.

Improving filtration performance

The scientific and technological focus is on the use of nano-structured materials to alter the physical and chemical properties of polymeric ultrafiltration membranes and thereby improve the filtration performance at macro-scale installations. The Nametech consortium connects two major European membrane manufacturers with leading membrane and water treatment specialists from Belgium, Germany, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Italy, France and the Czech Republic. Nametech is the acronym for " Development of intensified water treatment concepts by integrating NAno- and MEmbrane TECHnologies".

TNO’s role

TNO is developing a new method for combining disinfection and ultrafiltration in the same membrane module. A so-called layer-by-layer method integrates silver nanoparticles in the separation layer of ultrafiltration membranes. Disinfection results are excellent. TNO has applied for a patent.