[Mainland China] From August 19 to 20, the 2026 (18th) Shanghai Water Industry Hotspot Forum was held in Shanghai under the theme "Holistic Coordination, Smart and Low-Carbon — Exploring the Path to Quality and Efficiency Improvement in the '15th Five-Year Plan' Water Sector." Shandong Zhaojin Motian launched its Jinkunpeng high-flux (QCOM) MBR membrane module, which boosts membrane flux by more than 60% over conventional products and extends cleaning cycles by 50%-100%, providing a domestic, low-carbon solution for municipal wastewater standard upgrades. The forum focused on core "15th Five-Year Plan" topics including water sector institutional reform, plant-network integration, and smart and low-carbon technologies. Breakthroughs in domestic membrane technology are becoming a key support for wastewater plant upgrades and energy savings.

1. Forum Focus: The Path to Quality and Efficiency Improvement in the "15th Five-Year Plan" Water Sector

This year's Shanghai Water Industry Hotspot Forum brought together helmsmen of leading national environmental enterprises, authoritative experts from research institutes and universities, and other elites for in-depth discussion of core topics including water sector institutional reform, integration of water supply and drainage plants with pipe networks, and smart and low-carbon technologies. It sought to elevate the water industry from a "single-point governance mindset" to a "systematic industrial mindset," charting the way forward for quality and efficiency improvement in the "15th Five-Year Plan" water sector.

Against the current "dual carbon" backdrop, the water industry's low-carbon transition is urgent. Conventional membrane products face pain points such as limited flux, high energy consumption, and complex operation and maintenance, making how to achieve energy savings in wastewater treatment and resource recovery through technological innovation a focal point of the forum.

2. Core Technology: Three Advantages of Domestic High-Flux, Low-Energy MBR Membranes

In the "technological innovation practices in the water sector" session, Zhaojin Motian engineers gave a presentation titled "Technological Innovation and Value Practice of High-Flux (QCOM) Low-Energy Anti-Fouling MBR Membranes in the Context of Dual Carbon," systematically sharing key breakthroughs in domestic membrane technology. Developed specifically for wastewater treatment and resource recovery, the Jinkunpeng high-flux (QCOM) MBR membrane module offers three core advantages:

• High flux — through unique membrane material modification and structural design, membrane flux is increased by more than 60% over conventional products, significantly reducing the membrane area required per unit of water treated;
• Low energy consumption — a patented aeration structure achieves 100% airflow coverage, cracking the industry pain point of persistently high energy consumption per ton of water and substantially compressing lifecycle costs;
• Easy operation and maintenance — an innovative square-column integrated module with a patented bottom sludge discharge design extends cleaning cycles by 50%-100%, significantly reducing maintenance frequency.

3. Industry Responsibility: Domestic Membranes Lead High-End Water Treatment

Shandong Zhaojin Motian is China's first enterprise to achieve industrialized production of separation membranes. It operates a large, modern membrane industrial base of 100,000 square meters, has reverse osmosis membrane production lines of internationally advanced level, and has led the formulation of more than 40 national and industry standards. In recent years, the company has adhered to a high-end membrane development strategy, continuously increased R&D investment, and successively launched several premium products including the "Leading Series" and "Jinkunpeng."

At the forum, the Jinkunpeng high-flux (QCOM) MBR membrane module was highly recognized by the industry for its outstanding technical performance and application value, marking the growing competitiveness of domestic high-end membrane materials in scenarios such as municipal wastewater standard upgrades and wastewater resource recovery. It is expected to gradually replace imported products and reduce water projects' dependence on imported membrane modules.

4. Significance for the Water Sector

During the "15th Five-Year Plan" period, the water industry is shifting from scale expansion to a high-quality development stage of quality and efficiency improvement, low-carbon and green development. The forum conveyed clear industry trends:

• Plant-network integration — coordinate water supply and drainage plants with pipe networks for systematic governance;
• Smart operation — leverage AI, digital twin, and other technologies to improve refined operation and maintenance of wastewater plants;
• Low-carbon technologies — achieve energy savings through high-efficiency membrane technology, precision aeration, and more;
• Domestic substitution — accelerate self-reliance in core materials such as high-end membranes to lower construction and operating costs.

For the wastewater treatment and water reuse industry chain, the maturation of innovative technologies such as domestic high-flux, low-energy MBR membranes will provide more cost-effective solutions for wastewater plant upgrades and capacity expansion and reclaimed water reuse projects, making it an important direction for industry cost reduction and efficiency gains.

TIANYI TECH Co., Ltd. specializes in wastewater treatment, water reuse (reclaimed water), and integrated water-environment management. It provides municipal and industrial park customers with integrated services covering process design, complete equipment supply, project implementation, and operation and maintenance, actively tracking cutting-edge technologies such as membrane-based water treatment to help water projects run in a low-carbon, efficient manner.

Compiled from public reporting on the 2026 (18th) Shanghai Water Industry Hotspot Forum and Zhaojin Motian's technology launch.