MEMBRANES MICROFILTRATION PRETREATMENT REVERSE OSMOSIS

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Abstract

As the later discussion on RO illustrates, removal of suspended solids from RO feed is absolutely critical to prevent fouling and plugging of the tight spaces within RO membranes. For years, clarification followed by media filtration (sand plus perhaps an anthracite pre-layer and garnet supporting material) was the common technique for removing suspended solids from steam generator makeup water. But now, MF membrane filtration is proving its worth. As we shall see, the typical membrane element used for industrial RO systems is the spiral-wound configuration, where the membrane is fabricated as a flat sheet and, along with spacer and support material, is wrapped many times around a central core. MF membranes are normally of hollow-fiber configuration. Figure 1 illustrates a membrane module from a pressurized MF system, in which each module contains thousands of spaghetti-sized hollow fiber tubes.

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