scholarly journals Fouling Mitigation via Chaotic Advection in a Flat Membrane Module with a Patterned Surface

Membranes ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (10) ◽  
pp. 724
Author(s):  
Kyung Tae Kim ◽  
Jo Eun Park ◽  
Seon Yeop Jung ◽  
Tae Gon Kang
Keyword(s):  
Growth Rate ◽  
Membrane Fouling ◽  
Membrane Surface ◽  
Film Theory ◽  
Groove Depth ◽  
Membrane Module ◽  
Chaotic Advection ◽  
Permeate Flux ◽  
Fouling Mitigation ◽  
Flat Membrane

Fouling mitigation using chaotic advection caused by herringbone-shaped grooves in a flat membrane module is numerically investigated. The feed flow is laminar with the Reynolds number (Re) ranging from 50 to 500. In addition, we assume a constant permeate flux on the membrane surface. Typical flow characteristics include two counter-rotating flows and downwelling flows, which are highly influenced by the groove depth at each Re. Poincaré sections are plotted to represent the dynamical systems of the flows and to analyze mixing. The flow systems become globally chaotic as the groove depth increases above a threshold value. Fouling mitigation via chaotic advection is demonstrated using the dimensionless average concentration (c¯w*) on the membrane and its growth rate. When the flow system is chaotic, the growth rate of c¯w* drops significantly compared to that predicted from the film theory, demonstrating that chaotic advection is an attractive hydrodynamic technique that mitigates membrane fouling. At each Re, there exists an optimal groove depth minimizing c¯w* and the growth rate of c¯w*. Under the optimum groove geometry, foulants near the membrane are transported back to the bulk flow via the downwelling flows, distributed uniformly in the entire channel via chaotic advection.

Electroflocculation as potential pretreatment in colloid ultrafiltration

2006 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 69-78 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. Harif ◽  
M. Hai ◽  
A. Adin
Keyword(s):  
Membrane Fouling ◽  
Colloidal Suspension ◽  
Membrane Surface ◽  
Constant Current ◽  
Permeate Flux ◽  
Batch Mode ◽  
Membrane Behavior ◽  
Flux Decline ◽  
Stainless Steel Cathode ◽  
Marginal Improvement

Electroflocculation (EF) is a coagulation/flocculation process in which active coagulant species are generated in situ by electrolytic oxidation of an appropriate anode material. The effect of colloidal suspension pretreatment by EF on membrane fouling was measured by flux decline at constant pressure. An EF cell was operated in batch mode and comprised two flat sheet electrodes, an aluminium anode and stainless steel cathode, which were immersed in the treated suspension, and connected to an external DC power supply. The cell was run at constant current between 0.06–0.2A. The results show that pre-EF enhances the permeate flux at pH 5 and 6.5, but only marginal improvement is observed at pH 8. At all pH values cake formation on the membrane surface was observed. The differences in membrane behavior can be explained by conventional coagulation theory and transitions between aluminium mononuclear species which affect particle characteristics and consequently cake properties. At pH 6.5, where sweep floc mechanism dominates due to increased precipitation of aluminium hydroxide, increased flux rates were observed. It is evident that EF can serve as an efficient pretreatment to ultrafiltration of colloid particles.

A Wall Film Model for Membrane Fouling

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sina Jahangiri Mamouri ◽  
Volodymyr V. Tarabara ◽  
André Bénard
Keyword(s):  
Multiphase Flow ◽  
Membrane Fouling ◽  
Oil And Gas ◽  
Membrane Separation ◽  
Film Formation ◽  
Membrane Surface ◽  
Permeate Flux ◽  
Water Separation ◽  
Wall Film ◽  
Oil Water

Deoiling of produced or impaired waters associated with oil and gas production represents a significant challenge for many companies. Centrifugation, air flotation, and hydrocyclone separation are the current methods of oil removal from produced water [1], however the efficiency of these methods decreases dramatically for droplets smaller than approximately 15–20 μm. More effective separation of oil-water mixtures into water and oil phases has the potential to both decrease the environmental footprint of the oil and gas industry and improve human well-being in regions such as the Gulf of Mexico. New membrane separation processes and design of systems with advanced flow management offer tremendous potential for improving oil-water separation efficacy. However, fouling is a major challenge in membrane separation [2]. In this study, the behavior of oil droplets and their interaction with crossflow filtration (CFF) membranes (including membrane fouling) is studied using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations. A model for film formation on a membrane surface is proposed for the first time to simulate film formation on membrane surfaces. The bulk multiphase flow is modeled using an Eulerian-Eulerian multiphase flow model. A wall film is developed from mass and momentum balances [3] and implemented to model droplet deposition and membrane surface blockage. The model is used to predict film formation and subsequent membrane fouling, and allow to estimate the actual permeate flux. The results are validated using available experimental data.

scholarly journals Design of a Novel Membrane Draft Tube Jet Loop Reactor (MDJLR) and Treatment of Slaughterhouse Wastewater

Membranes ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (11) ◽  
pp. 155
Author(s):  
Burhanettin Farizoğlu ◽  
Süleyman Uzuner
Keyword(s):  
Membrane Fouling ◽  
High Efficiency ◽  
Draft Tube ◽  
Membrane Surface ◽  
Membrane Bioreactors ◽  
Operating Conditions ◽  
Membrane Module ◽  
Circulation Rate ◽  
Slaughterhouse Wastewater ◽  
Loop Reactor

The most important obstacle to the widespread use of membrane bioreactors (MBRs) is membrane fouling. In this study, a high-efficiency compact MBR was developed. Therefore, the draft tube of the jet loop reactor (JLB) was planned for use as a membrane module. The high-velocity jet streams, which are present according to the nature of the JLBs, provide high crossflow (cut-off force) on the membrane surface. Thus, the produced membrane module is operated in submerged membrane mode. This enhanced JLB modification is named the membrane draft tube jet loop reactor (MDJLR). This new system has a KLa value of 139 h−1 (at E/V of 2.24 kW m−3). In the next stage, treatment of slaughterhouse wastewater with the MDJLR was carried out. Under the 5.5 kg COD m−3 d−1 loading rate, efficiencies over 97% were achieved. The system operated continuously for 50 days without membrane backwashing or cleaning. During this period, fluxes of 3 L m−2·h−1 were approximately obtained at operating conditions of 850 mg L−1 MLSS (mixed liquor suspended solids) concentration, 1 bar suction pressure (∆P), and 3000 L h−1 circulation rate. This developed MDJLR will make jet loop membrane bioreactors (JLMBRs) and MBRs more compact and improve their performance.

Influence of humic acid on the long-term performance of direct contact membrane distillation

2018 ◽  
Vol 30 (1) ◽  
pp. 109-120 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dong-Wan Cho ◽  
Gihoon Kwon ◽  
Jeongmin Han ◽  
Hocheol Song
Keyword(s):  
Humic Acid ◽  
Membrane Fouling ◽  
Coalbed Methane ◽  
Direct Contact ◽  
Membrane Surface ◽  
Membrane Distillation ◽  
Permeate Flux ◽  
Direct Contact Membrane Distillation ◽  
High Level

In this study, the influence of humic acid on the treatment of coalbed methane water by direct contact membrane distillation was examined with bench-scale test unit. During short-term distillation (1000 min), high level of humic acid above 50 ppm resulted in significant decrease in permeate flux, while low level of humic acid (∼2 ppm) had little influence on the flux. For the long-term distillation (5000 min), the flux decline began at 3400 min in the presence of 5 ppm humic acid and 5 mM Ca2+, and decreased to ∼40% of initial flux at 5000 min. The spectroscopic analysis of the membrane used revealed that the surface was covered by hydrophilic layers mainly composed of calcite. The membrane fouling effect of humic acid became more significant in the presence of Ca2+ due to more facile calcite formation on the membrane surface. It was demonstrated that humic acid enhanced CaCO3 deposition on the membrane surfaces, thereby expediting the scaling phenomenon.

Chemical pretreatment of feed water for membrane distillation

2008 ◽  
Vol 62 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Marek Gryta
Keyword(s):  
Membrane Fouling ◽  
Membrane Surface ◽  
Membrane Distillation ◽  
Feed Water ◽  
Chemical Pretreatment ◽  
Permeate Flux ◽  
Membrane Scaling ◽  
Water Pretreatment ◽  
Energy Dispersion Spectrometry ◽  
Process Operation

AbstractMembrane distillation was used to produce demineralized water from ground water. The influence of feed water pretreatment carried out in a contact clarifier (softening with Ca(OH)2 and coagulation with FeSO4 · 7H2O) followed by filtration, on the process effectiveness was evaluated. It was found that the chemical pretreatment decreased the membrane fouling; however, the degree of water purification was insufficient because precipitation of small amounts of deposit on the membrane surface during the process operation was still observed. The permeate flux was gradually decreasing as a result of scaling. The morphology and composition of the fouling layer were studied using scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy dispersion spectrometry. The presence of significant amounts of silica, apart from calcium and magnesium, was determined in the formed deposit. The removal of foulants by heterogeneous crystallization performed inside the filter (70 mesh), assembled directly at the module inlet, was found to be a solution preventing the membrane scaling.

A real trial of a long-term non-fouling membrane bioreactor for saline sewage treatment

2011 ◽  
Vol 63 (7) ◽  
pp. 1519-1523 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peng Bai ◽  
Jin Wang ◽  
Guang-Hao Chen
Keyword(s):  
Membrane Fouling ◽  
Membrane Bioreactor ◽  
Membrane Surface ◽  
Pilot Trial ◽  
Sewage Treatment ◽  
Power Source ◽  
Permeate Flux ◽  
Mixing Condition ◽  
Water Ratio

This paper reports on a pilot trial of a novel MBR developed with coarse-pore membrane module by the authors. The plant was operated for 370 days with up to 7 m3/d raw saline sewage after 3-mm screening. The plant performed successfully without membrane fouling for 270 days except an accidental power source failure for 30 h, during which membrane was fouled under no aeration and mixing condition. EPS increases in both the reactor and the bio-cake on the membrane surface explained this fouling. The average TSS, COD and TKN removal efficiency were 92, 90, and 93%, respectively, under a high effective permeate flux of 4.8 m/d and a low air-to-water ratio of 15.

scholarly journals Effect of Initial Water Flux on the Performance of Anaerobic Membrane Bioreactor: Constant Flux Mode versus Varying Flux Mode

Membranes ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 203
Author(s):  
Xiawen Yi ◽  
Meng Zhang ◽  
Weilong Song ◽  
Xinhua Wang
Keyword(s):  
Membrane Fouling ◽  
Membrane Surface ◽  
Water Flux ◽  
Operating Time ◽  
Operating Mode ◽  
Initial Water ◽  
Constant Flux ◽  
Membrane Performance ◽  
Fouling Mitigation ◽  
Flux Mode

Anaerobic membrane bioreactors (AnMBRs) have aroused growing interest in wastewater treatment and energy recovery. However, serious membrane fouling remains a critical hindrance to AnMBRs. Here, a novel membrane fouling mitigation via optimizing initial water flux is proposed, and its feasibility was evaluated by comparing the membrane performance in AnMBRs between constant flux and varying flux modes. Results indicated that, compared with the constant flux mode, varying flux mode significantly prolonged the membrane operating time by mitigating membrane fouling. Through the analyses of fouled membranes under two operating modes, the mechanism of membrane fouling mitigation was revealed as follows: A low water flux was applied in stage 1 which slowed down the interaction between foulants and membrane surface, especially reduced the deposition of proteins on the membrane surface and formed a thin and loose fouling layer. Correspondingly, the interaction between foulants was weakened in the following stage 2 with a high water flux and, subsequently, the foulants absorbed on the membrane surface was further reduced. In addition, flux operating mode had no impact on the contaminant removal in an AnMBR. This study provides a new way of improving membrane performance in AnMBRs via a varying flux operating mode.

scholarly journals A Unified, One Fluid Model for the Drag of Fluid and Solid Dispersals by Permeate Flux towards a Membrane Surface

Membranes ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 154
Author(s):  
Amgad Salama ◽  
Shuyu Sun ◽  
Tao Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Hyperbolic Equation ◽  
Membrane Fouling ◽  
Fluid Model ◽  
Membrane Surface ◽  
Numerical Approach ◽  
Domain Model ◽  
Permeate Flux ◽  
Modeling Framework ◽  
Computational Burden ◽  
Averaging Techniques

The drag of dispersals towards a membrane surface is a consequence of the filtration process. It also represents the first step towards the development of the problem of fouling. In order to combat membrane fouling, it is important to understand such drag mechanisms and provide a modeling framework. In this work, a new modeling and numerical approach is introduced that is based on a one-domain model in which both the dispersals and the surrounding fluid are dealt with as a fluid with heterogeneous property fields. Furthermore, because of the fact that the geometry of the object assumes axial symmetry and the configuration remains fixed, the location of the interface may be calculated using geometrical relationships. This alleviates the need to define an indicator function and solve a hyperbolic equation to update the configuration. Furthermore, this approach simplifies the calculations and significantly reduces the computational burden required otherwise if one incorporates a hyperbolic equation to track the interface. To simplify the calculations, we consider the motion of an extended cylindrical object. This allows a reduction in the dimensions of the problem to two, thereby reducing the computational burden without a loss of generality. Furthermore, for this particular case there exists an approximate analytical solution that accounts for the effects of the confining boundaries that usually exist in real systems. We use such a setup to provide the benchmarking of the different averaging techniques for the calculations of properties at the cell faces and center, particularly in the cells involving the interface.

Numerical Simulation of Filtration of Charged Oil Particles in Stationary and Rotating Tubular Membranes

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sina Jahangiri Mamouri ◽  
Volodymyr V. Tarabara ◽  
André Bénard
Keyword(s):  
Flow Field ◽  
Electric Field ◽  
Electric Potential ◽  
Membrane Fouling ◽  
Membrane Surface ◽  
Cross Flow ◽  
Solid Cylinder ◽  
Permeate Flux ◽  
Cross Flow Filtration ◽  
Flow Filtration

Cross flow filtration (CFF) is a common membrane separation process with applications in food, biochemical and petroleum industries. In particular, membranes can be used for liquid-liquid separation processes such as needed in oil-water separation. A major challenge in cross flow filtration is membrane fouling. It can decrease significantly the permeate flux and a membrane’s efficiency. Membrane fouling can be mitigated by inducing shear on the membrane’s surface and this can be enhanced by inducing a swirl in the flow. In addition, a possible approach to improve membrane efficiency consists of repelling droplets/particles from the porous surface toward the centerline using a repulsive electric force. For this purpose, the surface of the membrane can be exposed to electric potential and droplets/particles are also induced to have the same electric charge. In this work, numerical simulations of charged non-deformable droplets moving within an axially rotating charged tubular membrane are performed. The results show that by increasing the electric potential on the membrane surface, the repelling force increases which obviously improves the grade efficiency of the membrane. However, the electric field gradients found in the flow field require large potentials on the membrane surface to observe a noticeable effect. Hence, a smaller solid cylinder is located in the centerline of the flow channel with zero potential. This solid cylinder enhances the electric field gradient in the domain which results in higher repelling forces and larger grade efficiency of the membrane at small potentials. The addition of a small cylinder in the flow field also improves the grade efficiency increases due to the higher shear stress near the membrane surface.

scholarly journals Membrane surface properties and their effects on real waste oil-in-water emulsion ultrafiltration

Water SA ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 45 (3 July) ◽  
Author(s):  
Marjana Simonič
Keyword(s):  
Surface Properties ◽  
Membrane Fouling ◽  
Membrane Surface ◽  
Cross Flow ◽  
Influential Factors ◽  
Permeate Flux ◽  
Chemical Cleaning ◽  
Water Emulsion ◽  
Oil In Water ◽  
Oil In Water Emulsion

Membrane surface properties and their effect on the efficiency of ultrafiltration (UF) of real waste oily emulsions was studied. Experiments were performed in cross-flow operation at total recycle condition in a lab-scale system. The ceramic UF membrane in the tubular type module was employed. During the experiments permeate flux was measured. The most important influential factors, such as temperature, TMP, and pH, were considered during the experiments. Zeta potential was measured in order to explain the phenomena on the membrane surface. The isoelectric point of the fouled membrane was shifted to the alkaline range. COD removal efficiency reached 89%. Gas chromatography measurements were performed in order to determine the composition of waste emulsions. SEM micrographs showed the formation of calcite on the membrane, which contributed to membrane fouling. Chemical cleaning was examined using alkaline and acid solutions, and a cleaning strategy was determined.

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