Technology Tuesdays: Membrane Filtration
Hello Partners!
Before we get going on this topic, let’s talk a bit about what a membrane is. It is a “thin layer of semi-permeable material that separates substances when a driving force is applied across the membrane.” Membrane filtration can be used for a number of different processes. Namely, for the removal of particles that are too fine for ordinary filtration techniques from liquids. These particles include proteins, bacteria, viruses, and dissolved salts.
Therefore, it is suitable for processes such as dairy processing and wastewater treatment, among others.
There are 4 different types of membrane filtration: microfiltration (MF), ultrafiltration (UF), nanofiltration (NF), and reverse osmosis (RO). Each is good for a different type of contaminant requiring removal. For example:
MF is effective at removing sand, silt, clays, Giardia lamblia and Crypotosporidium cysts, algae, and some bacteria species.
UF is effective at removing some bacteria and viruses as well as humic materials.
NF removes virtually all cysts, bacteria, viruses, and humic materials.
RO is effective with removing radium, natural organic substances, pesticides, cysts, bacteria, and viruses.
You can quickly see how these processes can be effective in different applications. So, the million-dollar question is, what makes these different types of membrane filtration energy efficient? The majority of the energy savings comes from the drastic reduction in the use of thermal energy to achieve these same outcomes.
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Sources:
https://www.mrwa.com/WaterWorksMnl/Chapter%2019%20Membrane%20Filtration.pdf
https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/chemistry/membrane-filtration