Control of fouling formation in membrane ultrafiltration by ultrasound irradiation.
The increasing application of membrane filtration in water and wastewater treatment necessitates techniques to improve performance, especially in fouling control. Ultrasound is one promising technology for this purpose as cavitational effects facilitate continuous cleaning of the membrane. This research studied the ultrafiltration of lake water in systems with constant permeate flux under medium frequency (45 kHz) ultrasound irradiation. Fouling was investigated by monitoring transmembrane pressure (TMP) using continuous or intermittent ultrasound irradiation and dead-end or crossflow operation. Best performance was observed with continuous ultrasound irradiation in crossflow mode. Intermittent irradiation reduced the rate of TMP build-up but nevertheless allowed irreversible fouling to develop.
a Sanitary Environmental Engineering Division (SEED), Department of Civil Engineering , University of Salerno , Fisciano , (Sa) 84084 , Italy.
Vincenzo
V
Naddeo
Vincenzo
V
Belgiorno
Laura
L
Borea
Mona Freda N
MF
Secondes
Florencio
F
Ballesteros
D057219:Biofouling / Q000517:prevention & control*; D008567:Membranes, Artificial; D014462:Ultrafiltration; D014465:Ultrasonics; D018508:Water Purification
D008567:Membranes, Artificial
NOM; fouling; membrane ultrafiltration; sonication; ultrasound