title: Investigation of severe UF membrane fouling induced by three marine algal species.
abstract: Reducing membrane fouling caused by seawater algal bloom is a challenge for regions of the world where most of their freshwater is produced by seawater desalination. This study aims to compare ultrafiltration (UF) fouling potential of three ubiquitous marine algal species cultures (i.e., Skeletonema costatum-SKC, Tetraselmis sp.-TET, and Hymenomonas sp.-HYM) sampled at different phases of growth. Results showed that flux reduction and irreversible fouling were more severe during the decline phase as compared to the exponential phase, for all species. SKC and TET were responsible for substantial irreversible fouling but their impact was significantly lower than HYM. The development of a transparent gel layer surrounding the cell during the HYM growth and accumulating in water is certainly responsible for the more severe observed fouling. Chemical backwash with a standard chlorine solution did not recover any membrane permeability. For TET and HYM, the Hydraulically Irreversible Fouling Index (HIFI) was correlated to their biopolymer content but this correlation is specific for each species. Solution pre-filtration through a 1.2 μm membrane proved that cells and particulate algal organic matter (p-AOM) considerably contribute to fouling, especially for HYM for which the HIFI was reduced by a factor of 82.3.
authors.affiliation: Water Reuse and Desalination Center, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Thuwal, 23955-6900, Saudi Arabia; Eawag, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Ueberlandstrasse 133, CH-8600, Duebendorf, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Tony
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Merle
authors.affiliation: Water Reuse and Desalination Center, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Thuwal, 23955-6900, Saudi Arabia.
authors.forename: Laure
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Dramas
authors.affiliation: Curtin Water Quality Research Centre, Department of Chemistry, Curtin University, Perth, WA-6845, Australia; Facultad del Mar y Medio Ambiente, Universidad del Pacifico, Guayaquil, Ecuador.
authors.forename: Leonardo
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Gutierrez
authors.affiliation: Dow Water and Process Solutions, Autovia Tarragona Salou s/n, 43006, Tarragona, Spain.
authors.forename: Veronica
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Garcia-Molina
authors.affiliation: Water Reuse and Desalination Center, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, Thuwal, 23955-6900, Saudi Arabia; Curtin Water Quality Research Centre, Department of Chemistry, Curtin University, Perth, WA-6845, Australia. Electronic address: jean-philippe.croue@curtin.edu.au.
authors.forename: Jean-Philippe
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Croué
mesh_terms: D057219:Biofouling; D001704:Biopolymers / Q000378:metabolism; D000460:Chlorophyta / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism*; D017377:Diatoms / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism*; D058087:Haptophyta / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism*; D008567:Membranes, Artificial; D009930:Organic Chemicals / Q000378:metabolism; D012623:Seawater / Q000382:microbiology; D013045:Species Specificity; D014462:Ultrafiltration / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D018508:Water Purification / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods
chemical_list: D001704:Biopolymers; D008567:Membranes, Artificial; D009930:Organic Chemicals
keywords: Algal bloom; Chemical cleaning; Fouling mitigation; Ultrafiltration