Membrane fouling and wetting in a DCMD process for RO brine concentration

Membrane wetting and fouling were studied using hollow-fiber polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) membranes to concentrate reverse osmosis (RO) brine in a direct contact membrane distillation (DCMD) process. The effect of the operating conditions, such as the feed temperature, the flow velocity and the fe...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Ge, J., Peng, Y., Li, Z., Chen, P., Wang, Shaobin
Format: Journal Article
Published: Elsevier BV 2014
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/16550
_version_ 1848749208290459648
author Ge, J.
Peng, Y.
Li, Z.
Chen, P.
Wang, Shaobin
author_facet Ge, J.
Peng, Y.
Li, Z.
Chen, P.
Wang, Shaobin
author_sort Ge, J.
building Curtin Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description Membrane wetting and fouling were studied using hollow-fiber polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) membranes to concentrate reverse osmosis (RO) brine in a direct contact membrane distillation (DCMD) process. The effect of the operating conditions, such as the feed temperature, the flow velocity and the feed solution concentration, was investigated. Membrane wetting was more significant at high feed temperatures, and the salts in the feed promoted membrane wetting; membrane wetting resulted in a decrease in the flux and salt rejection. A theoretical model was developed to simulate the DCMD process, and the results of the model were analyzed. The concentration factor significantly affected the flux and the electrical conductivity of the distillate. When the concentration factor (CF) was less than 3.5, CaSO4 did not crystallize because of high ionic strength and higher solubility of CaSO4 at the membrane surface than in the bulk solution; beyond CF of 3.5, membrane fouling was exacerbated because of CaSO4 crystallization. Membrane fouling was more significant at the higher of the two temperatures investigated for long-time DCMD operation: square CaSO4 crystals formed at 77°C, whereas snowflakes formed at 55°C. The permeate was lower in the divalent cations, Mg2+ and Ca2+, than in the monovalent cations, Na+ and K+.
first_indexed 2025-11-14T07:17:17Z
format Journal Article
id curtin-20.500.11937-16550
institution Curtin University Malaysia
institution_category Local University
last_indexed 2025-11-14T07:17:17Z
publishDate 2014
publisher Elsevier BV
recordtype eprints
repository_type Digital Repository
spelling curtin-20.500.11937-165502017-05-30T08:03:25Z Membrane fouling and wetting in a DCMD process for RO brine concentration Ge, J. Peng, Y. Li, Z. Chen, P. Wang, Shaobin Membrane wetting and fouling were studied using hollow-fiber polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) membranes to concentrate reverse osmosis (RO) brine in a direct contact membrane distillation (DCMD) process. The effect of the operating conditions, such as the feed temperature, the flow velocity and the feed solution concentration, was investigated. Membrane wetting was more significant at high feed temperatures, and the salts in the feed promoted membrane wetting; membrane wetting resulted in a decrease in the flux and salt rejection. A theoretical model was developed to simulate the DCMD process, and the results of the model were analyzed. The concentration factor significantly affected the flux and the electrical conductivity of the distillate. When the concentration factor (CF) was less than 3.5, CaSO4 did not crystallize because of high ionic strength and higher solubility of CaSO4 at the membrane surface than in the bulk solution; beyond CF of 3.5, membrane fouling was exacerbated because of CaSO4 crystallization. Membrane fouling was more significant at the higher of the two temperatures investigated for long-time DCMD operation: square CaSO4 crystals formed at 77°C, whereas snowflakes formed at 55°C. The permeate was lower in the divalent cations, Mg2+ and Ca2+, than in the monovalent cations, Na+ and K+. 2014 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/16550 Elsevier BV restricted
spellingShingle Ge, J.
Peng, Y.
Li, Z.
Chen, P.
Wang, Shaobin
Membrane fouling and wetting in a DCMD process for RO brine concentration
title Membrane fouling and wetting in a DCMD process for RO brine concentration
title_full Membrane fouling and wetting in a DCMD process for RO brine concentration
title_fullStr Membrane fouling and wetting in a DCMD process for RO brine concentration
title_full_unstemmed Membrane fouling and wetting in a DCMD process for RO brine concentration
title_short Membrane fouling and wetting in a DCMD process for RO brine concentration
title_sort membrane fouling and wetting in a dcmd process for ro brine concentration
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/16550