MEMBRANE PROCESS

Membrane:

Membrane is a selective barrier between two phases, that is, it will allow one phase to
pass through and the other phase will be rejected. Membranes can be symmetric, asymmetric or
composite with respect to there construction.

Membranes are divided into two categories on the principle of mass transfer through the
membranes, namely:

1. porous membranes

2. non porous membranes

The mode of mass transfer through porous membranes is through convection or sieving,
that is, all those particles or molecules which are greater in size than the pore size of the membrane
will be rejected during filtration process. Microfiltration and Ultrafiltration membranes come in
category of porous membranes. While in non porous membranes, it is solution-diffusion principle
which controls the mass transfer through these membranes. Nanofiltration and RO membranes are
typical example of non porous membranes.

Membrane Technology:

Membrane technology utilizes a semipermeable membrane for the separation of

suspended and dissolved solids from water. Various membrane processes can be used to
concentrate or purify a dilute (aqueous or nonaqueous) solution. The characteristic of these
processes is that the solvent is the continuous phase and that the concentration of solute is relatively
low. The particle or molecular size and chemical properties of the solute determine the structure, i.e,
pore size and pore size distribution necessary for the membrane employed. Various processes can
be distinguished related to the particle size of the solute and consequently to membrane
structure.There are two basic types of membrane separation processes; pressure-driven and
electrically-driven.

Pressure-driven processes:

Pressure-driven processes use hydraulic pressure to force water molecules through the
membranes. Impurities are retained and concentrate in the feedwater, which becomes the reject
water or concentrate stream. The permeate, the water that passes through the membrane, is
recovered as product or pure water.

Pressure driven technologies gies include, in order of decreasing permeability: microfiltration (MF),
ultrafiltration (UF), nanofiltration (NF), and reverse osmosis (RO). The range of sizes
of selected constituents in water and wastewater and the performance capabilities of the different
membranes are illustrated in Figure

MF and UF often serve to remove large organic molecules, large colloidal particles, and
many microorganisms. MF performs as a porous barrier to reduce turbidity and m e types of
colloidal suspensions. UF offers higher removals than MF, but operates at higher pressures. In
wastewater reclamation, MF or UF might provide a suitable level of treatment. In drinking-water
treatment, MF or UF might be used in tandem with NF or RO to remove coarser material so that
fouling of the less permeable membranes is minimized.

The most commonly used process for the production of drinking water is RO, but NF is
now emerging as a viable alternative to conventional water treatment because it can operate at
lower pressures and higher recovery rates than RO systems. NF is also cost-effective in many
groundwater softening applications where the incoming turbidity is low.
Electrically-driven membrane process:

In the electrically-driven membrane process, electric current is used to move ions across
the membrane, leaving purified water behind. In this process, the ions are collected in the
concentrate stream for disposal. The product water is the purified feedwater. Electrodialysis reversal
(EDR) is an improvement over the original electrodialysis process. In EDR, the direct-current
driving force is periodically reversed to prevent scaling and fouling of the membrane surface. This
innovation improves both the efficiency and the operating life of membranes. Ion exchange
membranes are the heart of the process. Cation-selective and anion-selective membranes are
alternately placed in a membrane stack. Water flows between the membranes, and when direct
current is applied across the stack, positive Ions move toward the cathode and negative ions move
toward the anode. Due to the alternating membranes, salt is removed from every other compartment
and collected in intervening compartments. The salt-laden water is then discharged as a brine
concentrate. Desalted water is discharged to the purified-water collection system.

Microfiltration:

Microfiltration is a filtration process which removes contaminants from a fluid (liquid &

gas) by passage through a microporous membrane. A typical microfiltration membrane poresize
range is 0.1 to 10 micrometres (µm). Microfiltration is not fundamentally different from reverse
osmosis, ultrafiltration or nanofiltration, except in terms of the size of the molecules it
retains.Increasingly used in drinking water treatment, it effectively removes major pathogens and
contaminants such as Giardia lamblia cysts, Cryptosporidium oocysts, and large bacteria. For this
application the filter has to be rated for 0.2 µm or less. For mineral and drinking water bottlers, the
most commonly used format is pleated cartridges usually made frompolyethersulfone (PES) media.
Ultrafiltration:

Ultrafiltration (UF) designates a membrane separation process, driven by a pressure

gradient, in which the membrane fractionates components of a liquid as a function of their solvated
size and structure. The membrane configuration is usually cross-flow. In UF, the membrane pore
size is larger allowing some components to pass through the pores with the water. It is
a separation/ fractionation process using a 10,000 MW cutoff, 40 psig, and temperatures of 50-
60°C with polysulfone membranes. In UF milk, lactose and minerals pass in a 50% separation ratio;
for example, in the retentate would be 100% of fat, 100% of protein, 50% of lactose, and 50% of
free minerals.
Diafiltration is a specialized type of ultrafiltration process in which the retentate is diluted with
water and re-ultrafiltered, to reduce the concentration of soluble permeate components and increase
further the concentration of retained components.

Nanofiltration:

It is a special process selected when RO and UF are not the ideal choice for separation. It
can perform separation applications that are not otherwise economically feasible, such as
demineralization, color removal, and desalination. In concentration of organic solutes, suspended
solids, and polyvalent ions, the permeate contains monovalent ions and low-molecular-weight
organic solutions like alcohol.

This technique has prospered over the past few years. Today, mainly applied in drinking
water purification process steps, such as water softening, decolouring and micro pollutant removal.
During industrial processes nano filtration is applied for the removal of specific components, such
as colouring agents. The technique is mainly applied for the removal of organic substances.Other
applications of nano filtration are:

o The removal of pesticides from groundwater

o The removal of heavy metals from wastewater

o Wastewater recycling in laundries

o Water softening

o Nitrates removal
Reverse osmosis:

Reverse osmosis (often referred to as “RO”) is the most refined level of liquid filtration
available. While a conventional liquid filter uses a porous material such as a screen to capture solid
particles from a liquid stream, an RO element employs a semi-permeable membrane that separates
molecular-sized particles out of the liquid.

In water treatment, for example, the membrane is permeable to water molecules (i.e.,
water molecules can pass through), but is not permeable to molecules of dissolved solids such as
salt. If such a membrane were to be placed between two compartments in a container, as shown in
Figure 1, and a salt solution is placed on one side of the membrane and pure water placed on the
other side, water can pass through the membrane while the dissolved salt cannot. An important
scientific principle now comes into play in this example: two dissimilar liquids separated by a semi-
permeable membrane will try to reach the same concentration of dissolved solids on both sides of
the membrane. The only way for this to happen, however, is for the pure water to pass through the
membrane in an attempt to dilute the salt solution. This flow of water through the membrane, in an
attempt to reach equilibrium, is called osmosis.

But if the goal of purification is to remove the salt from the water, it is necessary to reverse the
natural osmotic flow through the membrane by forcing the salt water through the membrane in the
reverse direction. This can be accomplished by applying pressure to the salt water side of the
container, creating a condition known as reverse osmosis, again see Figure 1.

While the principle of reverse osmosis is simple, a practical RO process cannot continue
indefinitely unless steps are take to ensure that the membrane does not become clogged by
precipitated salts and other impurities forced against it by the pressurized stream of feed water.
Since RO systems operate on what is known as cross flow filtration (see Figure 2), purified water
permeates through the membrane while the concentrate containing rejected salts flows parallel to
the membrane, sweeping impurities away from the membrane surface and discharging them with
the concentrate stream.
Electrodialysis:

It is used to transport salt ions from one solution through ion-exchange membranes to

another solution under the influence of an applied electric potential difference. This is done in a
configuration called an electrodialysis cell. The cell consists of a feed (diluate) compartment and a
concentrate (brine) compartment formed by an anion exchange membrane and a cation exchange
membrane placed between two electrodes. The multiple electrodialysis cells are arranged into a
configuration called electrodialysis stack, with alternating anion and cation exchange membranes
forming the multiple electrodialysis cells.

It is when unique compared to distillation techniques and other membrane based

processes - dissolved species are moved away from the feed stream.Because the quantity of
dissolved species in the feed stream is far less than that of the fluid, electro-dialysis offers the
practical advantage of much higher feed recovery in many applications.

Working:

In an electrodialysis stack, the diluate (D) feed stream, brine or concentrate (C) stream,
and electrolyte (E) stream are allowed to flow through the appropriate cell compartments formed by
the ion exchange membranes. Under the influence of an electrical potential difference, the
negatively charged ions (e.g.,chloride) in the diluate stream migrate toward the positively
charged anode. These ions pass through the positively charged anion exchange membrane, but are
prevented from further migration toward the anode by the negatively charged cation exchange
membrane and therefore stay in the C stream, which becomes concentrated with the anions. The
positively charged species (e.g., sodium) in the D stream migrate toward the negatively
charged cathode and pass through the negatively charged cation exchange membrane. These
cations also stay in the C stream, prevented from further migration toward the cathode by the
positively charged anion exchange membrane. As a result of the anion and cation migration, electric
current flows between the cathode and anode. Only an equal number of anion and cation charge
equivalents are transferred from the D stream into the C stream and so the charge balance is
maintained in each stream. The overall result of the electrodialysis process is an ion concentration
increase in the concentrate stream with a depletion of ions in the diluate solution feed stream.

The E stream is the electrode stream that flows past each electrode in the stack. This
stream may consist of the same composition as the feed stream (e.g., sodium chloride) or may be a
separate solution containing a different species (e.g., sodium sulfate). Depending on the stack
configuration, anions and cations from the electrode stream may be transported into the C stream, or
anions and cations from the D stream may be transported into the E stream. In each case, this
transport is necessary to carry current across the stack and maintain electrically neutral stack
solutions.
The Growth Of Membrane Technology:

Membrane systems have been used in specialized applications for more than 30 years,
largely for water treatment, including desalination of seawater and brackish water. With technical
advances and corresponding cost reductions, membrane systems are now capable of
decontaminating non saline waters (including treated wastewaters) in single step processes at
competitive costs. About two-thirds of the market will be for water, and one-third for wastewater.
Membrane technologies are receiving special recognition as alternatives to conventional water
treatment and as a means of polishing treated wastewater effluent for reuse applications. Membrane
technologies are energy intensive. New membrane technologies feature the use of low pressure
systems that significantly reduce energy use and operation and maintenance costs. Membranes are
commonly used for the removal of dissolved solids, color, and hardness in drinking water.

Membrane technologies have also been proposed by the USEPA as a means of:

(1) complying with current and anticipated regulations

for particle removal

(2) reducing disinfection by-products such as trihalomethanes (THMs) and haloacetic acids (HAAs)

(3) eliminating illness-causing microorganisms such as Giardia and Cryptosporidium in drinking

water applications.
Energy use in membrane treatment:

Membrane processes use a significant amount of energy. Even low pressure membranes
use approximately 100 kwh per million gallons (3.785 million litres) of water produced. The
development of new composite membranes has reduced the operating pressures considerably.
Lower pressure operation means lower energy consumption. Whereas 400 pounds per square inch
(psi) (2,760 kPa) pressure was considered normal for RO as recently as ten years ago, today's
ultralow pressure RO membranes function efficiently at pressures as low as 125 psi (862 kPa); the
norm for brackish water desalination is 225 psi (1,550 kPa). A comparison of energy consumption
per 1,000 gallons (3,785 litres) of water produced is illustrated in Figure for EDR and various types
of pressure driven membranes.
Advantages and disadvantages of membrane process:
 TAMILNADU AGRICULTURAL UNIVERSITY
COIMBATORE – 641003

SWC 481 INDUSTRIAL WASTE TREATMENT

AND MANAGEMENT (2+1)

ASSIGNMENT ON

MEMBRANE PROCESS

COURSE TEACHER

DR.D.TAMILMANI
PROFESSOR&HEAD
DEPT. OF SWCE
AEC&RI

SUBMITTED BY

K. KANIMOZHI BTG 06-009

IV B.TECH EEE
AEC&RI