Nanofiltration (NF) is a pressure driven membrane process applied in the area between the

separation capabilities of reverse osmosis (RO) membranes and ultrafiltration (UF) membranes, that
is, in the separation of ions from solutes such as small molecules of sugars. Nanofiltration is often
used where the divalent ions (Ca, Mg and ions of plating industry) have to be removed. The
molecular weight cut off of nanofiltration membranes is between 200-1000 Daltons, which means
pore size ranges between 1-10 nm. Typical rejections of NF membranes are 60% for NaCl, 98% for
magnesium sulphate, glucose and sucrose. Generally, this opens up the possibilities for process
efficiency improvements and the production of new products, particularly in the food industry and
biotechnology1. Some other specific applications are removal of colour, removal of TOC and
trihalomethane precursors from surface water, removal of low molecular weight species such as
organics in pharmaceutical production, surfactants from waste waters. The potential applications of
nanofiltration in food industry and environmental protection are listed in Tab. 1.