Journal of Membrane Science 320 (2008) 541–548

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Journal of Membrane Science

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/memsci

Preparation and characterization of metallic membrane using wire arc spraying

S.S. Madaeni a,∗ , M.E. Aalami-Aleagha b , P. Daraei a
a
Membrane Research Center, Department of Chemical Engineering, Razi University, Kermanshah 67149, Iran
b
Department of Mechanical Engineering, Razi University, Kermanshah, Iran

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t

Article history: Metallic membranes can be prepared by various techniques. This work introduces a novel method for
Received 6 January 2008 the preparation of metallic membranes using wire arc spraying. The formed metallic membranes were
Received in revised form 20 April 2008 characterized by metallographic techniques such as microscopy image analysis. The distance between
Accepted 23 April 2008
gun and the substrate surface, which is called spray distance or gun distance, was selected as the variable
Available online 1 May 2008
of metal spraying. The effects of gun distance on coating properties and membrane performance were
investigated. The metallographic and performance data showed that the range of 35–40 cm is the optimum
Keywords:
gun distance for spraying. Ion rejection capability of the prepared membrane was tested using saline water
Metallic membrane
Wire arc spraying
as the feed. Moreover the filtration capability of the prepared membranes for blue indigo dye particles was
Porosity investigated. Energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) analysis and SEM technique were used for the investigation of
Ion removal filtration mechanism. The results indicate that the prepared stainless steel membrane is able to efficiently
Stainless steel remove particles from water.
Blue indigo dye © 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

1. Introduction thermal spray is compatible with most materials, is affordable,

Thermal spraying is a group of coating processes in which finely
divided metallic or nonmetallic materials are deposited in a molten
or semimolten condition to form a coating. The coating material
may be in the form of powder, ceramic-rod, wire, or molten mate-
rials [1,2]. This is a well established, extremely versatile technology
that is commercially used to produce a wide variety of coatings for
applications ranging from jet engines and medical implements to
pump seals and bicycle rims. Many industrial components can be
protected and have their lives extended or enhanced using thermal
spray. Automotive engines are coated, insulators are sprayed, chem-
ical reactors are repaired against corrosion, pumps are restored,
bridges are coated and aircraft bodies and engine parts are pro-
tected [3].
Thermal spraying encompasses a group of processes that are
capable of rapidly depositing metals, ceramics, plastics, and mix-
tures of these materials [1]. This process contains some various
plasma spraying methods like powder, wire and molten metal flame
spraying, detonation flame spraying, high velocity oxy/fuel (HVOF)
spraying and different electrical techniques like non-transferred
plasma arc spraying, radio frequency plasma spraying and wire arc
spraying [1,4]. Each process has different costs, material flexibility
and coating performance capabilities. As a surfacing technology,
∗ Corresponding author. Tel.: +98 912 2045410; fax: +98 831 4274542.
E-mail address: smadaeni@yahoo.com (S.S. Madaeni).
rapid and can produce relatively thick (0.010–0.100 in.) protective
coatings [3].
Metallic membranes can be prepared by various methods such
as electroplating, electro-less plating, chemical vapor deposition
(CVD), physical vapor deposition (PVD), sintering, etc. [5]. However
a comprehensive effort is required to acquire appropriate prepa-
ration techniques for producing highly reliable and cost-effective
metallic membranes.
In this paper we employed wire arc spraying technique as a novel
method for the preparation of stainless steel metallic membrane.
The fabricated membranes were characterized by metallographic
techniques. The filtration performances of the prepared mem-
branes were tested using saline water and blue indigo suspended
solution as the feed. The effects of some structural and opera-
tional parameters such as gun distance, transmembrane pressure
and membrane thickness on membrane performance were inves-
tigated. The SEM technique and energy dispersive X-ray (EDX)
analysis were applied for the explanation of filtration mechanism.
2. Materials and methods
2.1. Wire arc spraying
Electric arc spraying is a thermal spray process in which an arc
is struck between two consumable electrodes of a coating material.
Compressed gas is used to atomize and propel the material to the
substrate [1]. In the electric arc spraying, a spray of molten metallic

0376-7388/$ – see front matter © 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.memsci.2008.04.051
542 S.S. Madaeni et al. / Journal of Membrane Science 320 (2008) 541–548

Table 1
Spraying conditions for the investigation of gun distance effect

Run # Gun distance (cm) Atomizer air pressure (bar) Electric current (A) Wire feed (bar) Voltage (V)

1 15 3.5 160 1.5 24

2 30 3.5 160 1.5 24
3 40 3.5 160 1.5 24
4 50 3.5 160 1.5 24
5 65 3.5 160 1.5 24
6 15–65 3.5 160 1.5 24

droplets is created by the impingement of a fast moving gas upon
the continuously melting tips of consumable wires fed into a dc
arc formed between the wires [1,6]. In fact, the molten end of the
wires are dispersed and accelerated by a gas stream (air or inert gas)
[1,6,7]. The temperature in the arc can reach 5000 ◦ C. The particle
velocity lies in the range of 100–300 m/s. The process is simple and
can be operated either manually or in an automated manner. It is
possible to spray a wide range of metals, alloys and metal matrix
composites (MMCs) [7,8].
In this study Hesller 300A spraying apparatus was used. The
variables of wire arc spraying are voltage, electric current, wire
type, atomizer air type and its pressure, nozzle type and gun
distance. A preliminary investigation revealed that the gun dis-
tance is the most vital variable in membrane preparation. The
spraying conditions for each prepared membrane are listed in
Table 1.
2.2. Preparation of metallic membrane
The cylindrical pieces (30 mm in diameter and 50 mm in
length) of steel were selected as substrate. For preparing these
substrates, first, they were scraped by means of grinding paper
with 240 and 600 meshes, respectively. Then they were fixed
for spraying at five various distances (15, 30, 40, 50 and 65 cm).
Also, for investigating the structural differences between shorter
and longer distances, a multi-distance spraying at the range
of 15–65 cm was carried out (run 6 in Table 1). For this run,
spraying was started at 15 cm and during an appropriate time
reached to 65 cm. Rima 410 stainless steel wire with 1.55-mm
diameter was used as a coating material. The metal coat-
ings could be prepared with various thicknesses (approximately
0.5–1.5 mm).
Polishing the substrate led to the detachment of the sprayed
layer before an appropriate thickness was reached as well as to
bending of the metal layer. We found that coarsening the substrate
surface is necessary for partially sticking of sprayed layer to the
substrate. Coarsening was carried out by sand blast apparatus.
2.3. Characterization of metallic membrane
alcohol; the surface was dried and weighed as W2 . The specimen
was completely dried by hot air flow for 30 min and weighed for
last time as W3 . The value of W2 − W1 or W2 − W3 is the weight
of alcohol which has diffused in inner pores of metallic film. The
third weighing was performed for certainty of W1 -value. The void
spaces in the membrane structure or membrane porosity can be
calculated using the weight and density of isopropanol and mem-
brane.
2.4. Performance tests
The metallic membranes were installed in a home-made cell in
dead-end mode (Fig. 1). The ion rejection was calculated during 3 h
at constant pressure (6.8 bars). Saline water was prepared by the
addition of NaCl to distilled water (0.8–1 g/L). The conductivity of
the saline water was measured as an initial feed conductivity. Per-
meated water was collected every 30 min and its conductivity was
measured. Ion rejection (R) can be calculated using conductivities
of feed (Cf ) and permeate (Cp ) as follows:
Cf − Cp
R (%) = × 100 (1)
Cf
In another set of experiments, the efficiency of metallic mem-
branes for removing particles (blue indigo dye) was investigated.
The size distribution of dye particles was estimated using optical
microscopy imaging and image analysis by Olysia m3 software. The
blue indigo contains particles in the range of 0.5–3 ␮m. A suspen-
sion of the dye was prepared by adding the blue indigo into the
distilled water with 130 mg/L (152 NTU) turbidity value. For inves-
tigating the capability of membrane for preventing the passage of
blue indigo dye, the turbidity of water was measured using tur-
bidity meter (TOA-DKK, model TB25A, China). The rejection of dye
particles was calculated using Eq. (1) with substituting the conduc-
tivities by dye concentration (turbidity value in mg/L).
The transmembrane pressure for all experiments, with the
exception of investigating the effect of transmembrane pressure,
was fixed at 6.8 bars.

Microscopy image analysis was carried out to characterize the

prepared membranes. Significant properties such as porosity, metal
oxide content, average pore size and pore size distribution for both
surface and cross-section of the membranes were elucidated. Imag-
ing was performed by Olympus GX71 optical microscope and DP12
camera. Obtained microphotographs were analyzed using Olysia
m3 software.
Porosities of the prepared membranes were measured using
isopropanol. For this purpose, the specimen was immersed in
isopropanol for 2 days without fragmentation into small pieces.
Isopropanol was selected as diffusing fluid due to its low sur-
face tension (compared to water). By this way, the impurities are
removed from metal structure. The specimen was dried with hot
air flow and weighed as W1 . The membrane was immersed in iso-
propanol again for 3 days. The wet specimen was removed from Fig. 1. Scheme of the experimental set-up for testing membrane performance.
 S.S. Madaeni et al. / Journal of Membrane Science 320 (2008) 541–548
Fig. 2. Optical microscopy image of the cross-section of the prepared membrane.
3. Results and discussion
3.1. Membrane porosity
Previous studies about thermal spray coatings indicate that each
coating contains three obvious phases: metal matrix, metal oxides
and void spaces that lead to the porosity of coatings [9] (Fig. 2).
Image analysis was employed to estimate the percentage of phases.
An increase of the gun distance increases the porosity of the
membrane surface and cross-section (Fig. 3). Few reports explain
the effect of spray distance on coating porosity. Daengmool et al.
[10] reported that the coating porosity is less dependent on spray
distance. They found that, shorter distance produces larger splat
size. In other words, the porosity decreases at short gun distance.
This is represented in schematic model of splat forming at short
and long distances (Fig. 4).
According to Fig. 3 porosity in surface section of the prepared
metal membrane is decreased at distances over 40 cm. This can be
explained with the oxide content of the sprayed layer. Fe is the main
element in stainless steel wire, and FeO is probably the greatest part
of the formed metal oxides during spraying. The melting point of
FeO is lower than that of the steel and therefore it can remain liquid
Fig. 4. Optical microphotograph of cross-section of sprayed layer at 15 and 40 cm (A and B), suggested schematic model for splat accumulation in two spraying distance (C
and D).
543
Fig. 3. Effect of gun distance on membrane porosity in both surface and cross-
section.
for longer time. This facilitates the deposition of splash droplets and
moves them to the surface pores but less to the inner pores [11]. At
longer gun distances surface porosity decreases whereas, the poros-
ity of cross-section steadily increases. According to the obtained
results, the 40-cm distance may be selected as the optimum gun
distance due to higher porosity of the prepared membrane.
Decrease of the porosity and pore size is clearly presented in
the micrograph of cross-section of multi-distance spraying deposits
(Fig. 5). Porosity measurement using isopropanol (Fig. 6) indicates
that the total porosity of sprayed layer decreases after an increase
at spray distance around 40 cm. This confirms the image analysis
results for membrane porosity.
3.2. Pore size distribution and average pore size
Pore size distribution and average pore size are crucial specifica-
tions in membrane characterization. The image analysis of optical
microscope photos was employed for the determination of the pore
size distribution. Five microphotographs were captured and ana-
lyzed by software for each run. Around 1000 detected pores were
obtained for each run both in cross-section and surface of the mem-
branes. The obtained results are in three categories: maximum
diameter, mean diameter and minimum diameter of each detected
pore. The mean pore diameter was used for the investigation of the
pore size distribution (Fig. 7). The obtained data from software com-
putation may be employed for determining the defects (the fraction
544 S.S. Madaeni et al. / Journal of Membrane Science 320 (2008) 541–548

Fig. 8. Oxide content of surface (S) and cross-section (CS) of the prepared mem-
branes.

40 cm leads to the formation of the membrane with largest average

pore size. In general, gun distance has no noticeable effect on pore
Fig. 5. Optical microscopy image of membrane cross-section (prepared at multi- size distribution of the prepared membranes.
distance condition).
3.3. Oxide content of prepared membranes

Oxidation of the steel during electric arc spraying takes places

in three ways [11]:

(1) Oxidation of primary spray droplets during atomization and in

flight to the point of deposition.
(2) Oxidation of secondary droplets arising from splashing.
(3) Oxidation of the deposit top surface.

Some studies considering oxidation during wire arc spraying

Fig. 6. Porosity measurement using isopropanol.
of pores having a mean pore diameter large than 10 ␮m) and func-
tional pores (the fraction of pores having a mean pore diameter
smaller than 5 ␮m) for filtration. Pore size distribution for run no.
3 is presented in Fig. 7. Similar graphs were obtained for other runs
(not shown). The overall results are listed in Table 2. Spraying at
have reported an increase in oxide content with lengthening the
gun distance [11,12]. At longer gun distances, in-flight droplets of
melted alloy propel longer direction in air. They are more favor-
able for reaction with air oxygen due to high temperature. Hence,
the increasing trend in oxide content of coatings is approximately
predictable. This trend is indicated in Fig. 8. The oxide content of
membranes in both surface and cross-section was approximately
constant after 45-cm gun distances. This may be related to the
limitation of surface oxidation of metal droplets, i.e. oxidation of
metal droplets occurs until top surface of the hot droplets is in
direct contact with surrounding air oxygen. After formation of an
oxide layer on the top surface, no noticeable oxidation of remaining
metal is carried out. Therefore, oxide content of sprayed coatings
at distances longer than 45 cm, exhibit no considerable change.

3.4. Membrane performance

3.4.1. Effect of gun distance

The performance tests for ion removal from drinking water
showed that membrane prepared with the gun distance at 40 cm
exhibits the most efficient performance, i.e. high flux and emi-
nent rejection (Figs. 9 and 10). The dominant flux of the membrane
prepared at 40 cm is due to the largest average pore size of the
Fig. 7. Pore size distribution in cross-section of membrane no. 3. membrane (see Table 2). The rejection of ions may be attributed to
the adsorption of ions on the membrane surface and/or membrane
Table 2 matrix (inner pores). The membrane prepared at 40 cm obtained
Pore size distribution of the fabricated membranes surface the highest porosity (see Fig. 3) with the largest surface area for
Run # Gun distance (cm) <5 ␮m (%) >10 ␮m (%) Average pore adsorption of ions. Although the surface area was not measured,
diameter (␮m) the porosity result was confirmed by another technique, i.e. pen-
1 15 69.62 13.27 5.95
etration of isopropanol through the membrane pores to include
2 30 65.37 14.66 5.73 the open pores. In other words both measurements exhibit the
3 40 62.62 15.51 6.71 membrane with largest surface area and highest porosity with the
4 50 66.15 13.52 5.73 most interconnected inner pores. This results in a high contact area
5 65 74.20 11.33 5.32
and prominent adsorption of ions, i.e. highest rejection. The perfor-
 S.S. Madaeni et al. / Journal of Membrane Science 320 (2008) 541–548
Fig. 9. Flux of saline water during time for the prepared membranes at various gun
distances.
mance results indicate that the metal surface is able to adsorb the
ions and remove them from water. On the other hand, the metal
surface has no charge and electrostatic interactions may not be the
reason of ion rejection. The details of the proposed mechanism for
ion removal are explained in Section 3.5.
3.4.2. Effect of membrane thickness
Three membranes were prepared at similar conditions (30-cm
gun distance and 3.5-bars atomizer air pressure) with various thick-
nesses (0.5, 1 and 1.25 mm). Each membrane was evaluated for
water permeability and ion removal capability using a constant
transmembrane pressure (6.8 bars). As expected, water flux was
decreased by increasing the membrane thickness (Fig. 11). The
Fig. 10. Ion rejection from saline water during time for the prepared membranes at
various gun distances.
Fig. 11. Effect of membrane thickness on saline water flux.
545
Fig. 12. Effect of membrane thickness on ion rejection.
obtained fluxes for 0.5 and 1 mm exhibit no considerable differ-
ence. However for the membrane with 1.25-mm thickness, the flux
was dramatically dropped. This shows the vital effect of the thick-
ness on membrane performance. The procedure for manufacturing
the metallic membrane indicates that thickness increment results
in heterogeneous surfaces, thermal incoordination, re-melting of
some part of the membrane, disappearance of interconnecting
pores. This is possible to define a “critical thickness” as a threshold
for noticeable changes in membrane characteristics.
The membrane with 0.5-mm thickness showed the lowest ion
rejection (Fig. 12). This is due to the short distance for water pas-
sage through the membrane, i.e. lowest surface area of the proposed
pores against adsorption of ions. The membrane with 1-mm thick-
ness exhibited highest rejection of ions. With this membrane the
dominant surface area is responsible for prominent ion rejection.
The lower rejection of the membrane with 1.25-mm thickness may
be attributed to the longer remaining time of water inside the
membrane. The water can dissolve Fe and increase the permeate
conductivity. This results in an increase in ion content of the perme-
ate. In summary we can select the 1 mm as the optimum thickness
for the prepared metallic membrane.
3.4.3. Effect of transmembrane pressure
Two membranes were prepared at 40-cm gun distance with the
atomizer air pressure of 3.5 bars with 1-mm thicknesses. They were
tested at two transmembrane pressures (5 and 6.8 bars) for 3 h. As
expected higher flux (Fig. 13) and lower rejection (Fig. 14) were
obtained for higher transmembrane pressure.
The higher flux is due to greater driving force, i.e. transmem-
brane pressure. The increase of ion rejection with decreasing
transmembrane pressure is due to the longer retention time of
saline water inside the membrane pores which results in dominant
ion adsorption on membrane pores.
Fig. 13. Effect of transmembrane pressure on saline water flux.
546 S.S. Madaeni et al. / Journal of Membrane Science 320 (2008) 541–548
Fig. 14. Effect of transmembrane pressure on ion rejection.
3.4.4. Rejection of blue indigo particles
In another set of experiments, the efficiency of metallic mem-
branes for removing the particles (blue indigo dye, 0.5–3 ␮m and
130 mg/L) was investigated. A membrane prepared at 40-cm gun
distance and 3.5-bars air pressure of the atomizer with 1-mm thick-
ness was employed for this test. Measurement of turbidity and
permeate water was performed every 30 min during 3 h for the
determination of flux (Fig. 15) and rejection (Fig. 16). The obtained
results indicate that the prepared metallic membrane is able to
completely remove particles from water.
3.5. Filtration mechanisms
3.5.1. Ion removal
According to the obtained results, the maximum value of ion
rejection by membranes was around 80%. Ion size is very small
compared to the membrane average pore diameter and therefore
sieving cannot be the mechanism for ion removal.
Fig. 15. Flux of water for indigo solution.
Fig. 16. Rejection of indigo particles.
Table 3
Results of EDX analysis (w/w, %)
Elements
C O Cl Cr Mn Fe Other
Virgin membrane 0.05 8.91 0.06 12.19 0.60 77.77 0.42
Used membrane 0.18 10.69 0.12 11.59 0.50 75.39 1.57
Immersed in HCl 0.22 11.67 0.06 11.63 0.69 75.01 0.72
Whereas the highest ion rejection was attributed to the highly
porous membrane with the largest surface area to adsorb ions,
surface interaction can explain the dominant mechanism for
ion removal. According to the proposed mechanism for chloride
adsorption on metal surfaces [13], whenever a metal is in contact
with water, a thin passive film containing metal oxide is gener-
ated on the metal surface. This thin layer efficiently adsorbs water
molecules. Presence of chloride ions in water lead to the displace-
ment of adsorbed H2 O with Cl− . Therefore large quantities of Cl−
ions are collected in the vicinity of the metal surface. This attracts
the cations and results in a decline in ions permeation.
For investigation of chloride attachment, the existing elements
on the membrane surface were checked by EDX analysis. The sur-
face of membrane used for ion removal from water during 3 h was
investigated and the results were compared with virgin membrane.
The obtained results (Table 3) indicate that chloride content has
been sensibly increased on the membrane surface.
On the basis of the explained mechanism, water molecules
should first attach to the passive film. Chloride ions are only
replaced with the attached water molecules. Thus, presence of
water is necessary for Cl− attachment. This was investigated by
EDX analysis. A fresh membrane was immersed in concentrated
HCl with low water content. The membrane was left in acid for
24 h. The specimen was tested by EDX analyzer after washing and
drying. The results (Table 3) indicate that Cl− content is not changed
in this specimen, i.e. Cl− could not attach to the metal surface in the
absence of sufficient water. This confirms the proposed mechanism.
3.5.2. Dye removal
The blocking laws indicate that the main mechanism for sepa-
ration mechanism is the standard blocking. In this mechanism the
sizes of membrane pores decrease as a result of particle deposition
on the surface of pores. A comparison between SEM micrographs
of virgin membrane (Fig. 17) and the used membrane exhibiting
deposited indigo particles (Fig. 18) confirms the mechanism. Fig. 19
demonstrates the cross-section of the same membrane. Deposition
of indigo particles is clear in this micrograph.
On the basis of blocking laws [14], the performance data may
be used to determine the filtration mechanism for the removal of
indigo dye particles. If the graph of t/v (time and volume) versus
time is linear, the “standard blocking” is the dominant mechanism.
If t/v versus permeate volume is linear “cake deposition” is the
prominent filtration mechanism. In this case the particles deposit
on the membrane surface and form a cake layer.
Figs. 20 and 21 indicate that the “standard blocking” is the dom-
inant mechanism for rejection of indigo dye particles. The graph of
t/v versus time is linear. However t/v versus v is non-linear, i.e. a
cake is not formed on the membrane surface.
3.6. The advantages of wire arc spraying for preparation of
metallic membranes
The novel technique introduced in this study for preparation
of porous metallic membranes for filtration has some advantages
compared to the existing procedures. These advantages involve
high manufacturing throughput, fast deposition capability, scale-
 S.S. Madaeni et al. / Journal of Membrane Science 320 (2008) 541–548
Fig. 17. SEM micrograph of cross-section of virgin membrane.
up simplicity, possibility of applying various conductive materials,
easily producing membrane with different thicknesses and accept-
able mechanical strength without the need for a support contrary
to composite metal membranes.
Moreover, most of the available techniques have limitations for
using various kinds of metals. For example in rolling method only
the laminable metals such as Pd and Ag can be employed [15].
Fig. 18. SEM micrograph of cross-section of membrane used for removal of indigo
dye from water during 3 h (5000× magnification).
547
Fig. 19. SEM micrograph of cross-section of membrane used for removal of indigo
dye from water during 3 h (10,000× magnification).
Almost all of the existing preparation methods involve the pro-
duction of composite metallic membranes with the limitations for
selection of appropriate support and requirement of some pretreat-
ments and modification processes.
Another advantage of wire arc spraying is that we can obtain
membrane with symmetric or asymmetric structure only by adjust-
ing the specified spraying conditions such as applying fixed gun
distance or multi-distance spraying. The basic material should be
in the form of wire for thermal spraying which is extensively
available. Therefore there is no need to micronize and pulverize
the material similar to sintering method [15,16]. In electroplating,
electro-less plating, PVD, CVD and rolling methods the membrane
material should have appropriate purity. However, wire arc spray-
ing is compatible with a wide range of metals, alloys and metal
matrix composites [7,8].
Fig. 20. Application of blocking laws for filtration of indigo particles (t/v versus
time).
548 S.S. Madaeni et al. / Journal of Membrane Science 320 (2008) 541–548
Fig. 21. Application of blocking laws for filtration of indigo particles (t/v versus
volume).
One of the deficiencies of the prepared metallic membrane using
wire arc spraying is low water flux due to low porosity. How-
ever there are some procedures to increase the porosity in such
coatings. These techniques include reducing the substrate tem-
perature, using attached cooling system right after spraying, using
other types of wires, etc. The effect of gun distance on porosity was
investigated in this work as the first stage. This technique demon-
strates an acceptable potential for producing metallic membrane
with noticeable performance in various separation processes. The
low cost and rapid fabrication are the major advantages of wire arc
spraying technique for the preparation of metallic membranes.
4. Conclusion
Wire arc spraying was employed as a novel method for fabrica-
tion of stainless steel membrane. The effect of gun distance on the
properties of the prepared membrane was investigated.
Increase of gun distance leads to augmentation of oxide content
and membrane porosity. However, porosity was reduced at gun dis-
tances over 40–45 cm while the oxide content was stabilized at this
range of spraying distance.
The membranes were characterized by metallographic tests and
filtration capability for the removal of NaCl and blue indigo dye
from water. The range 35–40 cm for gun distance can be considered
as the optimum value for the preparation of stainless steel mem-
brane with prominent performance, i.e. high ion removal capability.
Membrane with 1-mm thickness exhibited the highest water flux
and ion rejection. Ion rejection capability depends upon the avail-
able metal surface in the membrane matrix. The prepared stainless
steel membrane was able to efficiently remove indigo dye particles
from water.
Industrialization of wire arc spraying metallic membrane is
applicable due to possibility to automate the spraying process. The
high speed of preparation of metallic coating by spraying is consid-
ered as a potentially high advantage for membrane preparation in
industrial scale.
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