TY - JOUR
T1 - Unified membrane fouling index for low pressure membrane filtration of natural waters
T2 - Principles and methodology
AU - Huang, Haiou
AU - Young, Thayer A.
AU - Jacangelo, Joseph G.
PY - 2008/2/1
Y1 - 2008/2/1
N2 - Membrane filtration is considered an important technology that can contribute to the sustainability of water supplies. However, its continued development necessitates the establishment of proper techniques for the assessment of membrane fouling. Unified Membrane Fouling Index (UMFI) was developed in this study in order to quantify and assess the fouling of low-pressure membranes (LPM) observed at various scales of water treatment. The foundation of UMFI is a revised Hermia model applied to both constant pressure and constant flux filtration. The adoption of UMFI makes it possible to simplify and standardize the bench-scale testing of membrane fouling potential by directly using the commercial LPM of interest. This approach can overcome a major challenge to fouling assessment, i.e., the membrane-specificity of fouling potential, which has not been wholly addressed by existing fouling indices. The fundamentals of UMFI are presented inthis paper, together with the methodology for bench-scale testing. The application of UMFI to the assessment of the fouling of a LPM by a natural surface water is also discussed. Good agreement between bench-scale UMFI and pilot-scale UMFI was found, suggesting the validity of this new scientific concept for environmental applications.
AB - Membrane filtration is considered an important technology that can contribute to the sustainability of water supplies. However, its continued development necessitates the establishment of proper techniques for the assessment of membrane fouling. Unified Membrane Fouling Index (UMFI) was developed in this study in order to quantify and assess the fouling of low-pressure membranes (LPM) observed at various scales of water treatment. The foundation of UMFI is a revised Hermia model applied to both constant pressure and constant flux filtration. The adoption of UMFI makes it possible to simplify and standardize the bench-scale testing of membrane fouling potential by directly using the commercial LPM of interest. This approach can overcome a major challenge to fouling assessment, i.e., the membrane-specificity of fouling potential, which has not been wholly addressed by existing fouling indices. The fundamentals of UMFI are presented inthis paper, together with the methodology for bench-scale testing. The application of UMFI to the assessment of the fouling of a LPM by a natural surface water is also discussed. Good agreement between bench-scale UMFI and pilot-scale UMFI was found, suggesting the validity of this new scientific concept for environmental applications.
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U2 - 10.1021/es071043j
DO - 10.1021/es071043j
M3 - Article
C2 - 18323092
AN - SCOPUS:38949122693
SN - 0013-936X
VL - 42
SP - 714
EP - 720
JO - Environmental Science and Technology
JF - Environmental Science and Technology
IS - 3
ER -