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Analysis of backwashing efficiency in dead-end hollow-fibre ultrafiltration of anaerobic suspensions

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Abstract

A novel dead-end mode operation for filtering anaerobic suspensions was investigated. In this mode, the filtration system automatically adjusted backwashing frequency to a preselected transmembrane pressure set-point. This paper discusses the effectiveness of the backwashing conditions on membrane fouling. Anaerobic suspensions from a conventional wastewater treatment plant digester were used as model suspensions for the trials carried out at lab-scale. Gas sparging aided backwashing significantly enhanced membrane cleaning efficiency. No effect of gas sparging on internal fouling was detected. Also, the cleaning efficiency linearly decreased with permeate flux. Nevertheless, due to a high increase in the reversible fouling, a reasonable net permeate flux (7.2–6.8 L/h m2) can be achieved when intermediate fluxes (12–16 L/h m2) were imposed and the higher transmembrane pressure set-point value (50 kPa) was applied. Both backwashing duration and flux exhibited similar influence on cake fouling removal for a given volume of permeate produced.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the N.R.C. (MINECO project CTM2011-27307). Mr Ruigómez acknowledges a predoctoral fellowship supported by MINECO, BES-2012-060920. The authors are grateful to GE Water & Process Technologies for membrane module supply and also to the Water Analysis Laboratory of the ULL Chemical Engineering Department for its analytical advice. We also thank EMMASA for supplying the sludge.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Chemistry, Universidad de La Laguna, Av. Astrofísico Francisco Sánchez s/n., 38200, La Laguna, Spain

    Luisa Vera, Enrique González, Ignacio Ruigómez, Jenniffer Gómez & Sebastián Delgado

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  1. Luisa Vera
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  2. Enrique González
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  3. Ignacio Ruigómez
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  4. Jenniffer Gómez
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  5. Sebastián Delgado
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Correspondence to Luisa Vera.

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Responsible editor: Gerald Thouand

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Vera, L., González, E., Ruigómez, I. et al. Analysis of backwashing efficiency in dead-end hollow-fibre ultrafiltration of anaerobic suspensions. Environ Sci Pollut Res 22, 16600–16609 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-015-4857-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-015-4857-0

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