Membranes for Desalination

  • Efrem Curcio
  • Enrico Drioli
Chapter
First Online:
Part of the Green Energy and Technology book series (GREEN)

Abstract

This chapter provides a general overview of the fundamentals of membrane processes currently under operation in desalination plants, including Microfiltration (MF), Ultrafiltration (UF), Nanofiltration (NF), Reverse Osmosis (RO) and Electrodialysis (ED). The first part provides a description of the preparation techniques for porous, dense or thin film composite membranes made from polymeric materials, along with a technical comparison of the different membrane modules used in filtration processes. The basic transport phenomena relating to mass transfer for the different membrane separation units are also illustrated. In the second part, attention is focussed on analysis of the critical operational issues, with emphasis on fouling and related actions to prevent or control it by appropriate cleaning methods or suitable pretreatment (conventional or membrane-based).

Keywords

Reverse Osmosis Natural Organic Matter Feed Water Thin Film Composite Desalination Plant 
These keywords were added by machine and not by the authors. This process is experimental and the keywords may be updated as the learning algorithm improves.

Abbreviations

BOD

biochemical oxygen demand

CA

cellulose acetate

COD

chemical oxygen demand

DIPS

diffusion-induced phase separation

DMF

dual media filtration

DOC

dissolved organic carbon

DOM

dissolved organic matter

ED

electrodialysis

LSI

Langelier saturation index

MCr

membrane crystallisation

MD

membrane distillation

MF

microfiltration

MFI

modified fouling index

MW

molecular weight

NF

nanofiltration

NOM

natural organic matter

NTU

nephelometric turbidity units

PA

polyamide

PAN

polyacrylonitrile

PCA

polycarbonate

PES

polyethersulfone

PET

polyethyleneterephtalate

PI

polyimide

PP

polypropylene

PSU

polysulfone

PTFE

polytetrafluoroethylene

PVDF

polyvinylidenefluoride

RO

reverse osmosis

S&DSI

Stiff and Davis stability index

SDI

Silt Density Index

SHMP

sodiumhexametaphosphate

SWM

spiral-wound modules

SWRO

seawater reverse osmosis

TDS

total dissolved solids

TFC

thin film composite

TIPS

temperature-induced phase separation technique

TSS

total suspended solids

UF

ultrafiltration

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Copyright information

© Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2009

Authors and Affiliations

  • Efrem Curcio
    • 1
    • 2
  • Enrico Drioli
    • 2
  1. 1.Department of Chemical Engineering and MaterialsUniversity of CalabriaRendeItaly
  2. 2.Institute on Membrane Technology ITM-CNR, c/o University of CalabriaRendeItaly

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