CE 521 Environmental Biotechnology

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TERM PAPER ABSTRACTS (Fall 2000):

In wastewater treatment, reverse osmosis (R/O) membrane system has been used to concentrate, recycle, and recover valuable products from waste streams. To date, more and more researchers have begun studying hybrid R/O membrane systems in which membrane–based unit operations are combined with another process. The main advantage of this hybrid design is its flexibility. It allows a broader range of application of membrane and other unit operations to solve separation problems. The lifetime of the membrane, a key factor in process economics can be extended because of the optimal operating conditions. Overall separation costs are often lower than costs for individual unit.

Biofouling of R/O system leads to considerable technical problems and economic loss. The conventional anti-fouling strategy is to dose continuously with biocides. The effectiveness of biocides depends on a lot of inherent and environmental factors. However, this approach isn’t always effective as expectations, because it is applied to a technical system and not to a living organism. Biofouling cannot be overcome by application of some wonder-chemical but by a better understanding of the entire process and by interfering in the most effective way. The combination of nutrient removal and monitoring will be a sustainable strategy for the future.

R/O membrane, waste streams, hybrid design, biofouling, biocide