Contact
    Start Publications Fouling and Performance Investigation of Membrane Distillation ...
    ←  Publication Finder
    Attension

    Fouling and Performance Investigation of Membrane Distillation at Elevated Recoveries for Seawater Desalination and Wastewater Reclamation

    Year: 2022

    Journal: Membranes, Volume 12, OCT

    Authors: Khan, Abdulaziz; Yadav, Sudesh; Ibrar, Ibrar; Al Juboori, Raed A.; Razzak, Sara Ali; Deka, Priyamjeet; Subbiah, Senthilmurugan; Shah, Shreyansh

    Organizations: Ministry of Higher Education, Government of Saudi Arabia

    Keywords: membrane distillation; membrane wetting; membrane fouling; AGMD; elevated recovery

    This study reports on the impact of elevated recovery (i.e., 80%, 85%, and 90%) on the fouling and performance of air gap membrane distillation (AGMD) with real seawater and landfill leachate wastewater samples using polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) polymer membranes. Increasing the feed temperature from 55 degrees C to 65 degrees C improved the water flux of seawater and wastewater and shortened the operating time by 42.8% for all recoveries. The average water flux in the 80%, 85%, and 90% recovery experiments at the 65 degrees C feed temperature was 32%, 37.32%, and 36.7% higher than the case of 55 degrees C for the same recoveries. The water flux decline was more severe at a higher temperature and recovery. The highest flux decline was observed with a 90% recovery at 65 degrees C feed temperature, followed by an 85% recovery at 65 degrees C. Close examination of the foulants layer revealed that seawater formed a cake fouling layer made predominantly of metal oxides. In contrast, the landfill leachate fouling was a combination of pore blocking and cake formation, consisting mainly of carbonous and nitrogenous compounds. Physical cleaning with deionized (DI) water at 55 degrees C and 65 degrees C and chemical cleaning with hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) were investigated for their efficiency in removing membrane foulants. Analytical results revealed that seawater fouling caused membrane pore blockage while wastewater fouling formed a porous layer on the membrane surface. The results showed that membrane cleaning with hydrogen peroxide restored >97% of the water flux. Interestingly, the fouling factor in seawater tests was 10%, while it was 16% for the wastewater tests.
    View publication