Protection Of Membrane Systems Utilized For Municipal Water

As water scarcity issues around the world become more acute, more municipalities are having to turn to alternative water sources for potable water supplies. Also, many municipalities in coastal areas are seeing the quality of their water sources degrade as sea water intrusion occurs. Some of the non-traditional supplies being utilized, including brackish wells and seawater, have much higher dissolved solids levels which must be removed. Treatment processes using reverse osmosis and/or nanofiltration membranes are becoming popular choices for use in these applications as the cost effectiveness of these processes improve.

The microporous structures of membranes are extremely sensitive to fouling. Without proper pre-treatment, excessive fouling from incoming contaminants, such as sand, silt, and other corrosion causing materials, will lead to performance degradation of the membranes resulting in increased cleaning requirements and potentially premature replacement. This customer application brief discusses how the use of appropriate pre-treatment cartridge filtration can help protect the membranes from fouling leading to reduced operating, maintenance, and capital costs.