Prediction of Particulate Fouling in Reverse Osmosis Systems: MFI-UF Method Development and Application

The application of reverse osmosis (RO) membranes in water treatment has rapidly grown over the last few decades thanks to the continuous advancements in both design and operation. However, RO membrane fouling still remains a key challenge. Fouling can cause a decline in membrane permeability, which requires higher operational energy and more...

Calibrating and Validating the MFI-UF Method to Measure Particulate Fouling in Reverse Osmosis

This study aimed to calibrate and validate the MFI-UF method in order to ensure the accuracy of particulate fouling measurements in RO. Firstly, the MFI-UF calibration was examined using two solutions of standard particles (dextran and polystyrene). Two main criteria were investigated: (i) MFI-UF linearity with particle concentrations at both...

Prediction of particulate fouling in full-scale reverse osmosis plants using the modified fouling index – ultrafiltration (MFI-UF) method

This study aims at applying and verifying the MFI-UF method to predict particulate fouling in RO plants. Two full-scale RO plants treating surface water, with average capacity of 800–2000 m³/h, were studied. Firstly, the MFI-UF of RO feed and concentrate was measured using 5–100 kDa membranes at same flux applied in the RO plants ...

Improving MFI-UF constant flux to more accurately predict particulate fouling in RO systems: Quantifying the effect of membrane surface porosity

This study aimed to quantify the effect of membrane surface porosity on particulate fouling predicted by the MFI-UF method at constant flux. Firstly, the surface porosity of polyethersulfone UF membranes (5–100 kDa) was determined using ultra-high resolution SEM. Thereafter, the MFI-UF was measured using suspensions of polystyrene particles ...