Using loose nanofiltration membrane for lake water treatment: A pilot study

Nanofiltration (NF) using loose membranes has a high application potential for advanced treatment of drinking water by selectively removing contaminants from the water, while membrane fouling remains one of the biggest problems of the process. This paper reported a seven-month pilot study of using a loose NF membrane to treat a sand filtration effluent which had a relatively high turbidity (similar to 0.4 NTU) and high concentrations of organic matter (up to 5 mg/L as TOC), hardness and sulfate. Results showed that the membrane demonstrated a high rejection of TOC (by<90%) and a moderately high rejection of two pesticides (54%-82%) while a moderate rejection of both calcium and magnesium (45%) and a low rejection of total dissolved solids (similar to 27%). The membrane elements suffered from severe membrane fouling, with the membrane permeance decreased by 70% after 85 days operation. The membrane fouling was dominated by organic fouling, while biological fouling was moderate. Inorganic fouling was mainly caused by deposition of aluminum-bearing substances. Though inorganic foulants were minor contents on membrane, their contribution to overall membrane fouling was substantial. Membrane fouling was not uniform on membrane. While contents of organic and inorganic foulants were the highest at the inlet and outlet region, respectively, the severity of membrane fouling increased from the inlet to the outlet region of membrane element with a difference higher than 30%. While alkaline cleaning was not effective in removing the membrane foulants, the use of ethylenediamine tetraacetate (EDTA) at alkaline conditions could effectively restore the membrane permeance.

Automated summary

This study investigated the use of loose NF membranes for treating high turbidity and organic matter content in sand filtration effluent. The results showed high rejection of organic matter but severe membrane fouling, mainly dominated by organic fouling and inorganic fouling caused by aluminum-bearing substances. Alkaline cleaning was ineffective in removing foulants, but EDTA under alkaline conditions successfully restored membrane permeance.