Improving Resistance to Fouling Reverse Osmosis Membranes

Biofouling in reverse osmosis (RO) elements is the phenomenon by which bacteria settles in the feed channel of an element and starts building a biofilm. The biofilm evolution causes an exponential increase of the feed-concentrate pressure drop (dP) in the RO system. This dP rise results in a higher energy consumption and the need to conduct clean-in-place (CIP) operations more frequently. Additionally, if the dP becomes too high, the elements are at risk of irreversible mechanical damage. This paper highlights the performance of DOW FILMTEC TM FORTILIFE TM CR100 RO element under one of the most difficult fouling conditions, biofouling. Three separate experimental plants using FORTILIFE CR100 in comparison to previous generation of DOW fouling resistant products and a leading competitor product demonstrate a reduction in cleaning frequency of 30-50%. Details of each of these experiments are reported.

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