AWWA MTC57609

Membrane fouling is one of the primary obstacles that have hampered the use of reverse osmosis (RO) membrane technology in the drinking water industry. Thus, developing membranes with a better resistance to fouling has become an area of increasing significance. In this study, five commercially available fouling resistant low-pressure RO membranes were investigated for the treatment of seasonally brackish surface water with high organic content (H 24 mg/L). The membranes investigated are LFC-1 (Hydranautics), X20 (Trisep), BW30FR1 (FilmTec), SG (Osmonics), and BE-FR (Saehan). All membranes were thin film composite made of polyamide derivatives. The surfaces of these membranes were thoroughly characterized in terms of roughness, charge and hydrophobicity, using Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM), Streaming Potential Analysis (SPA), and contact angle measurements by Goniometer, respectively. The fouling resistant membranes were further evaluated by performing flat-sheet membrane testing using coagulated surface water. In addition, pilot-scale evaluation was conducted to assess long-term performance. Includes 5 references, tables, figures.