AWWA MTC69661

This study examined a comparative assessment of fouling of iron oxide ceramic membranes by model organic compounds. Permeate flux decline was measured in dead-end cells. The major contributor to fouling of membranes is natural organic matter. As a model of that, humic acid (HA) and bovine serum albumin (BSA) were used. The surface of clean and fouled iron oxide membranes was characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and atomic force microscopy (AFM). Fenton type reactions were investigated using Fe (II) and Ferroxanes (iron oxide nanoparticles) as a source of iron to catalyze organic compounds degradation in batch reactions. An effective membrane cleaning procedure is proposed by passing Fenton's reagent through the membrane that led to restoration of the initial clean membrane flux. Includes 6 references, figures.