Chlorination disadvantages and alternative routes for biofouling control in reverse osmosis desalination

• With an ever-increasing human population, access to clean water for human use is a growing concern across the world. Seawater desalination to produce usable water is essential to meet future clean water demand. Desalination processes, such as reverse osmosis and multi-stage flash have been implemented worldwide. Reverse osmosis is the most effective technology, which uses a semipermeable membrane to produce clean water under an applied pressure. However, membrane biofouling is the main issue faced by such plants, which requires continuous cleaning or regular replacement of the membranes. Chlorination is the most commonly used disinfection process to pretreat the water to reduce biofouling. Although chlorination is widely used, it has several disadvantages, such as formation of disinfection by-products and being ineffective against some types of microbes. This review aims to discuss the adverse effect of chlorination on reverse osmosis membranes and to identify other possible alternatives of chlorination to reduce biofouling of the membranes. Reverse osmosis membrane degradation and mitigation of chlorines effects, along with newly emerging disinfection technologies, are discussed, providing insight to both academic institutions and industries for the design of improved reverse osmosis systems. 

Ämnesord

TEKNIK OCH TEKNOLOGIER  -- Samhällsbyggnadsteknik -- Vattenteknik (hsv//swe)

ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY  -- Civil Engineering -- Water Engineering (hsv//eng)

Nyckelord

Biofouling

Chlorination

Desalination

Disinfection

Reverse osmosis

Academic institutions

Disinfection by-product

Disinfection process

Membrane biofouling

Reverse osmosis desalination

Reverse osmosis systems

Seawater desalination

Semi-permeable membranes

Osmosis membranes

design

global perspective

water demand

water quality

water technology

water treatment plant

Publikations- och innehållstyp

ref (ämneskategori)

art (ämneskategori)