Membrane Processes for the Treatment of Water and Wastewater
Dr.-Ing. Thomas Peters
Membrane processes have become very important instruments in water management, water related environmental engineering and industrial production , because their efficiency has been proven from a technical and economical, as well as an ecological, point of view. The membrane processes are used today for many different purposes, but mainly to overcome water scarcity and to prevent water pollution, whereby the kind of process to be installed as a main step or in combination with other technologies depends on the type of components or contaminants respectively to be separated from the water to be treated, and on/or the quality requirements imposed for the water to be produced.
In the last two decades important innovations have been created that contributed to the realisation of a great variety of membrane-based solutions and industrial processes. It can be concluded that after the pioneering time and introduction phase for these technologies in water treatment, the plants are designed for a very wide range of production capacity and they are working reliable.
Details regarding the theoretical background of these pressure driven membrane processes, examples for their area of application in water and waste water treatment, limiting factors, operational data and results for the purification efficiency are considered as basis for the discussion of decision supporting criteria for the selection of these technologies for possible applications, and as basis for the evaluation of future developments.
FILTECH 2011 - March 22-24, 2011 - Wiesbaden - Germany - www.Filtech.de