Gravity-driven membrane filtration for water and wastewater treatment: A review

Wouter Pronk; An Ding; Eberhard Morgenroth; Nicolas Derlon; Peter Desmond; Michael Burkhardt; Bing Wu; Anthony G Fane

doi:10.1016/j.watres.2018.11.062

Gravity-driven membrane filtration for water and wastewater treatment: A review

Water Res. 2019 Feb 1:149:553-565. doi: 10.1016/j.watres.2018.11.062. Epub 2018 Nov 25.

Authors

Wouter Pronk¹, An Ding², Eberhard Morgenroth³, Nicolas Derlon⁴, Peter Desmond⁵, Michael Burkhardt⁶, Bing Wu⁷, Anthony G Fane⁸

Affiliations

¹ Eawag, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Überlandstrasse 133, CH-8600, Dübendorf, Switzerland; Livinguard AG, Bahnhofstrasse 12, 6300, Zug, Switzerland. Electronic address: wouter.pronk@livinguard.com.
² State Key Laboratory of Urban Water Resource and Environment (SKLUWRE), Harbin Institute of Technology, 73 Huanghe Road, Nangang District, Harbin, 150090, PR China.
³ Eawag, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Überlandstrasse 133, CH-8600, Dübendorf, Switzerland; Institute of Environmental Technology, ETH Zürich, CH-8093, Zürich, Switzerland.
⁴ Eawag, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Überlandstrasse 133, CH-8600, Dübendorf, Switzerland.
⁵ Eawag, Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Überlandstrasse 133, CH-8600, Dübendorf, Switzerland; MMS AG Membrane Systems, Im Grossherweg 11, 8902, Urdorf, Switzerland.
⁶ Institute of Environmental and Process Engineering, University of Applied Sciences Rapperswil, Oberseestrasse 10, 8640, Rapperswil, Switzerland.
⁷ Singapore Membrane Technology Center, Nanyang Environmental and Water Research Institute, Nanyang Technological University, 1 Cleantech Loop, CleanTech One #06-08, 637141, Singapore; Faculty of Civil and Environmental Engineering, University of Iceland, Hjardarhagi 2-6, IS-107, Reykjavik, Iceland.
⁸ Singapore Membrane Technology Center, Nanyang Environmental and Water Research Institute, Nanyang Technological University, 1 Cleantech Loop, CleanTech One #06-08, 637141, Singapore.

PMID: 30508756
DOI: 10.1016/j.watres.2018.11.062

Abstract

Gravity-driven membrane (GDM) filtration has been investigated for almost 10 years. The technology is characterized not only by relatively lower transmembrane pressures which can be achieved by gravity (extremely low energy consumption), but also by the phenomenon of flux stabilization: A biofilm is allowed to form on the membrane and a stabilization of flux occurs which is related to biological processes within the biofilm layer on the membrane. This enables stable operation during a year or longer without any cleaning or flushing. Initially, the technology was developed mainly for household drinking water treatment, but in the meantime, the research and application has expanded to the treatment of greywater, rainwater, and wastewater as well as the pretreatment of seawater for desalination. This review covers the field from the rather fundamental research on biofilm morphology and microbial community analysis to the impact of feedwater composition, process parameters and organic removal performance. Not only household applications, but also for community-scale treatment and full-scale applications are discussed. In addition, the application potential is highlighted in comparison to conventional ultrafiltration. Finally, an overall assessment is illustrated and the research and development needs are identified.

Keywords: Biofilm; Cake layer; Flux stabilization; Gravity driven ultrafiltration; Membrane fouling; NOM removal.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
Review

MeSH terms

Filtration
Membranes, Artificial
Wastewater*
Water
Water Purification*

Substances

Membranes, Artificial
Waste Water
Water