Relationship between sludge characteristics and membrane flux determination in submerged membrane bioreactors

  • Zhiwei Wang*
  • , Zhichao Wu
  • , Guoping Yu
  • , Jiangfeng Liu
  • , Zhen Zhou
  • *Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

124 Scopus citations

Abstract

The effect of sludge characteristics on membrane fouling in a pilot-scale submerged membrane bioreactor (MBR) during long-term performance was investigated. Viscosity, mixed liquor suspended solids (MLSS), extracellular polymer substances (EPS), soluble chemical oxygen demand (SCOD), dewaterability in terms of capillary suction time (CST), proteins and carbohydrates in the mixed liquor and their correlations with membrane fouling were studied. Among these variables, CST, SCOD, EPS and carbohydrate were found to have significant influence on membrane fouling by statistical analysis method. CST was then chosen as an indicator parameter and its relationship with critical flux (Jc) was established. The concept of proper operational flux (Jp) was introduced and further determined through parallel experiments. The difference between critical flux and proper operational flux in submerged MBRs was analyzed and discussed. Test results in this study show that the proper operational flux is only 56% of the critical flux value.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)87-94
Number of pages8
JournalJournal of Membrane Science
Volume284
Issue number1-2
DOIs
StatePublished - 1 Nov 2006
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Membrane flux
  • Membrane fouling
  • Sludge characteristics
  • Submerged membrane bioreactor

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