Combined Organic Fouling and Inorganic Scaling in Reverse Osmosis: Role of Protein-Silica Interactions

Environmental Science & Technology
Amanda N QuayMenachem Elimelech

Abstract

We investigated the relationship between silica scaling and protein fouling in reverse osmosis (RO). Flux decline caused by combined scaling and fouling was compared with those by individual scaling or fouling. Bovine serum albumin (BSA) and lysozyme (LYZ), two proteins with opposite charges at typical feedwater pH, were used as model protein foulants. Our results demonstrate that water flux decline was synergistically enhanced when silica and protein were both present in the feedwater. For example, flux decline after 500 min was far greater in combined silica scaling and BSA fouling experiments (55 ± 6% decline) than those caused by silica (11 ± 2% decline) or BSA (9 ± 1% decline) alone. Similar behavior was observed with silica and LYZ, suggesting that this synergistic effect was independent of protein charge. Membrane characterization by scanning electron microscopy and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy revealed distinct foulant layers formed by BSA and LYZ in the presence of silica. A combination of dynamic light scattering, transmission electron microscopy , and energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy analyses further suggested that BSA and LYZ facilitated the formation of aggregates with varied chemical compositions. A...Continue Reading

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Citations

May 26, 2021·Chemical Reviews·Marcus Müller, Volker Abetz
Nov 18, 2021·Environmental Science & Technology·Meng WangDebora F Rodrigues
Nov 24, 2021·Environmental Science & Technology·Wen MaMenachem Elimelech

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