Membrane processes potential

The fourth fully developed membrane process is electrodialysis, in which charged membranes are used to separate ions from aqueous solutions under the driving force of an electrical potential difference. The process utilizes an electrodialysis stack, built on the plate-and-frame principle, containing several hundred individual cells formed by a pair of anion- and cation-exchange membranes. The principal current appHcation of electrodialysis is the desalting of brackish groundwater. However, industrial use of the process in the food industry, for example to deionize cheese whey, is growing, as is its use in poUution-control appHcations. 

When a potential is appHed across the ceU, the sodum and other cations are transported across the membrane to the catholyte compartment. Sodium hydroxide is formed in the catholyte compartment, because of the rise in pH caused by the reduction of water. Any polyvalent cations are precipitated and removed. The purified NaOH may be combined with the sodium bicarbonate from the sodium dichromate process to produce soda ash for the roasting operation. In the anolyte compartment, the pH falls because of the oxidation of water. The increase in acidity results in the formation of chromic acid. When an appropriate concentration of the acid is obtained, the Hquid from the anolyte is sent to the crystallizer, the crystals are removed, and the mother Hquor is recycled to the anolyte compartment of the ceU. The electrolysis is not allowed to completely convert sodium dichromate to chromic acid (76). Patents have been granted for more electrolytic membrane processes for chromic acid and dichromates manufacture (86). 

Membrane processes also offer other advantages over conventional treatments. They reduce the number of unit processes in treatment systems for clarification and disinfection and increase the potential for process automation and plant compactness. Designers also thought membrane plants could be much smaller than conventional plants of the same capacity and, given their modular configuration, could be easily expanded. Additionally, these plants would produce less sludge than conventional plants because they wouldn t use such chemicals as coagulants or polymers. 

With all membrane processes, the condition of the feed has a significant influence on the performance of the unit. This often means that some feed pretreatment is necessary to minimize fouling and the potential to damage the membrane. 

Pervaporation. Pervaporation differs from the other membrane processes described so far in that the phase-state on one side of the membrane is different from that on the other side. The term pervaporation is a combination of the words permselective and evaporation. The feed to the membrane module is a mixture (e.g. ethanol-water mixture) at a pressure high enough to maintain it in the liquid phase. The liquid mixture is contacted with a dense membrane. The other side of the membrane is maintained at a pressure at or below the dew point of the permeate, thus maintaining it in the vapor phase. The permeate side is often held under vacuum conditions. Pervaporation is potentially useful when separating mixtures that form azeotropes (e.g. ethanol-water mixture). One of the ways to change the vapor-liquid equilibrium to overcome azeotropic behavior is to place a membrane between the vapor and liquid phases. Temperatures are restricted to below 100°C, and as with other liquid membrane processes, feed pretreatment and membrane cleaning are necessary. 

With all membrane processes, there is a potential fouling problem that must be addressed when specifying the unit. With liquid feeds in particular, this usually means pretreating the feed to remove solids, potentially down to very fine particle sizes, as well as other pretreatments. Membranes... 

Liquid membrane processes for removing H2S from process gases are potentially attractive because they may require less energy than conventional techniques. Research is now going on to develop these technologies, but they have not yet achieved commercial application. 

The catalytic esterification of ethanol and acetic acid to ethyl acetate and water has been taken as a representative example to emphasize the potential advantages of the application of membrane technology compared with conventional distillation [48], see Fig. 13.6. From the McCabe-Thiele diagram for the separation of ethanol-water mixtures it follows that pervaporation can reach high water selectivities at the azeotropic point in contrast to the distillation process. Considering the economic evaluation of membrane-assisted esterifications compared with the conventional distillation technique, a decrease of 75% in energy input and 50% lower investment and operation costs can be calculated. The characteristics of the membrane and the module design mainly determine the investment costs of membrane processes, whereas the operational costs are influenced by the hfetime of the membranes. 

As the distribution ratio between phases 1 and 3 is the product of those in the two pairs of fluids, the potential effectiveness of the liquid membrane process is considerably greater than that of conventional solvent extraction. Thus the liquid membrane process is particularly suitable for the treatment of dilute feeds. In addition, if the liquid membrane is an organic phase, its small volume reduces the solvent duty considerably. 

Permeation is a general term meaning the movement of a substance through a solid medium (e.g., a membrane), due to a driving potential such as a difference in concentration, hydraulic pressure, or electric potential, or a combination of these. It is important to understand clearly the driving potential(s) for any particular membrane process. 

Membrane Concentration Test. Process potential was demonstrated by concentrating 500 L of synthetic tap water spiked with trace levels of the model compounds. A 50X volumetric concentration was achieved by reducing the sample volume from 500 to 10 L. The recovery of model compounds and membrane rejection of compounds were evaluated, and the location of system losses was approximated. 

The membrane processes of cross-flow microfiltration, ultrafiltration, and reverse osmosis offer excellent potential for continuous removal of these contaminants. The selection of the optimum process is a function of the form of the contaminants present as well as several other factors. 

The present chapter will not deal with general topics of liquid crystals or crown ethers as this exceeds the scope of this volume. Interesting reviews and monographs on liquid crystals and their properties can be found in the literature [10-13]. The synthesis of crown ethers can be challenging. Most commonly, the synthetic routes are based on procedures established by Pedersen [14-17]. A review by Bradshaw [18] and a monograph edited by Patai [19] also cover the synthesis and properties of crown ethers. More recent reviews deal with the use of crown ethers as chemosensors [20, 21], potential antitumor agents [22], molecular wires [23], or carriers for the separation of metal ions in liquid membrane processes [24],... 

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