STUDY OF THE FACTORS AFFECTING THE RATE OF FOULING OF REVERSE-OSMOSIS MEMBRANES TREATING SECONDARY SEWAGE EFFLUENTS

A study has been made of the major components present in secondary sewage effluents to determine their relative importance when considering the rate of membrane fouling. It has been shown that gross solids do not significantly affect the rate of membrane fouling at the concentration in which they exist in normal secondary sewage effluents. The major factor controlling the rate of fouling is the dissolved organic content of the liquid feed. The pH of the system has also been shown to be critical with the lowest rates of fouling occurring at a product water pH of 5.0, corresponding to a pH in the feed solution of 6.0. © 1979.