Department Editor: Kate Torzewski

embrane polymers are packaged into a conguration, commonly called a device or an element. The most-common element congurations (gure) are tubular, capillary ber, spiral wound, and plate and frame.

Membrane Congurations
Tubular Membrane Feed Porous substrate Concentrate

ChOOsING A CONfIGURAtION
In selecting a membrane conguration, it is important to consider how the packing density and concentration polarization of each conguration affects membrane fouling resistance.

TUBULAR
Made from ceramic, carbon, stainless steel or a number of thermoplastics, tubular elements have inside diameters from 1/4 in. up to about 1 in. Typically, the membrane is coated on the inside of the tube, and the feed solution ows through the interior (lumen) from one end to the other, with the permeate passing through the wall and collected on the outside of the tube.

CAPILLARY (HOLLOW FIBER)

These elements are similar to the tubular element in design. They are, however, smaller in diameter and usually consist of unsupported membrane polymers, which require rigid support on each end. This support is provided by an epoxy potting of a bundle of the bers inside a cylinder. The feed ow is either down the interior of the ber or around its outside.

Packing density. From the perspective of cost and convenience, it is Permeate benecial to pack as much memflow brane area into as small a volume as possible. The higher the packing density, the greater the membrane Feed area enclosed in a device of a given volume, and, generally, the lower the cost of the membrane element. The disadvantage of Feed membrane elements having high packing density is Permeate flow their greater propensity for fouling, as outlined in the table.

Permeate Capillary Hollow fibers Concentrate

Spiral wound

Concentrate Permeate flow

SPIRAL WOUND
This type of element is made from an envelope of sheet membrane, wound around a permeate tube that is perforated to allow collection of the permeate. Feed water becomes puried by passing through one layer of the membrane and owing into the permeate tube. This is by far the most common conguration in water-purication applications.

PLAtE AND FRAME

This kind of element employs sheet membrane, stretched over a frame to separate the layers and facilitate collection of the permeate, which goes to a center tube.

Membranes Concentration polarization. Concentration polarization is the acFeed spacer cumulation of rejected particles to an extent that transport to the membrane Plate and frame surface becomes limited. It reduces Concentrate the permeability of the solvent and can lead to a limiting ux and a Cartridge Membranes higher fouling tendency. The type of membrane module used Feed in a process affects the inuence of Permeate concentration polarization; and it is difcult to balance high uxes and low fouling with low investment and COMPArISON OF MEMBrANE ELEMENT operating costs. Tubular modules can CONFIGUrATIONS accommodate high cross ow and Element Packing Fouling large particles, but their capital costs configuration density* resistance** and ratio of relative price to memCapillary filter medium high brane area are considerably higher Plate and frame low high than those for spiral-wound modules. Spiral-wound modules, on the other Spiral wound medium moderate hand, enjoy the advantages of lower Tubular low high installed costs and easier changeout. * Membrane area per unit volume of element Channel height can be varied by the ** Tolerance to suspended solids use of distance keepers, also known as spacers. References Capillary membrane modules can be 1.  Cartwright, P., Membranes for Process Water backwashed inline during ltration to Reuse, Chem. Eng., June 2004, pp. 3842. remove particles from the membrane 2. Baird, A., Making High-Purity Water, Chem. or to add chemicals from the permeate Eng., May 2005, pp. 3643. 3. Buecker, B., Microltration for CPI Wastewater, side. Like tubular modules, they have Chem. Eng., May 2007, pp. 6365. high investment costs, but their ability to 4. Lipnizki, J., Strategies for Controlling Membrane backwash at regular intervals reduces the Fouling, Chem. Eng., September 2007, pp. 6264. potential for fouling.