Effect of TiO2 Photocatalytic Oxidation on Fouling of Microfiltration Membranes by Natural Organic Matter in Drinking Water

摘要

Microfiltration (MF) is gaining increasing applications in drinking water and wastewater treatment. However, one unsolved problem of the current MF technology is membrane fouling. Fouling of membrane materials results in decline of membrane permeation flux, deterioration of membrane materials, and ultimately shorter membrane life. Natural organic matter (NOM) in drinking water sources has been found to be a major membrane foulant. In addition, fouling caused by NOM is difficult to remove by physical processes such as hydraulic flushing or back-pulsing. Periodic chemical cleaning is needed to recover membrane performance. The higher operational and maintenance costs resulted from these reasons have kept many water utilities from considering membrane filtration for their drinking water treatment processes.