The effect of fibre diameter on filtration and flux disrtribution- relevance to submerged hollow fibre modules

摘要

This paper examines the effect of fibre diameter on filtration and flux distribution with inter-fibre two-phase flow for conditions relevant to submerged bioreactors (SMBR). Hollow fibres of different diameters fixed in a specially designed holder providing shell-side feed were tested for a model biomass feed with pumping and submerged systems. The experimental results showed that the effect of the fibre diameter on filtration increased with the increase in turbulence around the fibres. For filtration with two-phase flow, the performance was sensitive to changes in fibre diameter and significantly lower flux declines were obtained with smaller fibres.