Modeling of gel layer transport during ultrafiltration of fruit juice with non-Newtonian fluid rheology

摘要

The rheology of fruit juice mixtures generally follows non-Newtonian behavior of power law form. The clarification of fruit juices by membrane separation illustrates an example of enhancing the shelf life of a real fruit juice by removing degradable components. However, the presence of high molecular weight proteins, pectins, polysaccharides, fibers, etc., tends to form gel over the membrane during filtration causing fouling and affecting its performance. The proposed model developed from the first principle boundary layer analysis, describes the physical mass transport phenomena and quantifies the various extents of fouling using different membrane materials and operating conditions. The model results are useful in understanding the complex solute-membrane interplay in fouling and can predict the effect of gel layer thickness on the process throughput.