Reverse osmosis and ultrafiltration solve separation problems

Membrane separation is discussed and analyzed in this paper. The analysis reviews the basic principles, suggests approaches to design, and briefly discusses some of the membranes and equipment available. The potential for energy saving through the use of membrane separation is enormous compared with other separation techniques, particularly evaporation. The author describes the evaporative methods in some detail. The reverse osmosis system (RO) is also described. In lowerpressure ultrafiltration systems, the energy savings are greater using this option. RO may have advantages over evaporation in terms of product quality, and because RO is not a thermal process, it can be used to concentrate temperature-sensitive materials without loss of quality.