Production of a Highly Concentrated CaCO3Suspension by Cross‐Flow Microfiltration in the Presence of a Dispersant

This article presents the study of the cross‐flow microfiltration of an aqueous calcium carbonate suspension in the presence of dispersant in order to obtain the highly concentrated retentate. In the absence of a dispersant, the cross‐flow microfiltration with cylindrical ceramic membrane permitted to increase the CaCO3 suspension concentration from 27 to 36.5%. The retentate concentration is increased markedly in the presence of the dispersant (up to 70%). In the presence of the dispersant, the productivity of cross‐flow microfiltration of CaCO3 suspension is almost 30% higher than the productivity of dead‐end microfiltration of this suspension at the same pressure of 1 bar. However, the permeate contamination by the dispersant could not be avoided and a subsequent separation must be provided to purify the permeate.