A critical review on fouling influence factors and antifouling coatings for heat exchangers of high-salt industrial wastewater

High-salt wastewater treatment is one of the hot topics in environmental protection industry. Under the requirement of “Zero Liquid Discharge”, thermal evaporation is necessary, and it is particularly important to deal with the fouling problem of heat exchangers. This paper describes the fouling mechanism in detail, introduces the traditional and novel antifouling coatings. The low surface energy of the antifouling coating can effectively reduce the thickness of the adhering dirt layers, so that the settlement is reduced and easy to peel off, while also dissolving the organic matter that is difficult to remove. The advantages and disadvantages of various antifouling coatings are summarized and analyzed. This paper aims at providing theoretical support for the antifouling research of high-salt wastewater heat exchangers.