Synergistic Treatment of Reverse Osmosis Membrane Biofouling with Quorum Quenching Bacteria and Hitchhiking Phages

on the membrane surface, which restored membrane flux (i.e., 90% recovery in severely biofouling systems). Operation studies showed that the phoresy system reduced fouling rates, extended the membrane lifespan, and maintained salt rejection performance for reverse osmosis (RO) membrane systems. These findings highlight the potential of the QQ bacterium-phage system as a sustainable alternative to conventional chemical treatments that damage polymeric membranes.