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Efficiently combining water reuse and desalination through forward osmosis - reverse osmosis (FO-RO) hybrids: a critical review

Forward osmosis (FO) is a promising membrane technology to combine seawater desalination and water reuse. More specifically, in a FO-reverse osmosis (RO) hybrid process, high quality water recovered from the wastewater stream is used to dilute seawater before RO treatment. As such, lower desalination energy needs and/or water augmentation can be obtained while delivering safe water for direct potable reuse thanks to the double dense membrane barrier protection. Typically, FO-RO hybrid can be a credible alternative to new desalination facilities or to implementation of stand-alone water reuse schemes. However, apart from the societal (public perception of water reuse for potable application) and water management challenges (proximity of wastewater and desalination plants), FO-RO hybrid has to overcome technical limitation such as low FO permeation flux to become economically attractive. Recent developments (i.e., improved FO membranes, use of pressure assisted osmosis, PAO) demonstrated significant improvement in water flux. However, flux improvement is associated with drawbacks, such as increased fouling behaviour, lower rejection of trace organic compounds (TrOCs) in PAO operation, and limitation in FO membrane mechanical resistance, which need to be better considered. To support successful implementation of FO-RO hybrid in the industry, further work is required regarding up-scaling to apprehend full-scale challenges in term of mass transfer limitation, pressure drop, fouling and cleaning strategies on a module scale. In addition, refined economics assessment is expected to integrate fouling and other maintenance costs/savings of the FO/PAO-RO hybrid systems, as well as cost savings from any treatment step avoided in the water recycling

Membranes, 2016, vol. 6, núm. 3, p. 37

MDPI (Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute)

Author: Blandin, Gaetan
Verliefde, Arne R.D.
Comas Matas, Joaquim
Rodríguez-Roda Layret, Ignasi
Le-Clech, Pierre
Date: 2016
Abstract: Forward osmosis (FO) is a promising membrane technology to combine seawater desalination and water reuse. More specifically, in a FO-reverse osmosis (RO) hybrid process, high quality water recovered from the wastewater stream is used to dilute seawater before RO treatment. As such, lower desalination energy needs and/or water augmentation can be obtained while delivering safe water for direct potable reuse thanks to the double dense membrane barrier protection. Typically, FO-RO hybrid can be a credible alternative to new desalination facilities or to implementation of stand-alone water reuse schemes. However, apart from the societal (public perception of water reuse for potable application) and water management challenges (proximity of wastewater and desalination plants), FO-RO hybrid has to overcome technical limitation such as low FO permeation flux to become economically attractive. Recent developments (i.e., improved FO membranes, use of pressure assisted osmosis, PAO) demonstrated significant improvement in water flux. However, flux improvement is associated with drawbacks, such as increased fouling behaviour, lower rejection of trace organic compounds (TrOCs) in PAO operation, and limitation in FO membrane mechanical resistance, which need to be better considered. To support successful implementation of FO-RO hybrid in the industry, further work is required regarding up-scaling to apprehend full-scale challenges in term of mass transfer limitation, pressure drop, fouling and cleaning strategies on a module scale. In addition, refined economics assessment is expected to integrate fouling and other maintenance costs/savings of the FO/PAO-RO hybrid systems, as well as cost savings from any treatment step avoided in the water recycling
Format: application/pdf
ISSN: 2077-0375
Document access: http://hdl.handle.net/10256/12965
Language: eng
Publisher: MDPI (Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute)
Collection: Reproducció digital del document publicat a: http://dx.doi.org/10.3390/membranes6030037
Articles publicats (D-EQATA)
Is part of: Membranes, 2016, vol. 6, núm. 3, p. 37
Rights: Attribution 4.0 Spain
Rights URI: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/es/
Subject: Aigua potable -- Reutilització
Drinking water -- Water reuse
Aigua salada -- Dessalatge
Saline water conversion
Contaminants orgànics de l’aigua
Organic water pollutants
Osmosi inversa
Reverse osmosis
Title: Efficiently combining water reuse and desalination through forward osmosis - reverse osmosis (FO-RO) hybrids: a critical review
Type: info:eu-repo/semantics/article
Repository: DUGiDocs

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