3-Dimensional CFD Simulation of Pre-Wastewater Treatment via Multi-Channel Porous Ceramic Membrane

Abstract

Multi-channel microfiltration (MF) membranes are considered as one of the most efficient separation methods for wastewater treatment, mainly due to their relatively high thermal and chemical resistance. Among various types of MF membranes, Ceramic Membranes attract great attention because of their high active area and superb mechanical strength, making them an industrially applicable pretreatment process for Reverse Osmosis (RO) unit operation. Here, a thorough 3-dimensional modeling of a 19-channel Ceramic Membrane was employed in order to gain insight into pressure drop, velocity distribution, and concentration profile in each channel. Experimental data from a lab-scale multi-channel Ceramic Membrane fed with oily wastewater was used to validate the model. The permeate flux was predicted as 200 to 250 L/m2.hr based on the porous media transmission pressure in such configurations. Further, permeate mass flux was also calculated based on the inlet flow velocities ranging from 0.75 to 2.25 m/s.