Microfiltration, ultrafiltration and nanofiltration membranes

Condorchem Envitech provides several membrane filtration technologies that enable the production of high-quality water from various sources of supply. In order to attain water quality goals we design treatment plants with different filtration stages and membrane systems. The type of membrane depends on the particle or ion size that must be removed. The membrane range goes from micro-filtration, ultra-filtration and nano-filtration, and finally reverse osmosis.

• Microfiltration membranes have a pore size of 0.1-10 µm, enough to restrain all types of bacteria, turbidity, macromolecules, colloidals, etc. These are used during cold sterilization of liquid food and pharmaceutical products, water microorganism reduction, water pretreatment for nano-filtration and reverse osmosis, etc.
• By means of ultrafiltration, particles with a size of 0.001-0.1 µm are removed. All viruses, macroproteins, antibiotics, etc, are restrained in these membranes. These have application in the removal of harmful organic substances from food and drink industries, in the removal of trihalomethanes from water, in the treatment of wastewaters and in the textile industry, amongst others.
• By means of nanofiltration, particles with a size of 0.1 nm-0.001 µm are restrained, allowing water separation from most molecules, although low molecular weight particles are partially restrained in the membrane. Nano-filtration is used for water-softening, wastewater heavy metal elimination, wastewater decontamination, pretreatment for reverse osmosis, nitrates elimination, colour removal, etc.

Filtration membranes are selective barriers that allow the passage of certain components while retaining others based on their size and charge properties. They are widely used in wastewater treatment to separate solids, suspended particles, microorganisms, and dissolved contaminants in water.

Filtration allows us to remove solids, both organic and inorganic, of variable sizes depending on the porosity of the filtering medium used. Filtration is a physical operation in which water passes through a filtering medium to separate the matter present in the fluid.

After passing through this filtering medium, which can be a support or a bed, the particles are retained in it, leaving the fluid free of them. The separation occurs due to the electrical forces that arise from the friction of these solids when water passes through the filtering medium.

Its main applications are:

• Drinking water treatment.
• Water supply for industrial processes.
• Wastewater treatment.
• water reuse.

To determine the type of filter and filtering medium that best suits the water to be treated, the following variables must be taken into account:

• The characteristics of the fluid to be filtered.
• The characteristics of the particles to be retained.
• Possibility or need for water reuse.
• The desired quality in the filtered fluid.
• Operating conditions of the installation.
• Efficiency and washing method.
• Intended economic investment for both installation and subsequent maintenance.