Abstract
Contamination of ion exchange membranes is one of the major problems in electrodialysis. Among the solutions that have been proposed and tested to alleviate membrane fouling during electrodialysis so far, applying a pulsed electric field (PEF) at a fixed application time (Ton) followed by a pause time (Toff) has been proved to be effective. In this study, the PEF was applied to desalinate sodium gluconate mother liquor by ED. The experimental properties of conventional ED and pulsed ED and their effects on membrane fouling were compared. The results show that compared with conventional ED, pulsed ED can alleviate concentration polarization and enhance the performance of ED. Similarly, in the process of continuous batch treatment of mother liquor under the PEF condition, large organic molecules can be effectively prevented from depositing on the membrane surface. Therefore, an anion exchange membrane (AEM) under the condition of PEF is contaminated mainly by organic molecules with a relatively smaller size. Both the surface and interior of AEM membrane were affected by organic pollutants under conventional electric field (CEF) conditions.
Highlights
Sodium gluconate is produced by fungal fermentation, and the mother liquid contains sodium gluconate and various organic species due to addition of nutrients for cell growth and occurrence of cell metabolites [1]
The results showed that both the surface and interior of anion exchange membrane (AEM) membrane were affected by organic pollutants under conventional electric field (CEF) condition
Demineralization of sodium gluconate mother liquor was performed by ED
Summary
Sodium gluconate is produced by fungal fermentation, and the mother liquid contains sodium gluconate and various organic species due to addition of nutrients for cell growth and occurrence of cell metabolites [1]. Sodium gluconate can be used as a highly effective chelating agent in construction, as a surface cleaner for steel and iron, a bottle cleaner, aluminum oxide coloring for electroplating industry, and as a highly effective retarder and water reducer for concrete industry [2]. Mother liquor can be used as animal feed after desalination to avoid environmental pollution. From the economic and environmental point of view, it is necessary to find a suitable method to recover sodium gluconate from mother liquor. Electrodialysis (ED) is a method to separate salts from other components under the action of electric field without chemical consumption or waste generation.
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
