Membrane Crystallization and Membrane Condenser: Two Membrane Contactor Applications

Abstract

In recent years different new membrane processes have been designed and developed. In this paper two innovative processes (i.e., membrane condenser and membrane crystallization) will be described and discussed. Membrane crystallization can be used in desalination in combination with membrane distillation and pressure driven membrane processes (such as nanofiltration or reverse osmosis) to achieve high recovery factor combined to salt crystals production.The innovative membrane condenser can be used for the selective recovery of evaporated waste water and contaminants from industrial gases. This process can be also used for pre-treating gas streams that require further separation for the recovery of a defined species (such as pre-treatment of flue gas when used for CO2 capture, biogas for bio methane production, etc.). The current status, the separation principle, the utilized membrane materials and membrane configurations, and the application fields are described and discussed. The future development direction of these two processes is also given. Keywords: Membrane Crystallization; Membrane Condenser; Water recovery; Membrane Technologies;