膜科学与技术

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Performance and dynamic fouling mechanism of ultrafiltration membrane
treating the desulfurization wastewater from the coal-fired power plant

Authors： WU Weitao, GUI Shuanglin, ZHANG Daohua, FU Jiaqi, CHEN Tao, WANG Yiwen, ZHENG Libing, WEI Yuansong

Units： 1. Key Laboratory of Poyang Lake Environment and Resource Utilization of Ministry of Education, College of Resources and Environment, Nanchang University, Nanchang 330047, China; 2. Laboratory of Water Pollution Control Technology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100085, China; 3. Institute of Energy, Jiangxi Academy of Sciences, Nanchang 330096, China; 4. Jiangxi Carbon Neutralization Research Center, Nanchang 330096,China; 5. KU Leuven, Leuven 3001,Belgium

KeyWords： desulfurization wastewater; ultrafiltration; flux decline; Hermia model; membrane fouling

ClassificationCode：X703.1；TQ028

year,volume(issue):pagination： 2025,45(6):155-165

Abstract：

The efficient and stable removal of suspended solids (SS) from desulfurization wastewater is a critical challenge for achieving zero liquid discharge (ZLD) of coal-fired power plants. In this study, ultrafiltration (UF) was employed to remove SS from the desulfurization wastewater, and the effects of membrane pore size and material on the separation performance were systematically investigated, with a focus on the flux decline and the dynamic evolution of membrane fouling. It was found that all UF membranes achieved high SS rejection (>99%) through cake layer formation, demonstrating the potential of UF in desulfurization wastewater treatment. However, the pore size and material significantly influenced the flux decline process. Increasing the initial flux would lead to a rapid flux decline and significantly influence the fouling layer formation process. Hermia model revealed a two-stage transition in fouling mechanism in UF: the intermediate blocking was the leading mechanism at the beginning, which turned to cake layer filtration in the final stage due to the accumulation of SS. The transition stage was delayed for membrane with larger pores, which was attributed to the more particles accumulated into the membrane pores before cake layer formation for the low rejection and high flux. Meanwhile, membrane material also influenced both the initial fouling mechanism and the subsequent transition: complete pore blocking was the main mechanism for PES membrane, and intermediate blocking was the main mechanism for PVDF and PS membranes. What also worth noting is that the PAN membrane underwent a three-stage fouling mechanism transition from standard blocking to intermediate blocking, and followed by cake layer model at the last stage. This study reveals the dynamic fouling and flux decline mechanism in UF process, which can provide theoretical supports for the application of UF in desulfurization wastewater.

Funds：

江西省科学院省级财政科研项目经费包干制试点示范项(2023YSBG10004)；北京市科技新星项目(20240484679)；江西省科学院省级科研院基础研究与人才类科研经费项目(2022YYBG18)

AuthorIntro：

吴伟涛 (2001-) ，男，江西抚州人，硕士研究生，研究方向为膜法水处理技术.

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