MeSRa joint project

DEVELOPMENT OF A GRAVITY-DRIVEN MEMBRANE CLEANING SYSTEM FOR GRAY WATER

A question which is always present in filtration tasks is: How can we counteract the build-up of layers that limit the filtration flow?

The MeSRa project is quite different, where the MBR principle for wastewater treatment is to be further developed into the special process of a "Biologically Activated Membrane Bioreactor" (BAMBi).

In this project, the formation of a biomass layer on the membranes is not only accepted. In contrary, the build-up of a biofilm with sufficient biological activity and capacity is even promoted. The reason is that the small quantities of pollutants present in the graywater can be converted without further measures (aerobic, anaerobic activation, aeration, recirculation, etc.).

In case of occurring pollutant peaks, these are to be buffered by adsorbers located in the immediate vicinity of the biofilms and released again during off-peak periods.

The subproject worked on by WTA UNISOL builds on the H4L membrane system and develops it further for the specific application.

The focal points of the work are:

• The optimization of the membrane material,
• The selection of suitable adsorber materials, with regard to base material, grain size, attachment method and spatial arrangement,
• Adaptation of the membrane system and
• Manufacturing of the prototypes.

As a result of the gravity operation of the membranes and the lack of crossflow, the energy demand reaches minimum possible values with simultaneously low membrane loading. Correspondingly, the expected lifetime of the membranes is high.