America’s Authority in Membrane Treatment

Industrial Applications of Membranes Overview for waste treatment in food and dairy, diffuse through the barrier layer and Membrane products are well known for pharmaceutical and other facilities. reject most of the dissolved ions in the producing potable water in municipal mixture. Since heat is not used to effect Applications Include: plants and seawater desalination. the separations, the components in the Food and Beverage: However what is not appreciated is mixture are less likely to suffer thermal how much membrane technology is  Bottled Water degradation. Membranes are replacing used in industrial applications around diatomaceous earth filtration (DE),  Beer, wine, and alcoholic beverages the world. Membranes achieve multimedia filtration, centrifugation, separations without a phase change and  Fruit juices and maple syrup extraction, rotary vacuum filters, the absence of applying heat can be  Milk and cheese evaporation and distillation and other unit advantageous to some applications. The operations that have been used to make ability to remove water from a process Industrial Processes products. Cold sterilization of beverages, stream or effluent has shown to be an  Clarification of biochemical pharmaceuticals and milk take advantage effective way of concentrating valuable processes of the membrane systems. Most of the components of an aqueous stream. At membrane products commercially times the membrane facility may not be  Petroleum refining available have a polymeric barrier layer large compared to a municipal plant but  Paint, adhesive, and solvent recovery however ceramic membranes with the value to the system and process distinct pores have been used in may be critical for overall economic  High purity applications such as demanding conditions and are finding use viability. Sometimes, the water semiconductor, boiler feed and power in new applications. Ceramic membranes available to an industrial facility may industry needs have pore sizes that classify them as not meet the requirements of the Mining and Metal Processes microfiltration and ultrafiltration filters. application and membranes can be used Membrane Applications to improve the quality so that the  Plating processes and waste reduction The range of applications that currently process can be run. Or perhaps the  Gold and uranium recovery take advantage of membranes is discharge from the processes is too impressive and continues to grow. Some great and a reduction step is needed that  Recovery of precious metals of these are discussed below: can be facilitated by membranes. At  Landfill leachate reduction times, the concentration of the solution Food and Beverage Reasons for Using Membrane may not be desirable and an easy, Bottled water: Since the feed water may Technology efficient means of adjusting the vary from site to site, the bottled water Membrane processes employ a barrier concentration may be in order by using industry has embraced membrane layer that allows water to permeate or membranes. Finally, membranes are technology. Some purified bottled water pass through it but rejects or retards other used in Membrane Bioreactors (MBR) manufacturers want to produce a components from going along with that reproducible product no matter what the filtrate. In the case of microfiltration and feed source and as such they treat the ultrafiltration, distinct pores in the local water to remove almost all of the polymer allow for water to flow through constituents and then add back a package the barrier but retard/reject the passage of of ingredients to give a recognizable taste species larger than the pores. Reverse and feel to that particular brand of bottled osmosis barrier layers do not have water. distinct pores but do allow water to Similarly, bottled water producers utilize juice is less likely to spoil and will Dairy applications: The dairy industry membranes for their barrier properties to remain safe to drink for longer periods of has embraced membranes for many years. exclude bacteria and microorganisms. time. Fruit solids can be recovered in An obvious use is the concentration of Soft drink manufacturers need safe clean some cases and bitterness components milk and whey to reduce shipping costs, water free of microorganisms and make removed by appropriate use of produce condensed milk or provide up water is treated with membranes at a membranes. Removal of limonin and concentrated milk for cheese production. number of soft drink facilities. polyphenols has been done in a number Membranes are being used on sweet/acid of fruit juices including orange, whey concentration before evaporation or Beer production: During the production grapefruit, tangerine and many more. spray-drying. Removal of bacteria and of beer, brew masters around the world Apple juice clarification and spores from milk aids shelf life and are particularly specific about the concentration as well as removal of product stability. Acids and caustic are consistency and quality of the water that biological species that are thermal used to clean the equipment at dairies and they use for the manufacture of beer. resistant have been accomplished with membranes are being used to clarify the Membrane facilities are able to take membrane systems. cleaning solutions by removing locally available water sources and treat suspended and dissolved solids to allow them to acceptable ionic content Maple Sap: The sugar concentration of reuse of the solutions. including hardness and alkalinity for use. natural maple sap from a maple tree is In addition, membranes are used for very low and traditional methods of Cheese manufacturing produced whey continuous beer stabilization to improve making maple syrup involved boiling off that was a troublesome by-product operating efficiency of the brewery and the water. Membranes have become the however membrane technology has continuous clarification and final means for the initial removal of water to allowed for use of this material via partial filtration of the beer. concentrate the sugar content by demineralization and concentration. 75 - 90%. Not only does this conserve Separation of casein from whey products Wine: Membranes have been used for energy but it avoids early application of allow for cheese production and whey wine clarification and the avoidance of heat to the syrup components to avoid protein concentration. filter aids such as diatomaceous earth early decomposition and change of the (DE) eliminates a disposal issue and loss mixture. of wine that would have been associated with the spent aid. Removal of suspended solids, yeast and bacteria and automation of the filtration process reduces losses, improve economics and minimizes labor when producing wine. Fruit juice: Fruit juice manufacturers take advantage of membrane technology Industrial Processes in a number of ways. Concentration of Clarification and purification of cell natural juices can be achieved in which broths take advantage of the barrier layer water is removed as permeate and the of membranes. Extraction of amino acids concentrated juice is left behind. Since no and lipids can be accomplished and heat is applied there is no degradation of reused in blood and other cell cultures. the many complex juice sugars and flavor components. Color can be controlled and Enzymes are important to industrial even enhanced during the concentration processes and they improve the speed or step. Produced juice can be purified and efficiency of biochemical reactions. clarified by removal of fine particles from Advancements in enzyme production juice which clarifies the mixture and have been facilitated by the use of Vinegar: Production of vinegar utilizes gives it a haze-free property that allows microfiltration. The cells that generated membranes to clarify the vinegar to give for longer shelf life. the enzymes are rejected by the barrier high quality product with low haze layer of membranes but the enzymes can Since bacteria and microorganisms are potential. pass though the pores. Prior methods of excluded in membrane processes, the centrifugation and filtration were hard on and purifications of materials that fill this Petroleum refining uses membranes for the enzymes and limited productivity. demand. removal of particulates and tar products from the process streams. Biofuels are Animal processing facilities generate increasing in production and membranes significant volumes of blood that are used in the process to remove traditionally has been a costly waste by-products and raw materials from the stream. However, by concentrating the final product. blood plasma, a valuable additive for biochemical processes or pet food can be There are some applications that demand produced, and a potential cost item very high purity or ultrapure water such becomes a revenue generating product. as semiconductor chip rinsing and processing, high pressure boiler water Waste stream effluent reduction with make-up and assorted power plant needs. membrane systems is wide spread. Pulp Membranes play an important part in and paper mills utilize membrane systems producing this very low tds water. In to filter the effluent prior to discharge and these uses, the presence of a salt ion or minimize the actual amount of liquid that impurity could be detrimental to the final will be discharged from the facility. product or the equipment in use and Production of paint and adhesives may membrane technology coupled with other use membranes and in the automotive separation processes allow their success. Separation of sugars such as dextrose and and appliance industry that use water There is a technique for washing maltose from fibrous and undesirable soluble paints, membranes are being used windows that employs highly purified proteins while purifying the mixture can to recover the paint while improving water to accomplish the task rather than be done with membranes. Clarification of batch conductivity by removing salts and use detergents and membranes are used to the process stream after saccharification process metals. Improvements in produce this water in an environmentally has been done in different facilities. maintenance of the solids level in the friendly way that reduces the organic load Gelatin, egg whites, soy protein and other process and reuse of the paint reduce the in the wash water. natural products can be improved using waste load from the plant and make the microfiltration and ultrafiltration. overall process economics more Metal Removal and Treatment favorable. RO for the recycle of rinse Mining applications can range from reuse Wet corn milling grinds the corn and then water for pre-paint rinse system and of mine water, treatment of secondary membranes have been used for removal recovery of paint solids from treatment effluent for use in the mining operation, of the mud for dextrose clarification, cell waste streams has been used to improve treating waste water to allow discharge and biomass removal, protein, peptide painting economics. from the plant, recycling mine drainage. and enzyme recovery, purification of Potable water can be recovered from acid dextrose, and maltose clarification. Fine chemicals and pharmaceutical mine drainage for use at the mine or in production employ membranes for Methanol removal from organic mixtures neighboring communities. recovery and are used within the has been achieved by taking advantage of processes. Recovery of high value metals such as the hydrophilic nature and low molecular gold and uranium from bleed and waste weight of that alcohol. Extraction of Aquarium salinity control – large outdoor streams in mining plants can be done. valuable volatiles, dehydration of organic aquariums are subject to rain water that Likewise, valuable metals like copper, solvents, aroma extraction can be done. actually dilutes the sea water zinc, cobalt, molybdenum and tungsten Natural essential oils and flavors can be concentration from the optimum levels can be separated from process and enriched and improved via membrane needed to sustain the oceanic sea life. In effluent streams. Pre-separation of copper fractionation and recovery. these cases, a small RO system will and gold in a mining operation has been remove fresh water as permeate and the Nutraceuticals is a growing market in reported. concentrate can be added back the tank to which nutrition and pharmaceutical are maintain an acceptable salinity. Permeate Industrial plants utilizing homogeneous combined. Membranes are being used for can be discarded or perhaps used in some catalysts employ membrane technology the extraction, separation, concentrate other water application on the site. to recover the valuable catalytic materials. Reusing these expensive materials impacts the economics of the for recovery of antibiotics and peptides, process and minimizes potentially dissolved chemicals, polymeric binders hazardous waste streams that are costly to and pigments, dissolved catalyzed and dispose of at these facilities. even recycling of hydrocarbons in cleaning processes. Some other applications include:

 Pigments and paints

 Latex suspensions

 Inks and dyes

 Emulsified oils

 Color removal for alcoholic beverages Metal recovery – electroplating baths become contaminated with metals from Summary the process and membrane technology Membrane processes have found a great has been used to clean up the baths and variety of applications in which their use allow reuse of the solution thereby has improved products, recovered reducing the plating waste stream. A valuable components, added stability to rechargeable nickel cadmium battery the mixture, enhanced the aesthetics of plant used a membrane system to remove the solutions and contributed to the dissolved metals such as mercury, lead, economics of the processes. cadmium, silver, copper and chromium. Microfiltration, ultrafiltration, reverse osmosis and nanofiltration each offer Landfill leachate contains a variety of different separation options for components and membrane treatment has industrial applications that will continue been used to remove water from the to grow in their use. This material has been prepared as an stream for safe disposal and then recycle educational tool by the American Membrane of the concentrated leachate back to the Technology Association (AMTA). It is pile. Radioactive species are rejected well designed for dissemination to the public to by membranes and contaminated water further the understanding of the contribution can be treated to remove and concentrate that membrane water treatment technologies the radioactive contaminants. can make toward improving the quality of Other Applications water supplies in the US and throughout the Nanofiltration has been used in organic world. solvents to separate larger molecules from the organic solvent so that it can be For more information, please contact: reused. Non-thermal solvent recovery, American Membrane Technology decolorization of solvents, solvent Association (AMTA) exchange at room temperature, in-situ 2409 SE Dixie Highway recovery of organic solvent, monomer removal are all uses that allow reuse and Stuart, Florida 34996 deliver product upgrades. Non-thermal Phone: (772) 463-0820 recovery of solvents and room Fax: (772) 463-0860 temperature solvent extraction are Email: [email protected] accomplished with membranes. or visit our website at: Some membranes can be operated in pure www.amtaorg.com solvents or mixtures. They can be used (FS-20) March 2014