Separation Science and Technology, Vol.42, No.7, 1381-1390, 2007
The usage of non-woven fabric material as separation media in submerged membrane photocatalytic reactor for degradation of organic pollutants in water
Photodegradation tests with continuous mode were carried out in a photocatalytic reactor containing a submerged flat sheet non-woven fabric membrane, which was able to retain the photocatalyst. The non-woven fabric membrane was made of polypropylene with a pore size of 2 mm. In this study, three operational parameters were investigated: light intensity, feed concentration, and feed flow rate. Experimental results showed no significant variation of permeate flux and TMP ( transmembrane pressure) during the experimental period. The SS ( suspended solid) of the permeate was non-detectable. These behaviors were due to the formation of a dynamic porous cake layer on the non-woven fabric membrane surface in our experimental condition. We also found that it was important to control the operation parameter mentioned above as to exactly when we wanted to maintain the steady pollutant concentration in the permeate at very low value.