How to select ideal model organic matters for membrane fouling research on water and wastewater treatment
Yu-Qing Xu,
Yin-Hu Wu,
Xin Tong,
Li-Wei Luo,
Hao-Bin Wang
Affiliations
Yu-Qing Xu
Environmental Simulation and Pollution Control State Key Joint Laboratory, State Environmental Protection Key Laboratory of Microorganism Application and Risk Control (SMARC), School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China; Beijing Laboratory for Environmental Frontier Technologies, Beijing, 100084, China
Yin-Hu Wu
Environmental Simulation and Pollution Control State Key Joint Laboratory, State Environmental Protection Key Laboratory of Microorganism Application and Risk Control (SMARC), School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China; Beijing Laboratory for Environmental Frontier Technologies, Beijing, 100084, China; Corresponding author. School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Room 524, Beijing, 10084, China.
Xin Tong
Environmental Simulation and Pollution Control State Key Joint Laboratory, State Environmental Protection Key Laboratory of Microorganism Application and Risk Control (SMARC), School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China; Beijing Laboratory for Environmental Frontier Technologies, Beijing, 100084, China
Li-Wei Luo
Environmental Simulation and Pollution Control State Key Joint Laboratory, State Environmental Protection Key Laboratory of Microorganism Application and Risk Control (SMARC), School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China; Beijing Laboratory for Environmental Frontier Technologies, Beijing, 100084, China
Hao-Bin Wang
Environmental Simulation and Pollution Control State Key Joint Laboratory, State Environmental Protection Key Laboratory of Microorganism Application and Risk Control (SMARC), School of Environment, Tsinghua University, Beijing, 100084, China; Beijing Laboratory for Environmental Frontier Technologies, Beijing, 100084, China
Model organic matters (MOMs) are widely used in membrane fouling research for water and wastewater treatment. In this study, we aimed to define the characteristics of ideal MOMs and propose principles for selecting appropriate ones for research. The MOMs were classified into three categories based on their composition. Among these, bovine serum albumin, sodium alginate, and humic acid are the most commonly used. However, some of them lack representativeness of the main organics or main foulants in water and wastewater, whereas others lack the similarity of fouling behavior with water and wastewater. The characteristics of ideal MOMs are summarized as follows: 1. they actually exist in water or wastewater and contribute substantially to membrane fouling; 2. they demonstrate fouling behavior similar to that of water and wastewater; 3. they are easy to access and produce. To select appropriate MOMs, two principles were proposed: A. the main foulants in water and wastewater, such as standard extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) and standard effluent organic matters (EfOM) and B. the organic matter that has similar fouling behaviors to water and wastewater, such as xanthan gum and guar gum.
