Abstract
Electromagnetic field (EMF) treatment has emerged as a promising approach for scaling control due to its cost-effectiveness, simplicity, and low energy consumption. However, there is a limited understanding of the mechanisms by which applied EMF impacts mineral scaling in reverse osmosis (RO) systems. This has led to inconclusive and varied results and uncertainties regarding its effectiveness. This study elucidates the impacts of EMF on homogenous and heterogeneous nucleation and membrane performance during RO desalination of different feedwaters. Our results reveal that EMF exhibits greater efficacy in treating near-saturated water (SI∼0), especially when coupled with extended hydraulic flushing (HF). For saturated brackish water desalination, heterogeneous scaling predominantly occurs on membrane surfaces, with the effectiveness of EMF in inhibiting scaling primarily attributed to the hydration effect. In supersaturated solutions, EMF promotes bulk precipitation due to the magnetohydrodynamic effect, quickly blocking membrane pores. Thus, when the saturation reaches a certain high level during RO desalination, magnetohydrodynamic EMF effects can accelerate flux decline caused by homogeneous scaling. This work provides an efficient method for predicting EMF efficiency, emphasizing the importance of saturation conditions and HF cleaning duration in determining membrane performance, suggesting these show promise for improving undersaturated or near-saturated feedwater desalination via RO.
Original language | English |
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Article number | 129630 |
Journal | Separation and Purification Technology |
Volume | 355 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Mar 1 2025 |
Funding
This research was funded by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, grant number R18AC00118; and the National Alliance for Water Innovation (NAWI), funded by the U.S. Department of Energy, Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Office, Advanced Manufacturing Office under Funding Opportunity Announcement DE-FOA-0001905. The authors thank Kevin Brauer and Mark Meyer for technical support and for providing the EMF device. The views expressed herein do not necessarily represent the views of the U.S. Department of Energy or the United States Government. This research was funded by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation , grant number R18AC00118 ; and the National Alliance for Water Innovation (NAWI), funded by the U.S. Department of Energy, Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Office, Advanced Manufacturing Office under Funding Opportunity Announcement DE-FOA-0001905 . The authors thank Kevin Brauer and Mark Meyer for technical support and for providing the EMF device.
Funders | Funder number |
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Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy | |
U.S. Department of Energy | |
National Alliance for Water Innovation | |
Bureau of Reclamation | R18AC00118 |
Bureau of Reclamation | |
Advanced Manufacturing Office | DE-FOA-0001905 |
Advanced Manufacturing Office |
Keywords
- Brackish water desalination
- Electromagnetic field treatment
- Homogeneous and heterogeneous nucleation
- Mineral scaling
- Reverse osmosis membrane
- Saturated condition