Micro Filtration
By Neel Nandola
201130105001
Working Principle
• The microfiltration process is a membrane solids separation technique that
can be used to remove particles and suspended solids from for colloidal
and suspended solutions.
• Particle size in the range of 0.05-10 microns. On molecular weigh basis,
the particles are separated or rejected. Passage of particles through
membrane is usually a function of particle geometry (i.e; particles shape
and size).
• Microfiltration is suited to separate larger sizes, such as suspended solids,
particulates, and microorganisms and reduction of turbidity. Commercially
available microfiltration membranes are made from a variety of materials
including organic polymers, such as polypropylene, ceramics and metal
alloys, systems are operated at much lower feed pressures than reverse
osmosis or ultra filtration due to the greater effective pore size.
Operating Parameter
• When treating raw contaminated fluids, hard sharp materials can wear and tear the porous
cavities in the micro-filter, rendering it ineffective. Liquids must be subjected to pre-
treatment before passage through the micro-filter. This may be achieved by a variation of
macro separation processes such as granular media filtration.
• When undertaking cleaning regimes the membrane must not dry out once it has been
contacted by the process stream. Thorough water rinsing of the membrane modules,
pipelines, pumps and other unit connections should be carried out until the end water
appears clean.
• Microfiltration modules are typically set to operate at pressures of 100 to 400 kPa. Such
pressures allow removal of materials such as sand, slits and clays, and also bacteria and
protozoa.
• When the membrane modules are being used for the first time, i.e. during plant start-up,
conditions need to be well devised.
Membrane Used
• The materials which constitute the membranes used in microfiltration systems may be
either organic or inorganic depending upon the contaminants that are desired to be
removed, or the type of application.
• Organic membranes are made using a diverse range of polymers including cellulose
acetate (CA), polysulfone, polyvinylflouride, polyethersulphone and polyamide.
• These are most commonly used due to their flexibility, and chemical properties.
• Inorganic membranes are usually composed of sintered metal or porous alumina.
They are able to be designed in various shapes, with a range of average pore sizes
and permeability.
Transport Process & Mechanism Used
• There are two process cross flow and dead line filtration process.
• Cross-Flow Microfiltration: With cross-flow filtration a constant turbulent
flow along the membrane surface prevents the accumulation of matter
on the membrane surface.
• The membranes used in this process are commonly tubes with a
membrane layer on the inside wall of the tube.
• The feed flow through the membrane tube has an elevated pressure as
driving force for the filtration process and a high flow speed to create
turbulent conditions.
Cross Flow Process
• The process is referred to as "cross-flow", because the feed flow and
filtration flow direction have a 90 degrees angle.
• Cross-flow filtration is an excellent way to filter liquids with a high
concentration of filterable matter. In cross-flow microfiltration (CFMF), the
suspension is pumped tangentially over the filtration medium.
• Clear liquid permeates the filtration medium and is recovered as the
permeate,while the solids accumulate at the filtration barrier to form a
fouling layer, or cake.The cake, constituting an increase in hydraulic
resistance, decreases the permeate flux.
• The tangential suspension flow tends to limit the growth of the cake termed
assweeping. Correspondingly, after an initial rapid decrease, the permeate
flux levels off and either attains a steady-state, or exhibits a slow, long-
term decline with time.
Dead End Process
• The Dead-end Process:
• The complete feed flow is forced through the membrane and
cumulated solids are trapped on the surface of the membrane until
backwashing is performed.
• During backwashing, accumulated solids are flushed away from the
membranes and are collected for disposal. Backwash volumes typically
represent roughly 2 to 5 percent of the total influent feed stream.
figures of cross flow and dead end process
Industrial Application
• Examples of micro filtration applications.They are
• Cold sterilization of beverages and pharmaceuticals
• Clearing of fruit juice, wines and beer Separation of bacteria from water
(biological wastewater treatment)Separation of oil/ water emulsions
Pre-treatment of water for nano filtration or Reverse Osmosis
fermentation, broth clarification pre-treatment of water
for nanofiltration
