Project Address: Xi’an, China Project Time: February 2022
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UF Systems + RO Systems Schematic Diagram
Overview
Ultrafiltration systems and reverse osmosis systems in water treatment are both advanced membrane separation technologies. They play different roles in the water purification process to meet different levels of water quality needs.
Ultrafiltration (UF) Systems
Ultrafiltration is a membrane separation process driven by pressure difference, and its core component is the ultrafiltration membrane. The pore size of ultrafiltration membranes is generally between 0.001 and 0.1 microns, which can effectively intercept pollutants such as suspended particles, bacteria, some viruses, macromolecular organic matter, and colloids in the water, while allowing water molecules and relatively small solutes to pass through.
Main Functions of Ultrafiltration Systems:
🔹 Clarification and Sterilization
Effectively remove suspended solids and microorganisms (bacteria and some viruses)
Improve water clarity and biological stability
🔹 Retention of Minerals
Low rejection rate of inorganic salt ions
Maintains certain proportion of minerals in treated water
Suitable for drinking water with hardness and mineralization requirements
Ideal for mineral water production
🔹 Pretreatment
Used as pretreatment before RO systems or other precision membrane separation systems
Removes particles and microorganisms that may block downstream equipment
Protects normal operation of subsequent treatment stages
🔹 Concentration and Separation
Industrial applications for concentrating specific macromolecular substances
Suitable for proteins, enzymes, nucleic acids separation
Reverse Osmosis (RO) Systems
Reverse osmosis is a separation technology based on the principle of selective permeation of a semipermeable membrane. Its membrane pore size is smaller, usually around 0.0001 microns. Driven by pressure, the RO membrane only allows water molecules and very small molecular substances to pass through, while efficiently intercepting the vast majority of ions, organic matter, microorganisms, and particulate matter.
Main Functions of Reverse Osmosis Systems:
🔹 Deep Desalination
Very high desalination rate
Effectively removes most inorganic salts (including heavy metals)
Removes dissolved organic matter and almost all microorganisms
Suitable for preparing pure water, high-purity water, or ultra-pure water
Applications: Electronics industry, pharmaceutical industry, laboratory water, power plant boiler feed water
🔹 Water Softening
Removes hardness components (calcium and magnesium ions)
Significantly reduces water hardness
Prevents scale formation in pipes and heat exchangers
🔹 Drinking Water Purification
Domestic and commercial drinking water purification
Provides low TDS (Total Dissolved Solids) pure water
Removes pollutants harmful to human health
🔹 Seawater Desalination
Main technology for seawater desalination
Converts high-salt seawater into fresh water
Suitable for drinking or industrial use
Summary
Ultrafiltration Systems are primarily used to:
Remove larger particles, microorganisms, and some organic matter
Retain certain minerals
Often used as pretreatment or for producing mineral-containing drinking water
Reverse Osmosis Systems provide:
Higher level water purification
Deep desalination and water softening
Removal of almost all impurities
Suitable for industries and applications with strict water quality requirements
Both technologies can be combined according to actual application needs to form an ultrafiltration-reverse osmosis composite system, optimizing the efficiency and effectiveness of the entire water treatment process.
SHANGHAI CM
Leading manufacturer of water treatment membranes and systems since 2009, serving over 60 countries worldwide.
SHANGHAI CM
