ULTRA-LOW PRESSURE RO MEMBRANES - AN ANALYSIS OF PERFORMANCE AND COST

A new generation of reverse osmosis (RO) membrane has recently been in troduced, which is receiving a great deal of interest. This is especia lly true among application of RO for large-scale municipal desalinatio n systems. This new group of RO membranes operates at very low applied pressure, often in the range of 7-10 bar (100-150 psi). This paper pr esents information and data on the characteristics and performance of these membranes relative to the traditional brackish RO membranes. Per formance and cost comparisons are provided. Also, an existing large-sc ale facility is reviewed.