The WateReuse Research Foundation has issued a Request for Proposals to create a method for testing the integrity of high-pressure membranes used for nanofiltration (NF) and reverse osmosis (RO) in water treatment and desalination.
Proposals are due for the project, Standard Methods for Integrity Testing and On-line Monitoring of NF and RO Membranes – WateReuse-12-07, by 20 December 2012.
WateReuse says there is a lack of on-line membrane integrity testing currently for high‑pressure membranes, which has resulted in penalties for the drinking water industry. Although it is recognized that these high‑pressure membranes may offer excellent pathogen removals, the lack of recognized on-line integrity has allowed regulators to permit the membrane processes with lower pathogen removals.
The main goal of this project is to create scientifically-based method(s) for the integrity testing of high-pressure membranes, including NF and RO membranes. Once developed, the goal is to have the methods adopted as industry standards and approved for higher pathogen removal credits by regulatory agencies.