LAUSR

Abstract Membrane fouling is often considered as a hindrance for the application of microfiltration/ultrafiltration (MF/UF) for drinking water production. A novel process of photocatalytic membrane reactor/dynamic membrane (PMR/DM), operating in a continuous mode under sub-critical flux, was proposed for the mitigation of membrane fouling caused by humic acids (HAs) in water. The mechanism of membrane fouling alleviation with synergistic photocatalytic oxidation and dynamic layer isolating effect was comprehensively investigated from the characterization of foulant evolution responsible for the reversible and irreversible fouling. The results showed that the PMR/DM utilized photocatalytic oxidation to enhance the porosity and hydrophilicity of the fouling layer by converting the high molecular weight (MW) and hydrophobic HA molecules with carboxylic functional groups and aromatic structures into low-MW hydrophilic or transphilic fractions, including tryptophan-like or fulvic-like substances. The fouling layer formed in the PMR/DM by combination of photocatalytic oxidation and DM running at a sub-critical flux of 100 L·h−1·m−2, was more hydrophilic and more porous, resulting in the lowest trans-membrane pressure (TMP) growth rates, as compared to the processes of ceramic membrane (CM), DM and PMR/CM. Meanwhile, the dynamic layer prevented the foulants, particularly the high-MW hydrophobic fractions, from contacting the primary membrane, which enabled the membrane permeability to be restored easily.