A Short Review on Reverse Osmosis Membranes: Fouling and Control

Reverse Osmosis (RO) is the process of separating dissolved salts from water with the help of semipermeable membranes. Membrane based solution are now widely accepted technology to combat safe drinking water shortage. Reverse osmosis has increasing market shares due to reduced cost and improvements in the process. This paper reviews the major issue of fouling that is faced during operation of RO and ways to regulate them. Fouling is categorized into many classes and the control is discussed respectively. It also discusses basics of RO, modular arrangements for RO membranes as well as multiple options for pretreatment which is a mandatory requirement of the process. Final discussion is the ways to consider while disposing of brine.