High Flux, High Salt Rejection Cellulose Acetate Reverse Osmosis Membranes

The transport properties of cellulose acetate membranes have limitations due to polymer impurities that may restrict flow and/or act as sites for salt leakage. Under the conditions found in this study, a novel technique was developed to obtain an image of these impurities. These impurities can be determined semi-quantitatively per unit area, and compared using various techniques to remove these from the bulk polymer. Presented in this study is the successful technology that removes these impurities resulting in improvements to the membrane. Using an experimental design approach, future directions on how to improve the processing of the polymer can be achieved. This is ongoing research.