Reduced Membrane Fouling Potential by Tailored Fluid/Structure Interaction

Using the feed spacer geometry of a commercially available spiral-wound reverse osmosis cartridge, we used computational fluid dynamics (CFD) to assess what change in the surface shear stress and concentration could be effected by the incorporation of a dynamic element that is excited by flow-induced vibration. We found that a cantilevered ribbon with a fluttering motion, prescribed a priori, caused a marked, oscillatory increase in the salt concentration and surface shear stress in our quadi-steady analysis.