The performance of water treatment via nanofiltration and ultrafiltration membranes in wasra system / Nurul Nadia Mohtar

Faculty of Civil Engineering and Earth Resources

Project Paper (Bachelors of Civil Engineering) -- Universiti Malaysia Pahang – 2015

Bibliography : p. 100-107

This paper is an overview of the applications of membranes technology on treating groundwater. The treated water is aimed to satisfy the drinking water requirement standard set by the Malaysian National Drinking Water Quality Standard (NDWQS). In this research, there are two types of membranes that been used, which are nanofiltration (NF) and ultrafiltration (UF). The treated water was investigated with three types of parameters; physical, chemical, and biological. It examines the possibility and efficiency of these membranes in removing hardness, organics, viruses and bacteria, iron, manganese and fluoride. Some of these applications have proven to be soundness and can be measured as known capabilities. Even so, there are still some other applications that being researched on laboratory scale. Thus, a wide range of studies can be conducted to enable a better judgment on the performance of membranes operation A statistical analysis was conducted on the results obtained to identify the accuracy and validity of data, which in this case, Paired sample test was used. Referring to the statistical notation of (p< 0.05), conclusion on the significance of the results and variables were made. It is justified statistically that the data obtained for each treatment using different membranes are valid and concise. As a result, it is found that nanofiltration and ultrafiltration have different removal capability of water parameter but in all cases, ultrafiltration membrane had a great efficiency in removing turbidity, chemical oxygen demand and biochemical oxygen demand, which are the parameters that nanofiltration membrane are not competent well with. As a reverse, the nanofiltration membrane plays a better performance in removing total suspended solids, total dissolved solids, hardness, iron, manganese and fluoride. Therefore, it shows that the combination of nanofiltration and ultrafiltration membranes produces an enhance water treatment performance. All the water parameters were successfully being removed by both of membrane according to the desired level that been set by the regulations of NDWQS except for fluoride contents. In overall, the performance of water treatment via nanofiltration and ultrafiltration membrane in WASRA system is great enough in treating groundwater to be a drinking water for human to consume