Abstract:
Membrane based filtration techniques are gaining importance day by day for its effectiveness and simplicity [1]. Different pressure driven techniques are exercised for
membrane separation; nano filtration is one of them. Nano filtration membranes
stand handy for different applications because of their thermal, chemical and
mechanical stability [2]. High surface charge of these membranes help in
separation of charged species from a solution. This particular property can be
used to segregate any type of salt from water. Hence, it can be a useful
technique for desalination of water which is a challenge for present day's world
[3,4].
Modeling and simulation
always provides useful lead to understand the underlying physical phenomenon
behind a real life system. It also proves to be useful in scaling up the system
and predict its performance in remote scenarios. Transport phenomena based
membrane modeling is not a new field of study; a number of works have been
reported till date which deals with it. Different studies have been done
starting from prediction of different fouling mechanism [5,6] of membranes to prediction of flux for different
processes [7,8]. In order to predict the flux and permeate
concentration across the membrane a number of theoretical models have been
proposed such as (a) osmotic pressure model [9 11]; (b) film theory [12 14]; (c) solution diffusion model; (d) Kedem-Katchalsky
equation etc. Each of these models has their advantages and limitations also.