Membrane separation technologies

The services offered by the Fraunhofer Water Systems Alliance cover the entire spectrum of membrane technologies from micro and nano filtration right through to reverse osmosis.

Microsieves

Microsieves are highly permeable and highly selective. Due to their metallic properties, e.g. high mechanical strength, large filter areas can be built into the smallest spaces.

The advantages of these parameters are currently being developed further in various systems and the microsieves are being tested in diverse practical applications.

Ceramic membranes

Ceramic membranes are characterized by high selectivity. Various different ceramic materials can be used to form separating layers with pore sizes ranging from several µm down to 0.9 nm depending on the intended application.

The Alliance uses technically relevant membranes with separation surfaces of up to 0.25 m² per element in multi-channel pipes up to 1.2 m in length. These can be integrated in compact modules with filter surfaces of up to 25 m².

The rotating movements of ceramic disk membranes in rotating disk filters prevent the formation of interfering surface layers and require less energy compared with other methods.