Nanofiltration (NF) & Reverse Osmosis (RO) - Applications

Even though nanofiltration (NF) and reverse osmosis (RO) are well-known for their use for drinking water treatment, RO and NF are frequently applied to wastewater and process water.
RO and NF are differentiated in their application by their salt selectivity. NF and RO are commonly used as a pretreatment to distillation for water purification to reduce the stream by as much as 85%.



Applications

  • Drinking water treatment

  • Process water treatment with water recycling

  • Partial desalination up to 60% (nanofiltration)

  • Desalination up to 99% (reverse osmosis)

  • Barrier against bacteria, viruses and pesticides

  • Water softening with simultaneous nitrate reduction

  • Suppression of dissolved components and ions

  • Landfill leachate treatment

Application Examples - Nanofiltration

Retention of multivalent ions versus univalent ions (permeation)
  • Process and drinking water softening
  • Relief of ion exchange and downstream RO
Retention of organic compounds with permeation of univalent salts
  • Treatment of ground water for drinking water
  • Remove color from wastewater from textile and paper industry
  • Desalination of whey through retention of lactose and protein
  • Desalination of wastewater containing tenside
Separation of low and higher molecular ingredients in aqueous solutions
  • Removing alcohol from wine
  • Retention of non-degradable components after biological treatment