SIWW 2016: Aquaporin and Berghof Membranes announce development of new forward osmosis technology for waste water
Aquaporin Asia and Berghof Membranes announced the joint development of a forward osmosis waste water treatment technology based on Aquaporin’s Inside membrane coating and Berghof’s tubular polymeric membranes.
The announcement was made at the Singapore International Water Week on 12 July.
Presenters of the new initiative were Director sales & marketing Rick te Lintelo (left on top photo) at Berghof Membranes and Chief operating officer Mark Perry (right) at Aquaporin Asia.
Forward osmosis is a membrane separation process which takes advantage of a pressure gradient that is created by a high solute concentrated ‘draw’ solution.
Contrary to the more classic reverse osmosis, forward osmosis is a low pressure driven process and therefor uses hardly any energy.
Mark Perry of Aquaporin explains the priniciples of forward osmosis.
Best of two worlds
Te Lintelo and Perry made clear that the combination meets the best of two worlds by utilizing the inherent low-fouling properties of the tubular membrane geometry for the development of forward osmosis modules.
The two companies believe that they will be able to provide a cheaper solution for treating industrial process streams and waste water.
Tubular membranes
Tubular polymeric membranes as produced by Berghof Membranes are particularly suitable for treatment of effluents presenting a high contaminants load.
This accounts of the fact that the filtering channel is completely open, making it possible to handle a large quantity of suspended solids.
Filtration occurs from the inside to the outside of the channel and it is possible to perform backwash operations.
Schematic depiction of water movement through the aquaporin channel
Thin film coating with proteins
The Aquaporin Inside technology is a thin film coating that hosts proteins in an environment that retains the molecules' natural activity of moving water molecules.
The coating can be applied to both flat-sheet membranes and hollow fiber modules.
The protein is selective for transporting pure water molecules because of the hydrophobic nature of the aquaporin's water channel.
Ongoing r&d project on forward osmosis
With a grant from the Singapore national research foundation, Aquaporin started a 3-year r&d project in 2014. The company embarked on the development of biomimetic forward osmosis membranes from lab scale to pilot production and industrial test bedding of modules.
The ongoing forward r&d project is funded by the Singapore National Research Foundation and administered by Singapore’s national water agency PUB.
The end goal of the project is to demonstrate the cost saving potential of Aquaporin’s coating Inside forward osmosis technology through industrial test bedding.
Berghof's tubular membrane designed for filtration of highly polluted waste water streams.
About Berghof Membranes
Dutch-based Berghof Membranes is part of the family-owned German-based Berghof Group that is a leading manufacturer of tubular membrane products.
The membranes are manufactured in fully automated high-tech production lines, which enables a high quality and competitive products.
With experience developed over 50 years, Berghof Membranes is a specialist for filtration and separation of industrial process streams and wastewater.
About Aquaporin
Aquaporin Asia was incorporated in Singapore in early 2011 as a Singapore-based joint venture between the Danish company Aquaporin A/S, Nanyang Technological University and DHI Singapore.
Aquaporin Asia is 80 percent owned by Aquaporin A/S, a Danish Cleantech company founded in 2005.
Read also on this website
● SIWW 2016: A look back on an event that showcased a water industry willing to innovate, 18 July 2016
● SIWW 2016: PWN Technologies presents design CeraMac plant for Choa Chu Kang Waterworks, Singapore, 15 July 2016
● SIWW 2016: Optiqua to provide EventLab real time monitoring for drinking water network Shandong, China, 13 July 2016
● SIWW 2016: Weida to become licensed manufacturer for man-powered VP500 Villagepump, 13 July 2016
● SIWW 2016: Waternet Amsterdam and PUB Singapore enter into a partnership for knowledge sharing, 12 July 2016
● SIWW 2016: Watershare launched Community of practice on emerging substances, 12 July 2016
● SIWW 2016: Water industry dare to start and learn by doing, 11 July 2016
● Meet the Dutch water sector at Singapore International Water Week 2016
● Magazine: Singapore - the Netherlands: Partnerships for water challenges (pdf-file)
● IFAT 2016: Berghof’s Innovation Day explored future of industrial effluent treatment, 2 June 2016
More information
Singapore International Water Week 2016
www.siww.com.sg
Berghof Membranes
Singapore
and
Leeuwarden, the Netherlands
+31 58 810 01 10
www.berghofmembranes.co
Aquaporin Asia
Singapore
+65 8722 1002
www.aquaporin.asia
Explanation of Aquaporin coating technology