RO Membrane: High-tech guardian of water purification

RO Membrane, full name Reverse Osmosis Membrane, is a semi-permeable membrane that uses the reverse osmosis principle for water treatment. The emergence of RO membrane has not only revolutionized water treatment technology, but also greatly promoted the efficient use of water resources and environmental protection.

The working principle of RO membrane is based on the reverse of the osmosis phenomenon. In nature, water molecules will spontaneously penetrate from low-concentration solutions to high-concentration solutions until the concentrations on both sides reach equilibrium. In the RO reverse osmosis process, by applying pressure to the high-concentration solution on the outside, the water molecules flow in the opposite direction of natural osmosis, thereby achieving the separation of solvent (water) and solute (impurities). This reverse osmosis technology originated from the research of aerospace technology in the United States in the 1960s, and was gradually transformed into civilian use. It has been widely used in scientific research, medicine, food, beverages, seawater desalination and other fields.

The pore size of the RO membrane is extremely small, usually only one millionth of a hair (0.0001 micron), which allows only water molecules and some mineral ions to pass through, while most impurities, heavy metals, bacteria, viruses, etc. in the water are effectively intercepted. This efficient purification ability ensures that the effluent water quality meets the national drinking water standard or even higher. The efficient purification characteristics of the RO membrane make it the preferred technology in the fields of household water purifiers, seawater desalination equipment, industrial wastewater treatment, etc.

The performance characteristics of the RO membrane are not only reflected in efficient purification, but also in energy saving and environmental protection, simple operation and wide application range. The RO reverse osmosis process does not involve phase change and has relatively low energy consumption. At the same time, due to the pure effluent water quality, the use of chemical agents in the subsequent treatment process is reduced, which is beneficial to environmental protection. The RO reverse osmosis water purifier has a compact structure, simple operation and easy automatic control. Users only need to replace the filter element regularly to ensure the long-term stable operation of the equipment. RO membrane technology is not only used in household water purifiers, but also widely used in seawater desalination, industrial wastewater treatment, medicine, food and other fields, showing its broad application prospects.

The production process of RO membrane is also worth discussing. The production of RO membrane elements mainly includes four steps: material preparation, membrane preparation, membrane assembly and performance testing. Material preparation is the first step in the production of RO membrane elements. It is necessary to prepare polymer materials such as polyamide, polyethersulfone, etc., and polymerize them into membrane materials through polymer polymerization reactions. During the membrane preparation process, the membrane material is dissolved in an organic solvent to form a membrane stock solution, and then evenly coated on a flat membrane substrate by spraying, dipping, etc. to form a thin film. Next, the film is dried to form a membrane with a certain pore structure. When assembling the membrane, multiple membranes are stacked together to form a membrane element with a certain area, and water inlet pipes and water production pipes are added on both sides of the membrane element. Finally, performance tests are carried out, including tests of indicators such as salt permeability, retention rate, and flux to evaluate the quality of the membrane element.