Removal of boron from seawater by adsorption–membrane hybrid process: implementation and challenges

The advanced separation process for boron removal has been put forward by combining boron sorption on a fine powdered boron selective resin (BSR) with a complex separation on microfiltration membranes. The proposed membrane-based hybrid process integrates in one step sorption efficiency of the selective resin with membrane separation. It is shown that use of sorbent in the form of very fine particles improves the separation efficiency such that sorbent shows higher uptakes and enhances the rate of the separation process. The process efficiency was evaluated for ground Dowex XUS 43594 resin. In this study, the effect of feed flow rate, BSR suspension concentration and rate of suspension replacement were investigated. A simple model was presented. The obtained data shows a great potential for adsorption membrane filtration hybrid system in removal of trace amounts of boron.