Membranes and crystallization processes: State of the art and prospects

•State of the art review of the different approaches combining membranes and crystallization/precipitation processes.•Role and function of membranes in hybrid and integrated systems.•The membrane surface properties (rugosity, surface tension) play a key role on the membrane fouling which is a critically issue.•Coupling between kinetics and fluids mechanics are required to obtain a successful modeling of the processes.

Crystallization is one of the major unit operations of chemical process industries and plays a key role for particulate solids production in the pharmaceutical, chemical, electronic, minerals sectors. Most of the current crystallization processes are performed under batch or continuous mode based on a stirred tank process; the need for breakthrough technologies has been highlighted by numerous authors and reports. Membranes are one of the potentially attracting strategies in order to achieve this target. Nevertheless, a relatively limited number of publications have been reported on membranes and crystallization processes, compared to other unit operations. This study intends to provide a state-of-the-art review of the different approaches combining membranes and crystallization processes. Hybrid and integrated systems are discussed and the different role and function potentially provided by dedicated membrane materials are analyzed. Based on the results and analyses gained through the different approaches that have been tested, unexplored issues and open questions have been listed. The research efforts which are required in order to make membranes processes for crystallization/precipitation an industrial reality are finally discussed.

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