Silica fouling

Colloidal silica (SiO2) is perhaps the most undesirable inorganic deposit formed in process industrial waters, either in bulk or on surfaces, such as membrane heat exchangers or pipelines. Conventional mineral scale inhibitors do not inhibit its formation. Chemical cleaning is difficult and not free

Silica is one of the major foulants in desalination of brackish water. Its presence limits the water recovery and in addition once foulant is formed, the removal and cleaning is almost impossible. Therefore, the aim is to prevent silica fouling from the inception. One of the many complicating factor

Desalination plays an important role in producing pure water from brackish water. Reverse osmosis (RO) is by far the most efficient way to remove colloidal and dissolved silica, which can be found in high concentrations in brackish water. The presence of silica and its ability to foul membranes limi

Laboratory tests with simulated waters in the range of those in a prospective desalination plant were carried out to determine the water quality effects on silica precipitation both in batch and dynamic tests using RO membranes. In this study the effect of cations on silica polymerization was invest