Membrane Separation

Abstract

Imbalance in Demand and Supply of Fresh Water Drives Membrane-based Desalination Markets

The pressing need for desalination of brackish and seawater sources and the recovery and reuse of wastewater have given membrane technologies a shot in the arm. Desalination and wastewater recovery have become major and expanding markets for membrane technologies mainly due to the limited availability of fresh water and the uneven distribution of freshwater sources. Such water-stressed conditions, the significant improvements made in membrane technology, and reduction in energy consumption by 20 to 30 percent over the last 10 years have gone a long way in promoting the use of membrane separation technologies. Research and development efforts have received a huge boost by the global requirement for water for irrigation and industrial use, and industries need to comply with regulations and directives regarding wastewater. Membrane bioreactor technology alleviates these end-user concerns to a large extent by recycling wastewater for local reuse applications.

This Technical Insights study provides an overview of the advances made in membrane separation. The study covers markets including water and wastewater treatment, medical and related applications, industrial processing, chemical and petrochemical applications, and energy and environmental applications. This research service enables companies to align their positioning strategies to benefit from these technologies.

An Aging Population Boosts Medical Markets for Hemodialysis and Oxygenation Membranes

Currently, there are nearly 1.3 million people worldwide suffering from chronic kidney failure and studies estimate that approximately 100 million hemodialysis treatments are administered every year. In fact, 90 percent of kidney failure cases worldwide depend on hemodialysis for treatment. Hemodialysis still works on the same concept of the hollow fiber dialyzers that were developed in the 1960s. However, there have been several new technologies that incorporate novel dialysis membranes such as polyethersulphone. Scientists are also working on innovative production processes for developing more effective pore sizes and enhancing the biocompatibility of membranes.

Membrane technologies are also finding many takers in the blood processing market. "Medical devices based on membrane technologies are continually being improved to meet the need to protect the blood supply from mad cow disease," says the analyst of this research service. Another medical application for membranes is in oxygenation for bypass surgery. According to the American Heart Association, there are 70 million persons in the United States with some type of cardiovascular disease. This market size is set to expand with the improvements made in oxygenation membranes for heart surgery and respiratory failure.

Global Goals of Clean Energy and Energy Security are Encouraging Research to Improve Fuel Cell Membranes

Development of advanced membrane separation technologies in the energy and environmental markets are gaining an impetus from the growing concerns over supply chain issues as well as political and security factors. These apprehensions stem from the substantial and continuous use of fossil fuels for transportation and as primary energy sources. Such indiscriminate use of fossil fuels causes considerable harm to the environment. To reverse this damage, scientists have been actively working on upgrading membranes for fuel cells, which are expected to compete with petroleum-based energy sources -- particularly in the transportation markets.

These enhanced membranes will not only improve hydrogen production for use as a fuel in vehicles, but will also sequester carbon dioxide to reduce the greenhouse effect and global warming due to burning of fossil fuels. "Global warming issues have spawned directives to reduce emissions and membrane technologies are playing an important role in meeting the goals," notes the analyst. "Research in membranes for the energy and environmental markets is particularly intense for fuel cell membranes, hydrogen separation, and carbon dioxide recovery from fossil fuel applications."