Performance benchmarking of polyamide composite Sea water reverse osmosis membranes

Standardization of reverse osmosis (RO) membrane system allows transparency and accountability in performance benchmarking of different membrane elements, especially when a new product is introduced to the market. In the current study, we compared performance of three polyamide composite RO membranes (one from new entrant in the market, the other two are established manufacturers) for seawater desalination. Experimental work was conducted at a desalination plant in Egypt. The new membrane had higher permeate conductivity and lower salt rejection values than the two established products. Similar trend was observed as far as permeate flow was concerned.