Microfiltration

SIVA supports you in the design and fabrication of membrane microfiltration systems for the separation of microparticles and/or microorganisms in solution.

Principle of microfiltration

Microfiltration is a physical separation technology. Porous membranes with pore sizes between 1.4 and 0.1µm are used to separate matters such as particles, bacteria and microalgae in suspension in a liquid solution.

In this separation technology the solution is recirculated tangentially to the surface of the filtration media, the porous membrane. Part of the solution passes through the membrane and is clarified. The membrane filtration technology relies on the creation of a pressure difference to enable the retention of solutes larger than the pore size of the membrane while allowing the solvent to pass through the membrane. The same principle applies to ultrafiltration, nanofiltration and reverse osmosis, membranes of different pore sizes are used to separate different particles.

The selection of the membrane material will depend on multiple variables, which are detailed in: membrane separation processes.

This proven technology is used in numerous industries such as the Food & Beverage, Biopharma and Environment.

Tangential flow microfiltration / Cross-flow microfiltration

The advantages of the tangential flow microfiltration are:

  • Superior separation quality and performance as a result of the continuous cleaning of the membrane surface by the solution in recirculation tangentially to it, different from frontal flow filtration
  • A continuous separation process with the possibility of feeding a downstream process without interruptions, different from chromatography
  • A physical separation technology without phase transition, which allows the treatment of sensitive liquids without denaturation of their components, different from evaporation, distillation and liquid-liquid extraction
  • A separation technology without additives and environment-friendly, different from diatomaceous earth filtration
  • An automated process, which does not require frequent operator intervention

Application fields of microfiltration

Microfiltration has been widely developed since the ‘90s and is used in the majority of industries that require a process for solid/liquid separation.

It is used in multiple applications, in particular related to water reuse (water potabilization, treatment of industrial effluents in combination or not with bioreactors, pre-treatment to desalinization, etc.).

The microfiltration is suitable to the Food & Beverage industry, it is used in the clarification of beverages such as fruit juices, wine, cider and beer, the cold sterilization of milk, the clarification of sugar (glucose syrup), the concentration of proteins (animal and vegetal), the clarification of vegetal extractions, etc.

It is also used in the extraction of amino acids, enzymes and different molecules from fermentation broth in the bioindustry.



Project initiatives

Design & manufacturing of industrial membrane filtration systems

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