Flux improvement by Dean vortices: ultrafiltration of colloidal suspensions and macromolecular solutions

Coiled and straight hollow-fibre modules have been built and tested; the permeate flux obtained in ultrafiltration with these two geometries is compared for two feeds: a colloidal bentonite suspension and a dextran solution. In the case of colloidal suspensions, the secondary flows induced by the coiled geometry allow fouling to be reduced and the permeate flux is multiplied by a factor of up to 2. An empirical relationship is proposed to express the limiting flux of permeate as a function of both the velocity and some geometrical parameters of the coiled modules. Analogous results are obtained during the ultrafiltration of dextran. It is also shown that under certain conditions almost no deposit was formed; the permeate flux under these conditions is three times higher for coiled modules than for straight ones. For a given energy expenditure and ultrafiltration process, the gain in permeate flux can reach a factor of 1.8.