ABSTRACT
Membrane filtration was developed as a technology that provides for the removal of fluid contaminants at flow rates that enable its continuous application while the fluid itself is in use. Membranes are sized for applications so that contaminant particles will not pass through the filter while, in principle, those of the fluid constituents will. Over the last 50 years membrane filtration has been developed and applied in the pharmaceutical, chemical, food, and agricultural industries [1-2]. More recently, the use of membrane filtration has been extended to environmental engineering applications as well as in wastewater treatment, pollution prevention, and industrial fluid recycling [1,3-6]. Both the contaminant particles and fluid components, like microemulsions, can become lodged in the membrane pore system, thereby fouling the membrane and greatly reducing the microfiltration system flow rate, referred to as the flux of the membrane.
