The Clogging Effect in the Process of Protein Separation by Ultrafiltration

In this study, five ultrafiltration membranes (polysulfone, cellulose acetate and polyethersulfone) were tested in the treatment of aqueous protein solutions similar to wastewater from fermentation industries. The experiments were made in tangential flow filtration. The permeate flux for the five membranes tested at the optimum pressure of 3 bar decreased due to the effect of clogging the pores by the macromolecular protein solutions. Cellulose acetate membranes showed the lowest permeate flux (Ac-Cel1=152.4 L/m2.h and Ac-Cel2=40.3 L/m2.h) which doesn’t recommend them for the ultrafiltration process of bovine serum albumin. When a polysulfone membrane was used in several cycles of protein-containing wastewater ultrafiltration, the permeate flow decreased progressively from one cycle to another due to the internal clogging of the membrane (501.6 L/m2.h up to 444.0 L/m2.h). Regarding the ultrafiltration of protein solutions with a suspended yeast content, the clogging was predominant on the membrane’s surface, which results in a decrease of the permeate flux by over 50%.