Fouling mitigation in crossflow filtration using chaotic advection: a numerical study

Fouling mitigation in a crossflow filtration system using chaotic advection is numerically studied. A barrier-embedded partitioned pipe mixer (BPPM) is selected as a static mixer, creating chaotic advection in a laminar flow regime. Mixing characteristics are controlled via two design parameters, the mixing protocol and the dimensionless barrier height (beta). The average dimensionless concentration boundary layer thickness ((delta) over bar (B)/R) and the surface-averaged dimensionless wall concentration ((c) over bar (w)) dramatically decrease with the introduction of the BPPM, incorporating a chaotic flow system. (delta) over bar (B)/R and (c) over bar (w) decrease as beta increases, and the largest reduction of (c) over bar (w) is observed in the counter-rotational protocol. A semi-ring configuration is revealed to be the most appropriate configuration to characterize mixing near the membrane surface. It is found that a filtration system with a globally chaotic flow shows the best mixing performance and the largest reduction of fouling.