Kim Jeong F, Drioli Enrico
Department of Energy and Chemical Engineering, Incheon National University (INU), Incheon 22012, South Korea.
Innovation Center for Chemical Engineering, Incheon National University (INU), Incheon 22012, South Korea.
Membranes (Basel). 2020 Dec 24;11(1):12. doi: 10.3390/membranes11010012.
Under the notion of water-energy nexus, the unsustainable use of water in power plants has been largely accepted in silence. Moreover, the evaporated water from power plants acts as a primary nucleation source of particulate matter (PM), rendering significant air pollution and adverse health issues. With the emergence of membrane-based dehydration processes such as vapor permeation membrane, membrane condenser, and transport membrane condenser, it is now possible to capture and recycle the evaporated water. Particularly, the concept of transport membrane condensers (TMCs), also known as membrane heat exchangers, has attracted a lot of attention among the membrane community. A TMC combines the advantages of heat exchangers and membranes, and it offers a unique tool to control the transfer of both mass and energy. In this review, recent progress on TMC technology was critically assessed. The effects of TMC process parameters and membrane properties on the dehydration efficiencies were analyzed. The peculiar concept of capillary condensation and its impact on TMC performance were also discussed. The main conclusion of this review was that TMC technology, although promising, will only be competitive when the recovered water quality is high and/or the recovered energy has some energetic value (water temperature above 50 ∘C).
在水-能源关系的概念下，发电厂对水的不可持续利用在很大程度上一直未受关注。此外，发电厂蒸发的水是颗粒物（PM）的主要成核源，会造成严重的空气污染和不良健康问题。随着基于膜的脱水工艺如蒸汽渗透膜、膜冷凝器和传输膜冷凝器的出现，现在有可能捕获并循环利用蒸发的水。特别是，传输膜冷凝器（TMCs），也称为膜热交换器，在膜领域引起了广泛关注。TMC结合了热交换器和膜的优点，为控制质量和能量的传递提供了一种独特的工具。在这篇综述中，对TMC技术的最新进展进行了批判性评估。分析了TMC工艺参数和膜性能对脱水效率的影响。还讨论了毛细凝聚的独特概念及其对TMC性能的影响。这篇综述的主要结论是，TMC技术虽然很有前景，但只有在回收水质高和/或回收能量具有一定能量价值（水温高于50摄氏度）时才具有竞争力。
