A membrane module and membrane separation system

Abstract

The application discloses a membrane module and a membrane separation system, which comprise a membrane frame, a membrane assembly and a water production pipe, the membrane assembly is installed on the membrane frame, the membrane assembly comprises a membrane element and a water collecting box for collecting water produced by the membrane element, the water production pipe is connected with the water collecting box, the membrane module obtains the required buoyancy for floating in a membrane pool through the water discharge volume of the membrane frame, and the membrane element is immersed in the membrane pool when the membrane module floats in the membrane pool. The application can simplify the components of a membrane filtration system, is convenient to install, disassemble, operate, maintain and manage.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application is used in the field of water treatment, in particular to a membrane module and a membrane separation system. BACKGROUND

[0002] Submerged microfiltration or ultrafiltration is a modern sewage treatment technology, which is widely used in domestic sewage treatment, industrial wastewater treatment, water treatment and other fields. For example, the membrane bioreactor (MBR) technology is a sewage treatment method which combines the traditional sewage biological treatment process with submerged microfiltration or ultrafiltration. The core is a membrane separation system with a membrane module.

[0003] Generally, these membrane modules are placed in the membrane tank and fixed by positioning guide rods. Although the positioning guide rods can limit the membrane module within a certain range, due to the action of water flow shear in the membrane tank and the action of water buoyancy, the membrane module in the membrane tank will still be uneven, such as the end of a single membrane module being raised, different membrane modules being uneven, etc. Since the aeration device is generally at the bottom of the membrane module, these uneven phenomena can easily cause uneven aeration, resulting in the phenomenon of membrane module sludge accumulation.

[0004] There are also submerged microfiltration or ultrafiltration membrane systems that use a method of suspending and fixing the membrane module on the beam above the membrane tank. This method also requires accurate measurement of the height of the suspension system to ensure that each membrane module in each membrane tank is at the same height, otherwise uneven aeration will occur. In addition, since it is a suspension system, it is more troublesome to disassemble when performing off-site cleaning of the membrane module. SUMMARY

[0005] The present application aims to at least solve one of the technical problems existing in the prior art, and provides a membrane module and a membrane separation system which can simplify the components of the membrane filtration system, facilitate installation, disassembly, operation, maintenance and management.

[0006] The technical scheme adopted by the present application to solve its technical problems is:

[0007] In a first aspect, a membrane module includes a membrane frame, a membrane assembly, and a water production pipe. The membrane assembly is installed on the membrane frame, and includes a membrane element and a water collection box for collecting water produced by the membrane element. The water production pipe is connected to the water collection box. The membrane module obtains the required buoyancy for floating in the membrane tank through the water discharge volume of the membrane frame. When the membrane module floats in the membrane tank, the membrane element is submerged in the membrane tank.

[0008] In some implementations of the first aspect, the membrane module further comprises a floating component mounted to the membrane frame, and the membrane module obtains the required buoyancy for floating in the membrane tank through the membrane frame and a drainage volume of the floating component.

[0009] In some implementations of the first aspect, the floating component comprises a float mounted to a top of the membrane frame.

[0010] In some implementations of the first aspect, the floating component comprises a float plate mounted to a side of the membrane frame.

[0011] In some implementations of the first aspect, the membrane frame is made of a hollow pipe material, and an end of the pipe material is sealed.

[0012] In some implementations of the first aspect, the membrane frame is provided with an aeration device at a bottom thereof, and an aeration pipe is connected to a top of the membrane frame, the aeration pipe is in communication with the aeration device through an inner cavity of the pipe material, and the aeration pipe and the water production pipe are both made of a flexible pipe.

[0013] In some implementations of the first aspect, the membrane frame comprises a plurality of membrane frame units distributed in a height direction, the membrane assembly is arranged in each of the membrane frame units, and the plurality of membrane frame units share the aeration device at the bottom of the membrane frame.

[0014] In some implementations of the first aspect, an anti-collision component is arranged on an outer circumferential side of the membrane frame, and a counterweight is arranged inside the pipe material.

[0015] The second aspect discloses a membrane separation system, comprising a membrane tank and the membrane module of any of the implementations of the first aspect, the membrane tank is divided into a plurality of parts by a partition, and the membrane module is arranged in each part, and the membrane module in each part is connected to a water production main pipe through a water production quick connector of a water production pipe.

[0016] In some implementations of the second aspect, the membrane separation system further comprises a cleaning tank and a cleaning main pipe, the cleaning main pipe is capable of being connected to the water production quick connector of the water production pipe of the membrane module arranged in the cleaning tank to clean the membrane module.

[0017] One of the above technical solutions has at least one of the following advantages or beneficial effects: the membrane module of the membrane module device is in a floating state in the membrane tank, except for the water production pipe and the aeration pipe (which can be omitted) connected thereto, there is no fixed connection with the tank body, and the installation, disassembly and cleaning are more convenient. At the same time, the membrane module does not need to be fixed on the bottom or wall of the membrane tank, but is in a state of swinging with the water flow, similar to a reciprocating membrane module without aeration, which can reduce the demand for aeration. Compared with the traditional membrane module placed at the bottom of the membrane tank or suspended on the wall of the membrane tank, the membrane module of the present application can simplify the components of the membrane filtration system, facilitate installation, disassembly, and operation, maintenance and management.

[0018] Additional aspects and advantages of the present application will be in part apparent and in part pointed out hereinafter. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0019] The above and / or additional aspects and advantages of the present application will become apparent and be readily appreciated from the following description, including the appended drawings.

[0020] Figure 1 is an embodiment structure diagram of the membrane module device of the present application;

[0021] Figure 2 is an embodiment structure diagram of the membrane module device of the present application with a float and a floating plate;

[0022] Figure 3 is an embodiment structure diagram of the membrane module device of the present application with an aeration device;

[0023] Figure 4 is an embodiment structure diagram of the membrane module device of the present application with two layers of membrane rack units;

[0024] Figure 5 is an embodiment structure diagram of the membrane separation system of the present application;

[0025] Figure 6 is an embodiment structure diagram of the cleaning tank of the present application;

[0026] Figure 7 is an embodiment structure diagram of the membrane separation system of the present application with an aeration device;

[0027] Figure 8 is an embodiment structure diagram of the cleaning tank of the present application with an aeration device. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0028] The detailed description will be made to the specific embodiments of the present application, the preferred embodiments of the present application are shown in the drawings, the role of the drawings is to supplement the description of the text part of the description, so that people can intuitively and visually understand each technical feature and the overall technical scheme of the present application, but it cannot be understood as a limitation on the protection scope of the present application.

[0029] In the present application, the meaning of "several" is one or more, the meaning of "multiple" is more than two, "greater than", "less than", "more than" and the like are not included in the number; "above", "below", "within" and the like are understood to include the number. In the description of the present application, if there is a description of "first", "second", it is only used for the purpose of distinguishing technical features, and cannot be understood as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of indicated technical features or implicitly indicating the sequence of indicated technical features.

[0030] In the present application, unless otherwise explicitly limited, the words "set", "install", "connect" and the like should be broadly understood, for example, they can be directly connected, or indirectly connected through an intermediate medium; can be fixedly connected, or can be detachably connected, or can be integrally formed; can be mechanically connected, or can be electrically connected or capable of communicating with each other; can be the communication or interaction relationship between two elements. The skilled in the art can reasonably determine the specific meaning of the above words in the present application in combination with the specific content of the technical scheme.

[0031] The embodiments of the present application provide a membrane group device which can float in a membrane pool when in use, thereby solving the technical problems existing in the prior art of using positioning guide rods for fixation and cross beams for suspension. That is, further optimizing the installation and disassembly of the membrane group device, while further simplifying the operation of the membrane system during filtration and cleaning, further reviewing the design and installation of the membrane group device, thereby improving the operation and maintenance of the membrane filtration system. When the membrane group device is placed in the membrane pool, it is mainly subjected to the following forces, including the gravity of the membrane group device (membrane frame, membrane sheet, aeration device, etc.) and the buoyancy generated by the drainage of the membrane group device. Accordingly, to make the membrane group device float, the additional buoyancy required is:

[0032] Required buoyancy = gravity of membrane group device - buoyancy generated by drainage of membrane group device.

[0033] To provide the required buoyancy, there are several methods, including: 1) selecting different density of membrane frame materials to reduce the gravity of the membrane group device; 2) selecting different shapes of hollow membrane frame materials to exclude different volumes of water and generate different buoyancy; 3) increasing additional components to increase additional buoyancy, such as floats and floating plates. The present application provides various embodiments based on the analysis of the above methods.

[0034] Referring to Figure 1The membrane module includes a membrane frame 1, a membrane assembly and a water production pipe 2, the membrane assembly is installed on the membrane frame 1, the membrane assembly includes membrane elements 3 and water collecting boxes 4 for collecting water produced by the membrane elements 3, and the water production pipe 2 is connected with the water collecting boxes 4, the membrane module obtains the required buoyancy for floating in the membrane pool through the water volume of the membrane frame 1, and the membrane elements 3 are submerged in the membrane pool when the membrane module floats in the membrane pool.

[0035] The membrane elements 3 can be hollow membrane filaments, the two ends of the hollow membrane filaments are connected with the water collecting boxes 4, the hollow membrane filaments are further fixed on the membrane frame 1 through the water collecting boxes 4, and the water collecting boxes 4 are used for collecting water produced by the membrane filaments, and the water production pipe 2 is connected with the water collecting boxes 4 and used for sending out the produced water. Of course, the membrane elements 3 can also be flat plate membranes.

[0036] The membrane module is in a floating state in the membrane pool, is not fixedly connected with the pool body except that the water production pipe 2 and the aeration pipe (which can be omitted) are connected with the pool body, and is convenient to install, disassemble and clean. Meanwhile, the membrane module does not need to be fixed on the bottom or the wall of the membrane pool, but is in a state of swinging with water flow, is similar to a reciprocating membrane module without aeration, and can reduce the requirement for aeration by means of the scouring and shearing force of water flow. Compared with a traditional membrane module which is placed on the bottom or hung on the wall of the membrane pool, the membrane module can simplify the components of the membrane filtration system, is convenient to install, disassemble, operate, maintain and manage.

[0037] In some embodiments, in order to generate sufficient buoyancy, the membrane module further includes a floating component, the floating component is installed on the membrane frame 1, and the membrane module obtains the required buoyancy for floating in the membrane pool through the water volume of the membrane frame 1 and the floating component.

[0038] Further, referring to Figure 1 The floating component includes a floating cylinder 5 installed on the top of the membrane frame 1, the floating cylinder 5 is fixed above the membrane frame 1 by a clamp, and different buoyancies can be generated by changing the outer diameter and the number of the floating cylinder 5.

[0039] Further, referring to Figure 2 The floating component includes a floating plate 6 installed on the side of the membrane frame 1, and the buoyancy generated can be changed by changing the thickness and the height of the floating plate 6 and selecting different materials of the floating plate 6.

[0040] The immersion depth of the membrane module in water can be adjusted, the membrane assembly top end and the liquid surface distance can be set to 0.1-0.5 m by adjusting the floating component, and the fixed immersion depth can be maintained during operation.

[0041] Further, referring to Figure 1The membrane frame 1 is made of hollow pipe material, and the end of the pipe material is sealed. The membrane frame 1 can be made of square pipe or circular pipe of stainless steel or organic material. In order to adjust the weight of the whole membrane frame, sometimes, counterweights can be added in the hollow square pipe or circular pipe of the membrane frame, and the counterweights can be iron, sand or other materials. The counterweight materials are sealed in the square pipe or circular pipe of the membrane frame by a rubber corner.

[0042] In some embodiments, referring to Figure 3 , the membrane frame 1 is provided with an aeration device 7 at the bottom for flushing the membrane assembly. The aeration device 7 can be a large bubble aeration box or a perforated pipe (not shown). The membrane frame 1 is connected to an aeration pipe 8 at the top, and the aeration pipe 8 communicates with the aeration device 7 through the inner cavity of the pipe material. In this embodiment, the membrane frame not only supports the overall structure, but also connects the aeration pipe 8 and the aeration device 7 installed at the bottom of the membrane frame through the hollow part of the steel pipe or organic material pipe. In this embodiment, the membrane aeration device 7 is installed at the bottom of the floating membrane assembly, so that the aeration outlet has a uniform submergence depth, and the aeration amount is uniform, thereby improving the pollution condition of the membrane and avoiding the phenomenon of mud accumulation in the membrane assembly.

[0043] The aeration pipe 8 and the water production pipe 2 are both flexible pipes, which facilitate the swinging of the membrane assembly in the membrane tank.

[0044] Referring to Figure 4 , in some embodiments, the membrane frame 1 includes multiple layers of membrane frame units distributed in the height direction, and each layer of membrane frame unit is provided with a membrane assembly. By arranging multiple layers of membrane frame units, the water production capacity of the membrane assembly is improved. The top of the upper layer of membrane frame unit is provided with multiple floats 5 to generate corresponding buoyancy, and the bottom of the lower layer of membrane frame unit is provided with an aeration device 7. The multiple layers of membrane frame units share the aeration device 7 at the bottom of the membrane frame 1.

[0045] It should be noted that Figure 4 , if the aeration pipe 8 and the aeration device 7 are removed, it can become a floating double-layer membrane assembly with floats 5 and floating plates 6.

[0046] Referring to Figure 1 , the top of the membrane frame 1 is provided with a lifting ring 9, and the whole membrane assembly can be lifted by the lifting ring 9 and put into or taken out of the membrane tank.

[0047] Referring to Figure 1 , the outer circumferential side of the membrane frame 1 is provided with a collision prevention component 10 to prevent damage to the membrane assembly due to collision with the tank wall. The collision prevention component 10 can be a collision prevention rubber wheel to reduce the tangential impact force of the membrane assembly floating in the membrane tank.

[0048] In order to ensure that the membrane module always remains vertical upward, the swing range of the membrane module is controlled within a reasonable range under aeration condition, and the center of gravity of the membrane module in water should be arranged at a specific position in the lower part of the whole.

[0049] Referring to Figure 5 , the embodiments of the present application also provide a membrane separation system, which comprises the membrane tank 11 and the membrane module in any of the above embodiments. The membrane tank 11 is divided into multiple parts by the partition strip 16, and the membrane module is arranged in each part. The membrane module in each part is connected with the water production main pipe 13 through the water production quick connector 12 of the water production pipe 2. In operation, the membrane module floats on the water surface of the membrane tank 11. Because the flexible hose is used for connection, the airtightness of the connecting pipeline will not be affected by the rise and fall of the liquid surface within a certain range. Because the bottom of the floating membrane module is not provided with the aeration device 7, the required aeration can come from other ways, such as combined aeration (i.e. the membrane tank 11 is arranged above the aerobic tank, so that the membrane tank 11 can utilize the tail gas of the aerobic tank aeration). During filtration, the water production main pipe 13 collects the water produced from each floating membrane module.

[0050] During online cleaning, the cleaning agent is distributed to each floating membrane module from the water production main pipe 13 through the water production hose, so as to clean each membrane element 3 in situ.

[0051] The floating membrane module can be cleaned in situ online in the membrane tank 11, and the restorative cleaning can be in situ cleaning or ex situ cleaning in the remaining cleaning tank. In some designs, the membrane tank 11 is above the aerobic tank and communicates with the aerobic tank. Therefore, when the restorative cleaning is performed, the water production quick connector 12 needs to be removed, the floating membrane module is lifted out of the membrane tank 11 and placed in the cleaning tank, referring to Figure 6 , the membrane separation system further comprises the cleaning tank 14 and the cleaning main pipe 15, which can be connected with the water production quick connector 12 of the water production pipe 2 of the membrane module placed in the cleaning tank 14 to clean the membrane module. Through the connection of the water production quick connector 12 and the cleaning main pipe 15, ex situ restorative cleaning is performed. The cleaning tank 14 also has a partition strip, and a single membrane module can be cleaned or multiple membrane modules can be cleaned at the same time. The cleaning tank 14 can be provided with a separate aeration system for aeration requirement during cleaning. After cleaning, the membrane module is adjusted back to the membrane tank 11 and connected to the water production main pipe 13 through the quick connector, so as to resume operation.

[0052] Referring to Figure 7In some embodiments, the membrane separation system further comprises an aeration device 7, and aeration pipes 8 of the membrane modules are connected to the aeration main pipe 17 through aeration quick couplings. In operation, the membrane modules float on the water surface of the membrane tank 11. Since the water production pipe 2 and the aeration pipe 8 are both flexible hoses, the airtightness of the connecting pipes will not be affected by the rise and fall of the water surface within a certain range. In filtration, the aeration main pipe 17 distributes aeration to each floating membrane module through the aeration quick couplings. The water production main pipe 13 collects the water produced from each floating membrane module. In online cleaning, the cleaning agent is distributed to each floating membrane module from the water production main pipe 13 through the water production hose, and each membrane element 3 is subjected to in-situ maintenance cleaning. In recovery cleaning, the front and rear water inlet and outlet gates of the membrane tank 11 can be closed for in-situ recovery cleaning.

[0053] Of course, the cleaning tank 14 can also be removed for ex-situ cleaning. Referring to Figure 8 , the cleaning tank 14 is provided with a separate aeration system for the aeration requirement during cleaning. At this time, the water production quick couplings 12 and the aeration quick couplings need to be removed, and the floating membrane module is lifted out of the membrane tank 11 and placed in the cleaning tank 14, connected to the cleaning main pipe 15 through the water production quick couplings 12, and connected to the cleaning aeration pipe 18 through the aeration quick couplings, for ex-situ recovery cleaning. The cleaning tank 14 also has grids, and a single membrane module can be cleaned, or multiple membrane modules can be cleaned at the same time. After cleaning, the membrane module is adjusted back to the membrane tank 11, connected to the water production main pipe 13 through the water production quick couplings 12, and connected to the aeration main pipe 17 through the aeration quick couplings, so as to resume operation.

[0054] In the description of the present specification, the description of the terms "example", "embodiment" or "some embodiments" and the like means that the specific features, structures, materials or characteristics described in connection with the embodiment or example are included in at least one embodiment or example of the present application. In the present specification, the illustrative description of the above terms does not necessarily refer to the same embodiment or example. Moreover, the specific features, structures, materials or characteristics described can be combined in any one or more embodiments or examples in a suitable manner.

[0055] Of course, the present application is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiments, and those skilled in the art can make equivalent modifications or replacements without departing from the spirit of the present application, and these equivalent modifications or replacements are included in the scope defined by the claims of the present application.

Claims

1. A membrane module, characterized by The membrane module comprises a membrane frame, a membrane assembly and a water production pipe. The membrane assembly is installed on the membrane frame. The membrane assembly comprises a membrane element and a water collecting box for collecting water produced by the membrane element. The water production pipe is connected to the water collecting box. The membrane module obtains the required buoyancy for floating in a membrane pool through the water discharge volume of the membrane frame. The membrane element is immersed in the membrane pool when the membrane module floats in the membrane pool. The membrane frame is made of a hollow pipe. The end of the pipe is sealed. An aeration device is arranged at the bottom of the membrane frame. An aeration pipe is connected to the top of the membrane frame. The aeration pipe communicates with the aeration device through the inner cavity of the pipe. The aeration pipe and the water production pipe are both flexible pipes. Anti-collision components are arranged on the outer circumferential side of the membrane frame. The pipe is provided with a counterweight.

2. The membrane stack of claim 1, wherein, The membrane module further comprises a floating component. The floating component is installed on the membrane frame. The membrane module obtains the required buoyancy for floating in a membrane pool through the water discharge volume of the membrane frame and the floating component.

3. The membrane stack of claim 2, wherein, The floating component comprises a buoy installed on the top of the membrane frame.

4. The membrane stack of claim 2 or 3, wherein, The floating component comprises a floating plate installed on the side of the membrane frame.

5. The membrane stack of claim 1, wherein, The membrane frame comprises multiple membrane frame units distributed in the height direction. The membrane assembly is arranged in each of the multiple membrane frame units. The multiple membrane frame units share the aeration device arranged at the bottom of the membrane frame.

6. A membrane separation system characterized by, The membrane module comprises a membrane pool and the membrane module according to any one of claims 1 to 5. The membrane pool is divided into multiple parts by a partition. The membrane module is arranged in each part. The membrane module in each part is connected to a water production main pipe through a water production quick connector of a water production pipe.

7. The membrane separation system of claim 6, wherein, The membrane module further comprises a cleaning pool and a cleaning main pipe. The cleaning main pipe is connected to the water production quick connector of the water production pipe of the membrane module arranged in the cleaning pool to clean the membrane module. The membrane module further comprises a cleaning pool and a cleaning main pipe. The cleaning main pipe is connected to the water production quick connector of the water production pipe of the membrane module arranged in the cleaning pool to clean the membrane module.

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