Modeling of flow uniformity by installing inlet distributor within the inflow part of a pressurized module using computational fluid dynamics

Abstract

Uniform flow distribution is a significant parameter for designing pressurized membrane modules because non-uniform flow distribution can cause serious local flux and fouling problems within a module. Thus, this study investigated the fluid behavior with regards to the evenness of water distribution using newly designed inlet distributors in the inflow part of a pressurized membrane module. From the results of velocity and pressure at the cross-sectional and outlet planes, we confirmed that a conventional membrane module with no distributor (non-distributor) had fluid that was concentrated at the central part. Case 1, which had a cross-shaped distributor, reduced the central concentration tendency, and Case 2, which had a round-shaped distributor, displayed a relatively uniform flow based on the velocity, pressure, flux, and standard deviation data. Here, the non-uniformity coefficient (N) and energy utilization (η) for Cases 1 and 2 showed a lower non-uniformity coefficient (0.030 and 0.017, respectively) than for the Non-distributor (0.039). The energy utilization of Cases 1 and 2 were higher (1.35e-0.5 and 1.46e-05) than the Non-distributor (1.64e-05). Overall, we confirmed that the inlet distributors led to increased evenness of flow distribution within an inflow part.