Nanofiltration is a recent development in the filtration membrane space. Thanks to this powerful filtration technology developed by NASA, human explorers in the International Space Station can now transform moisture into potable water. Using the Nanofiltration technology developed by NASA, some countries in the world that are devoid of potable drinking water are now getting clean drinking water using Nano water filters. In this guide, we’ll talk about the Nanofiltration technology in detail, its benefits, and how it is different from the reverse osmosis filtration systems. We’ll also talk about the Nano water filter. Read on to know more.
The NASA Nanofiltration technology was developed by Robyn Carrasquillo and her team while they were deployed at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center for the Environmental Control and Life Support System (ECLSS) project. The Nanofiltration water purification system in the International Space Station recycles water and air at the space station. Without the Nanofiltration water purification system in place, it would not have been easy for the current six-member team at the space station to survive. The Water Recovery System (WRS) which was a part of the ECLLS project has been adopted by commercial firms to develop an Earth-based water purification system.
The advanced Nanofiltration water purification system is now being used around the world to provide the population with clean drinking water. It is indeed making life-saving differences in different communities across the globe.
Nanofibers come with the ability to 99.99% of the impurities present in contaminated water. When water flows through the Nanofibers, the fibers emit an electropositive charge that attracts the slightly negatively charged impurities. Some of the many contaminants filtered out are parasites, viruses, bacteria, organic debris, heavy metals such as lead and iron, etc.
As already mentioned above, Nanofiltration technology is a fairly new water filtration technology for obtaining clean water. The Nanofiltration method utilizes a semi-permeable membrane filtration that efficiently eliminates organic molecules such as irregular ions and harmful microorganisms responsible for the hardness of water.
Untreated water is subjected to pressure and forced through the Nanofiltration semi-permeable membranes. This successfully splits the dirty water from the clean water. Nanofiltration helps a great deal in removing synthetic as well as natural organic matter. So, it is an incredible solution for obtaining soft water.
Nanofiltration (NF) and Reverse Osmosis (RO) are water purification technologies that are used to eliminate contaminants from water. In the past few years, both the technologies have become easily affordable and more effective for use across a plethora of applications such as the generation of potable water, treatment of wastewater, treatment of seawater, etc. However, it is important to understand that both the technologies are different. In this section, we’ll discuss the difference between Nanofiltration and Reverse Osmosis technologies.
The primary difference between Nanofiltration technology and Reverse Osmosis is the size of particles each technology can remove. While Nanofiltration and Reverse Osmosis can remove finer particles unlike Microfiltration and Ultrafiltration, the size of particles each technology can filter also varies.
Nanofiltration provides grainier filtration than Reverse Osmosis. Yes, that’s right. Nanofiltration can remove particles with a diameter as small as 0.002-0.005 μm. Nanofiltration easily removes contaminants such as organic macromolecules and harmful pesticide compounds. However, it retains essential minerals that are removed during Reverse Osmosis.
Nanofiltration system membranes can easily remove bigger divalent ions like calcium sulfate and allow smaller monovalent ions like sodium chloride to sneak through. Since the pores of Nanofiltration membranes are larger than the pores of Reverse Osmosis membranes, Nanofiltration can also take place in lower pressure conditions.
Reverse Osmosis filtration membranes come with extremely small pores that can remove elements as small as 0.1 nm. The Reverse Osmosis technology is thriving since the 1950s and is primarily used for desalination processes such as the generation of potable water from salty sea water. Other places where the Reverse Osmosis technology is used is the printing industry.
In the printing industry, Reverse Osmosis is used to sustain optimum equipment performance. Unlike Nanofiltration membranes, Reverse Osmosis membranes can filter out all kinds of ions, small or large.
Here’s a quick table with the basic differences between Nanofiltration and Reverse Osmosis.
|
Nanofiltration (NF) |
Reverse Osmosis (RO) |
Membrane type |
Finely porous and asymmetric |
Non-porous and symmetric |
Transfer mechanism |
Diffusive/Sieving |
Diffusive |
Type of solution that can be treated |
Solution with ions, small molecules, macromolecules, and microorganisms |
Solution with ions, small molecules |
The key features of Nanoparticles that make them ideal for water purification are:
Here are few reasons why Nanofiltration technology is the best technology for purifying contaminated water:
If you’re looking for a high-quality and high-performance Nano water filter, NanoSpring can be an ideal pick for you.
NanoSpring provides water that tastes great and keeps you healthy. You can use it in your house or install the Nano water filter in your office to provide your staff with clean drinking water 24x7. The product was designed to beat the growing water problems in South Africa.
NanoSpring uses the Nanofiltration technology (Nanofibers) to kill microorganisms such as a virus, parasites, bacteria, and harmful contaminants. And, the best thing is that all the healthy chemicals are preserved in the drinking water.
Now that you know almost everything about the Nanofiltration technology and how it can help you generate clean water, what do you think? Do you think it can remove impurities and harmful microorganisms more effectively than RO water filters? Well, people at the International Space Station are already using Nanofiltration to generate potable water, why don’t do leverage Nanofiltration technology too. Have something to share? Post your thoughts in the comment section below. If you have any questions, you can also write to us. We’ll get back to you as soon as possible. Alternately, you can contact us using the link below.
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