RO and NF Cost Comparison
Published on by Carlos Edmundo Sandoval Ayala, ESE & ZETA CIA. LTDA. - Responsable de Proyectos in Technology
Taxonomy
- Treatment
- Reverse Osmosis
- Filtration Solutions
- Energy
- Nanofiltration
7 Answers
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Your first selection criteria would be to determine the quality requirements of the end products, principally in terms of hardness and sodium. NF is also called the softening membrane process because it preferentially removes CA and MG hardness (>90%) but removes NA and CL at 50%. RO removes all ionic constituents at >90-98%. That's why RO membranes are generally more expensive than NF membranes and you should select NF is it meets your quality requirements without an overkill. I think you get the picture.
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Before you can answer this, you need to know what the water quality is. This will allow the manufacturers of NF and RO design the system to your expectations and water quality. You will need to use a certified water quality lab. This data can be sent to the manufacturers. Let me know if I can be f further assistance.
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I agree with Prof Junfeng but also agree with Prof John, Prof Peter, it depends on raw water in and the final quality you want.
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We three agree! Your choice will be dependent on water quality required. Operation and cost will be similar. NF operation could be slightly lower due to lower energy requirements. Generally speaking RO will meet NF requirements, however, NF will not meet RO requirements.
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Of course, an important consideration is the relative concentrations of mono and multivalent ions in the feedwater. Most RO membrane manufacturers make NF membranes, but their properties vary with regard to the specific rejection of multivalent ions and passage of monovalent ions.
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NF and RO removes different contaminants from raw water, and Junfeng is right. the choice will depend on what is your final water quality requirement.
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Hi Carlos,
the NF and RO filtration capabilities are rather different.
NF is mostly used to reject divalent ions while RO are used to reject both divalent and singly charged ions.
Depending on what is your ultimate treatment goals - the choice of technology between the two should be very clear for specific cases.
Filtration Spectrum Chart
https://www.units-of-measure.com/2019/06/osmonics-filtration-spectrum-chart.html
Regards,
Junfeng