Description
RO Clean A / AT-2040 Alkaline Membrane Cleaner
Description and Use
RO Clean A / AT-2040 is an alkaline cleaning agent for removing fouling caused by organic, biological and colloidal foulants from RO and UF membranes. Membrane cleaning is recommended when any of the following fouling indications are given:
- A 10-15% reduction in the Normalised Permeate Flow
- A 10-15% increase in the normalised salt content of the permeate
- A 10-15% increase in the differential pressure across the membrane housing
RO Clean A / AT-2040 is highly effective when used as a 2-3% solution at the highest pH recommended by the membrane manufacturer. The cleaning solution should be alternately soaked and recycled through the membrane system for at least 4-6 hours. Working with enhanced temperature will also improve the cleaning performance. After cleaning, the membrane system should be thoroughly flushed out until the pH of the feed and the discharge ends of the system are the same.
RO Clean A / AT-2040 can be diluted and is fully miscible with water in all proportions.
Typical Properties
Appearance ……………………………………Colourless to pale straw coloured liquid
pH ………………………………………………..approx. 13
Specific Gravity …………………………….. approx. 1.2
Always read the label and product information before use. See safety data sheet for safety and handling precautions
Cleaning Programme Recommendations (CIP)
Cleaning Frequency
The membranes should be cleaned in line with the following changes in normalized data:
- Permeate Flow decreases by 10-15%
- Salt Passage Increases by 10-15%
- Pressure Drop (∆P) Increases by 10-15%
Allowing conditions to deteriorate significantly worse than these values is a major cause of permanent membrane damage.
There are many combinations of cleaning chemicals and conditions of use. It is good practice to vary the cleaning schedule, and from time to time use different cleaners. Experience will show what is best for a specific system and the cleaning sequence shown below is considered suitable for your system, based on the data available.
The following two-stage cleaning programme should be carried out every three months (or more often if necessary, according to the parameters mentioned above) to ensure that biofilm and associated organic matter, iron deposits and inorganics are removed from the membranes.
Stage 1
RO CLEAN A / AT-2040 is a formulated blend of alkaline cleaners with a low foaming surfactant developed specifically for dispersing organic debris including silica. It is of vital importance that cleaning solution temperature should be 35 – 40°C in order to optimise cleaning but should not exceed the maximum allowable temperature as specified by the membrane manufacturer.
NB: If cleans are attempted below this temperature kinetics of the chemical reaction will not be sufficient to allow thorough membrane cleaning
Protocol: This may depend on allowable downtime and automated programming options, but we would suggest the following regime:
- CIP volume is based on 40 litres of permeate water per 8” membrane. Cleaning Stages 1 & 2 together – 24 elements total requires 960 litres of CIP solution.
- In order to minimise temperature drop during the cleaning process we recommend heating the CIP tank to 35°C with permeate water (no chemical) and soaking the membranes for a suitable period to ensure that membranes are at the optimum temperature at the start of the cleaning process. This will improve cleaning efficiency.
- The cleaning solution can then be prepared as below, again ensuring that solution pH and temperature are within membrane manufacturers guidelines.
- We suggest a 30 minute recycle period followed by a 20-minute soak, after each step take a sample of water – if visual inspection reveals the water is excessively dirty then we would recommend dumping to drain and starting with a fresh cleaning solution. Ensure pH remains at 11.0 by adjusting with RO CLEAN A / AT-2040 as required.
- The soak/recycle should be repeated 3 times as a minimum or until cleaning solution appears satisfactory to visual inspection (total time 4 -6 hours)
- Divert CIP solution to drain and flush membranes with permeate water for 20 minutes or until pH is restored to natural values.
Stage 2
RO CLEAN C / AT-2628 is an inorganic scale remover and iron deposit cleaner.
- Immediately after flushing from stage 1 prepare RO CLEAN C / AT-2628 solution at temperatures as indicated below.
- Repeat soak/recycle protocol as per above, carrying out a visual inspection after each step to ensure solution is clean. Solution should be refreshed if excessively dirty.
- If the pH rises above 4.2 during the process, we recommend dumping the cleaning solution to drain and preparing a fresh solution.
- On completion flush with permeate water until natural values are restored.
Summary of Cleaning Protocol
Stage | Cleaner | Dose rate | pH | Temperature | Time |
1 | RO CLEAN A | 3-4% vol/vol | 11.0 | 35-40oC | 4-6 hours |
Flush | Permeate water | Natural values | 20 mins | ||
2 | RO CLEAN C | 2-3% vol/vol | 3.7 | 25-30oC | As above |
Flush | Permeate water | Natural values | 30 mins |
Flushing: Always flush the membrane thoroughly between cleaning stages and before returning the system to routine operation. Ensure all traces of cleaning products have been removed.
Caution: Always follow the membrane manufacturers’ guidelines with respect to cleaning programmes.
Safety, Storage & Handling
For full details concerning safety precautions, storage and handling procedures for this product please refer to the latest Safety Data Sheet.
To request the latest MSDS for this product please fill out the form below.