Membrane Distillation Plant
Membrane Distillation Membrane Module
Membrane Distillation Plant
SEPION Membrane Distillation (MD)
High Purity Water Generation and Resource Recovery using Membrane Distillation (MD) Technology
What is Membrane Distillation (MD) and How it Works?
Membrane Distillation (MD) is a thermally-driven separation process in which a hydrophobic porous membrane allows selective transport of vapour across the membrane.
Liquid feed does not penetrate the pores due to surface tension. Volatile components evaporate at the hot interface, diffuse through membrane pores, and condense on the permeate side, enabling MD for the applications of high-purity separation at relatively low operating temperatures and pressures.
​
On reaching the colder permeate side, the vapor condenses and is collected as high-purity distillate. Membrane Distillation (MD) integrates coupled heat and mass transfer, interfacial thermodynamics, and transport resistances within boundary layers and the membrane structure.
It is particularly suited to applications such as desalination, industrial wastewater recycling and reuse, valuable resource recovery, and brine minimisation. MD is highly beneficial for low-grade waste heat utilisation and the selective separation of volatile components under moderate temperatures and near-atmospheric pressure.
SEPION Membrane Distillation Features and Advantages
GreenPebble Technologies designs, manufactures and deploys proprietary SEPION hollow fiber Membrane Distillation (MD) membranes and membrane systems for applications such as Zero Liquid Discharge (ZLD), wastewater treatment, and recycling, seawater desalination, high purity water generation, industrial effluent treatment plants, etc. ​​​​
​
SEPION Membrane Distillation Module Specifications
-
Membrane material: Composite Hydrophobic
-
Fiber dimensions: ID 0.9 mm / OD 1.4 mm; wall thickness 0.4–0.6 mm
-
Pore size: Mean/max 0.1–0.05 μm
-
Porosity: 55–70%
-
Module housing: CPVC
-
Potting: High Heat Epoxy
-
Module sizes/areas: 4, 17, 40 m² (for specific cases, customization is possible)
-
Ports/connections: NPT 1" or 1.5"
-
Operating limits: Temp 50–80°C
-
Max feed pressure ~2 bar; ΔP membrane < 0.7 bar
-
pH 1–12
Key Features
-
Hydrophobic composite surface (contact angle 120-125 degrees) modified MD membrane with narrow pore distribution: Prevents wetting; only water vapor permeates (non-volatiles fully rejected).
-
High liquid entry pressure (LEP): ~ 250 kPa. Ensures long-term stability under vacuum or pressure differentials without liquid breakthrough.
-
Optimized Module Design: Compact configuration, module with good hydrodynamics, with heat resistant potting and casing.
-
Chemical Resistance: pH 0–14 tolerance, high acid/alkali/oxidant resistance.
-
Scalable and Modular: Available in multiple sizes; quick setup; configured for VMD, (can be customized for DCMD).
Our commercial plant installations showed successful outcomes for our clients in achieving around 70-80% of water recovery and excellent quality product water (TDS <5ppm).​​
Applications of Membrane Distillation
Other Application Areas:
​
-
Sustainable Brine Treatment and Minimisation for RO Concentrate
-
Lithium Extraction and Refining​
-
Waste heat recovery MD systems for ETP plants
-
Dewatering or concentration of high-value product stream
-
Sea Water Desalination
-
Concentration and separation of food, beverage or pharma products
-
Resource recovery of valuable products or minerals​​
Vacuum Membrane Distillation Process
We offer custom-built Vacuum Membrane Distillation (VMD) as a packaged membrane distillation plant.
In VMD, a hot saline or contaminated feed solution (typically 60–80°C) contacts one side of a SEPION hydrophobic membrane at atmospheric pressure. A vacuum pump applies low pressure on the permeate side, creating a vapor pressure gradient that drives water vaport transport across the membrane.
​
Volatile molecules, mainly water vapor, pass through the membrane pores without liquid entering the pores and are eventually condensed on the permeate side into high purity distillate.
​
Unlike DCMD or AGMD configurations, VMD minimizes conductive heat loss, delivering exceptionally high fluxes while enabling low-temperature operation with waste heat, solar, or geothermal energy.
​
It achieves >99% salt rejection, suits hypersaline brines and macromolecule removal, and supports small-scale use via multi-stage designs.
VMD offers efficient, sustainable alternatives to traditional distillation or RO for wastewater, juice concentration, and zero-liquid-discharge systems.