The interaction of bio-foulants at the interface of reverse osmosis (RO) membranes is highly correlated with the degree of fouling during wastewater treatment. However, there are few observations showing the micro/nanoscale bio-foulant morphology at the interface and its relationship with the degree of fouling. In this study, two typical bacterial strains ( CGMCC1.3373 and CR19) present in reclaimed water were used to test their fouling potential and reveal their interactions with RO membranes. , a typical chlorine-resistant bacterium, exhibits significantly higher extracellular polymeric substance (EPS) content and higher interaction energy with membranes. The rate of decrease in membrane flux in the group was 1.5 times higher than that in the group. By rapidly freezing the bio-foulants and examining the micro/nanoscale morphology around their interface with RO membranes, it was revealed that the membrane was fouled by stacked bacterial cells with EPS adhering to each other and to the RO membrane surface. secreted more EPS, stacked more compactly, and adhered to the RO membranes more firmly than , resulting in more severe fouling. To our knowledge, this is the first study to demonstrate that the micro/nanoscale morphology of the interface between bio-foulants and RO membranes indicates the degree of fouling.

中文翻译：

---

生物污垢与反渗透膜表面之间的微/纳米级界面形态表明污垢程度

反渗透（RO）膜界面上生物污垢的相互作用与废水处理过程中的污垢程度高度相关。然而，很少有观察表明界面处的微/纳米级生物污垢形态及其与污垢程度的关系。在本研究中，使用再生水中存在的两种典型细菌菌株（CGMCC1.3373 和 CR19）来测试它们的污染潜力并揭示它们与 RO 膜的相互作用。是一种典型的耐氯细菌，具有显着更高的胞外聚合物（EPS）含量和与膜更高的相互作用能。该组的膜通量下降率比对照组高1.5倍。通过快速冷冻生物污垢并检查其与 RO 膜界面周围的微/纳米级形态，发现膜被堆叠的细菌细胞污染，EPS 彼此粘附并粘附在 RO 膜表面。与RO膜相比，其分泌的EPS更多，堆积更紧凑，与RO膜的粘附更牢固，导致结垢更严重。据我们所知，这是第一项证明生物污垢和反渗透膜之间界面的微/纳米尺度形态可以指示污垢程度的研究。