Abstract The fouling characteristics of dissolved organic matter (DOM) in the fresh water and seawater compartments of the reverse electrodialysis (RED) system were investigated under natural water conditions. The salinity gradient power generation was governed monovalent ions whereas multivalent ions strongly contributed to the fouling formation of the ion-exchange membranes (IEMs). The partial deposition of DOM within the membrane pores during its passage from the fresh water compartment to the seawater compartment facilitated the fouling formation of the IEMs. Despite of the similar DOC losses in fresh water (DOC loss = 20%) and seawater (DOC loss = 22%) through the RED system, the colour variations of the anion-exchange membranes (AEMs) and spacers in contact with fresh water were more noticeable than those in contact with seawater. These results indicate that the deposition of hydrophobic DOM components onto the AEM surfaces water may lead to the increases in the pressure drop of the fresh water compartment and the decreases in the power density of the RED system. Therefore, an appropriate pre-treatment strategy capable of mitigating membrane fouling by hydrophobic DOM components seemed to be indispensable to maintain constantly the performance of the RED system under natural water conditions.

中文翻译：

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自然水条件下反电渗析淡水和海水室中溶解有机物的污染特性

摘要 在自然水条件下研究了反电渗析 (RED) 系统淡水和海水隔室中溶解有机物 (DOM) 的污染特性。盐度梯度发电由单价离子控制，而多价离子对离子交换膜 (IEM) 的污垢形成有很大贡献。在从淡水室到海水室的过程中，DOM 在膜孔内的部分沉积促进了 IEM 的结垢形成。尽管通过 RED 系统在淡水（DOC 损失 = 20%）和海水（DOC 损失 = 22%）中的 DOC 损失相似，但与淡水接触的阴离子交换膜 (AEM) 和间隔物的颜色变化是比那些接触海水的人更明显。这些结果表明疏水性 DOM 组分在 AEM 表面水的沉积可能导致淡水室压降的增加和 RED 系统功率密度的降低。因此，能够减轻疏水性 DOM 组分对膜污染的适当预处理策略似乎对于在自然水条件下持续保持 RED 系统的性能是必不可少的。