Exploring microbial communities and differences of cartridge filters (CFs) and reverse osmosis (RO) membranes for seawater desalination processes Original Research Article

Fouled cartridge filters (CFs) and reverse osmosis (RO) membrane samples were collected to study the differences in microbial communities for better understanding of the biofouling process in the industrial full-scale seawater desalination process. A culture-independent technique (16S rDNA sequencing analysis) showed that the microbial communities of CFs and RO membranes were extremely different. In the CF samples, Proteobacteria and Firmicutes were observed to be the dominant bacterial groups, whereas Proteobacteria, Planctomycetacia, and Planctomycetes were mainly present in the fouled RO membranes. Although the two samples were obtained from the same spot of the operating desalination plant, the results indicate that the microbial communities of biofouled CFs and RO membranes were different.