Systems of filter membranes, especially reverse osmosis, are being increasingly used in various segments of companies (pharmaceutical, water treatment, food and chemical industries) due to the decrease in the price of the filter elements and high quality of the product. The biofouling corresponds to a type of inevitable fouling characterized by growth of microorganisms on the surface of the membrane and release of EPS by them; so a better understanding of these structures is necessary. This study aimed to characterize the biofouling in different reverse osmosis membranes addressed from different industries by the technique of autopsy and compared with results obtained with pure culture biofilms in reverse osmosis membranes; and to verify the influence of biofilms in the deposition of salts and action of chemical compounds used in chemical cleaning of membranes in them. The autopsy of clogged elements showed a lot of viable cells but with very low carbohydrate concentrations; unlike what occurred when biofilms isolated pure culture of these membranes were analyzed, showing strong correlation between number of viable cells and macromolecules such as proteins and especially carbohydrates. Regarding the influence of biofilms in the deposition of salts, two of the four pure culture biofilms showed barium incorporation in its structure (revealed by fluorescence analysis X-ray), this merger probably occurred by ion exchange and not by deposition barium sulfate. Compounds such as sodium hydroxide (pH = 12) and hydrochloric acid (pH = 2) showed good results in the decrease of viable cells however, the recovery of microorganisms was lower with use of the acid. EDTA and SDS compounds were not effective in reducing viable.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.