Concentration of Milk and Whey by Membrane Technologies in Alternative Cascade Modes

The aim of the present study was the evaluation of a membrane cascade comprised of ultrafiltration (UF) in series with reverse osmosis (RO) or nanofiltration (NF) in comparison to a single-stage process. It was found that the upstream UF accelerated the NF and the RO, whereby the effect was more distinct for the NF. The maximum volume reduction ratio (VRR) during skim milk and sweet whey concentration could be increased by 78 and 96%, respectively, by substituting a single NF by an UF-NF cascade. The replacement of a single RO by a UF-RO cascade during concentration of skim milk slightly increased the VRR by 3%. However, the energy demand could be reduced by approximately 16%. For the concentration of sweet whey, it was found that it is more advantageous to conduct the RO at a higher transmembrane pressure (TMP) instead of applying an UF-RO cascade.