Membrane Biofouling Mitigation: From Fundamental Concepts to Applicative Solutions

Dear Colleagues,

The editorial board of Membranes cordially invites you to submit an article to a Special Issue on "Membrane Biofouling Mitigation: From Fundamental Concepts to Applicative Solutions". Bacteria seldom live and grow as single cells; rather, they usually live in biofilms—self-produced matrices of extracellular polymeric substances, comprising mainly polysaccharides, proteins, and DNA. In water and wastewater treatment processes, bacterial biofilms dramatically reduce the performance of the various treatment units in a process termed "biofouling". This Special Issue of the Membranes journal will focus on the development of microbial biofilms on membranes and on their effects on membrane performance. Articles for this interdisciplinary Special Issue should focus on either the fundamental or the applicative aspects of membrane biofouling, including, most prominently, the interactions between the various components of the biofouling layers and the membrane, the mechanisms underlying membrane biofouling, and biofouling control strategies. Articles may include (but are not limited to) studies of the physical-chemical and mechanical (viscoelasticity) characteristics of biofilms, the physiology of the biofouling layers, issues related to microbial ecology, the development and characterization of novel membranes with anti-biofouling properties, the prevention of biofouling by various strategies (such as feed water pre-treatment), and methods for monitoring biofilms on and cleaning biofilms from membranes. We especially encourage studies that discuss the inter-relationships between these issues and membrane performance.

Prof. Dr. Moshe Herzberg
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Membranes is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2200 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.