Demineralization of cheese whey by sequential nanofiltration (NF) and electrodialysis (ED) processes

In this study, demineralization of cheese whey by sequential nanofiltration (NF) and electrodialysis (ED) methods was investigated. For the NF step, two NF membranes labeled as NF-270 and NF-90 were tested. Approximately 90% of protein and lactose rejections were obtained with partial demineralization during NF step. For full demineralization of the NF permeate, NF followed by ED process. Two different ED systems (Tokuyama TS-1-10 with Neosepta membranes and Mega EDZ-10x4-0.8 with Ralex membranes) were used. The rejections of Na+, K+, Ca2+, and Mg2+ ions from the NF permeate with Ralex membranes were calculated as 82.5%, 99.3%, 87.9%, and 92.9%, while the corresponding values were 80.2%, 99.0%, 95.6%, and 100% by Neosepta membranes, respectively. © 2019 MPRL. All rights reserved.