This work presents the theoretical modeling of NaCl removal from seawater using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulation of Navier-Stokes and continuity equations in the lumen and shell side for hollow fiber membrane contactor and laminar flow condition. Finite element method was applied to solve the model. The influence of the effective parameters: velocity, concentration, flux were investigated and studied. The results show that the flux, velocity as well as the concentration decrease in the region near the inlet of membrane, indicating that the velocity and pressure are the most important parameters controlling the NaCl removal from seawater.

mass transfer, membrane reactor, CFD, seawater, simulation, FEM.