Ceramic membranes can however treat aggressive or very hot fluids and are often used for industrial applications on smaller treatment volumes (< 1000 m3/day). The cut-off size of ceramic membranes ranges from tight ultrafiltration (1 kD) to microfiltration (1.4 micron).
Due to its cost per m2, ceramic is rarely used for producing drinking water. Lower production costs could rapidly make it attractive, thanks to the advantage of being made of an inorganic material.