Fiberglass wrapping is applied to reverse osmosis elements to add structural integrity to an element compared to a tape wrapped element. Fiberglass elements can always be used in lieu of a tape wrapped element, however, tape wrapped elements cannot always be used in lieu of fiberglass wrapped elements.
Toray does not make any tape wrapped elements under its ROMEMBRA brand, since they believe that tape wrapping is not sufficiently durable. This can be especially true when exposed to cleaning. Cleaning chemicals can dissolve the adhesives on the tape, causing un-wrapping, requiring replacement. The fiberglass body also helps transfer the force of the flow down to the anti-telescope device (ATD), and maintain membrane integrity under high cross flow situations.