Water. Desalination + reuse
Issue link: https://fhpublishing.uberflip.com/i/107143
TECHNOLOGY Three-phase platform behind new "Idol" winner _________ Sylvan Source Inc, USA ___ Editor's Note: At the Global Water Summit in Rome in May 2012, Sylvan Source Inc. (SSI) presented its innovative water treatment system and deployment feasibility, capturing the votes to win the 2012 Technology Idol competition. New companies are always unwilling to divulge too many of their secrets, but D&WR invited SSI to explain their technology. A PRIVATELY held technology company headquartered in San Carlos, California, USA, Sylvan Source Inc (SSI) has developed an innovative and flexible suite of technologies applicable to a broad range of industrial applications, with fundamental advantages in energy efficiency and capital and production costs. Industrial applications include chemical recovery, oil and gas, biofuels, cooling systems replacement and water treatment. The first application for SSI's platform is water treatment and is the focus of this article. CrItICAl InnovAtIonS SSI's water treatment platform is based on phaseseparation, unique heat transfer and recovery, and scaleremoval technologies. The company's technology offers significant advantages in capital and production costs and breakthrough energy-efficiency. This patented and patent-pending system includes three ground-breaking innovations in water treatment: l Core process: The platform treats highly contaminated feed water by combining degassing, distillation and demisting processes to produce ultra-clean water. SSI's innovation is in the integration of these processes into a thermally balanced, highly efficient system that is suitable for a wide range of feedwater, including produced water. l Heat capture and transfer: The platform incorporates a proprietary heat-transfer mechanism that eliminates heat-exchangers and vacuum systems used in conventional thermal technologies and enables heat-capturing from a variety of sources, including waste heat. This innovation also significantly increases energy efficiency and improves heat process control. l Pretreatment: The platform removes hard scaleforming compounds as insoluble precipitates using carbonation in an alkaline environment. teChnology development And ownerShIp SSI holds six issued patents related to the technology. The company is also actively prosecuting six additional patent applications in over 38 countries. All patents and pending patents were developed by individuals within the company with a variety of Figure 1: SSI System Core Process Contaminated water Steam Pure Steam Hot water Clean water Heat Volatile gases & hydrocarbons Steam Dissolved solids, salts, germs & viruses | 34 | Desalination & Water Reuse | August-September 2012 Entrained salts & solids