Water. Desalination + reuse
Issue link: https://fhpublishing.uberflip.com/i/545366
SHOWCASE August-September 2015 | Desalination & Water Reuse | 15 | HEADLINE WITHouT RuLE ABoVE Body copy body copy body copy body copy body copy body copy body copy Body copy HEADLINE WITH RuLE ABoVE Body copy body copy body copy body copy body copy body copy body copy Body copy HEADLINE WITH RuLE ABoVE Body copy body copy body copy body copy body copy body copy body copy Body copy Caption caption caption caption AquATEcH uNVEILs REcycLED HEAT-fuELLED DEsALINATIoN pRocEss Water and wastewater technologies firm, Aquatech, has highlighted its Once-Through Flash (OTF) technology at the Global Petroleum Show in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. OTF is designed to recycle heat to convert produced water into clean water with high purity. It can reduce power consumption by up to two-fifths claimed Aquatech. The process captures heat from the Once-through Steam Generators (OTSGs) that are commonplace in the Alberta Oil Sands market to use in a thermal desalination process. "Based on the proven and robust vertical-tube falling film design principles, the OTF technology reduces power consumption by 20-40%, lowering operating expenditure. In addition, it features a simpler process configuration than conventional designs and is able to deliver a substantial capital cost savings of more than 10%," said Aquatech's applications engineering manager, Greg Mandigo. OTF yields water recycle rates of more than 95%, and so complies with Alberta energy regulations said Aquatech. OTSGs typically allow recovery rates between 80-90%. AquARIoN LAuNcHEs zERo LIquID sysTEm Process industry water systems and technology firm, Aquarion Group, has unveiled its zero liquid discharge (ZLD) system which, it claimed, brings significant operating and capital cost savings making it the "lowest cost ZLD system available". The ZLD.eco2 process uses a series of innovative filtration and separation technologies to reduce the subsequent evaporation of residual waste products to a minimum and lower energy requirements. The system's modular design also reduces the plant footprint. "We believe that ZLD.eco2 is the lowest cost ZLD system available today," said Aquarion chief executive officer, Karl Michael Millauer. ZLD.eco2 requires about 20% less energy than conventional systems without pre-concentration according to Aquarion. The evaporation system is small and so requires as much as 80% less cooling energy for the condensation process the manufacturer said. The modular construction of the system can reduce staffing by around 20%, while commissioning costs are also lower by 20%. Reduced consumption of chemicals brings further cost reductions according to Aquarion. "Thanks to savings on different levels, investments in ZLD.eco2 have a very short payback period," the company added. At the heart of the system is a high-pressure reverse osmosis stage that utilizes Circular Disc (CD) Module technology developed by Aquarion subsidiary, Membran Filtrations Technik (MFT). ZLD.eco2 involves a pre-treatment process, which can either be chemical-physical or biological depending on the user, and an ultra-filtration stage to remove residual organic material, followed by multi-stage membrane technology designed to concentrate non-organic waste material. After the first two reverse osmosis stages entailing pressures of up to 80 bar, the residual concentrate contains around 20% of the total waste water volume. This is then subjected to a third reverse osmosis stage where pressures of up 200 bar are reached. This stage uses MFT's CD module through which water takes a circular path, thereby reducing pressure losses. The high pressure warms the concentrate to about 70°C. This is then vaporized in the subsequent low-pressure stage, which acts with the membrane technology to form a hybrid thermal/ membrane system, giving the concentrate a manageable consistency. The thermal energy is fed back into the system and used to increase energy efficiency. "The volume of waste products still present after the maximum pre-concentration produced by the high-pressure membrane technology is significantly lower than with conventional processes. As a result, the evaporation stage with ZLD.eco2 can be considerably shorter," claimed Aquarion. The Circular Disc Modules are available from MFT, and ZLD.eco2 systems are available through Aquarion subsidiary, Hager+Elsaesser. EVoquA LAuNcHEs ELEcTRoDIALysIs sysTEm Evoqua Water Technologies has launched an electrodialysis desalination system that has, according to the company, reduced energy costs by up to 30% in initial trials with the potential for still further reduction. Evoqua's Nexed module technology includes innovative features such as a low-energy membrane, intelligent flow distribution, and tunable dissolved solids removal capability allowing new options for reduced energy use, costs, and facility footprint, the company said. Nexed was introduced recently at Aquatech-Shanghai. Nexed modules will initially be used in brackish water desalination applications and will shortly be expanded to seawater desalination applications. The product emerged from collaboration between Evoqua's Singapore and US research and development teams after its engineers achieved increased energy savings capabilities in the laboratory in 2008. Based on that finding, Evoqua won the Singapore Challenge competition initiated by the Singapore government. DoW uLTRAfILTRATIoN LAuNcH BAgs pRIzE AT mAjoR sHoW Dow's Water & Process Solutions has launched its latest industrial and municipal ultrafiltration water treatment modules at the recent Aquatech conference where it picked up the show's "Best Technol- ogy Innovation Award" in the membrane category. Dow's IntegraFlux ultrafiltration (UF) modules feature XP fibre – "a high-performance, breakthrough fibre that delivers high-quality water at a lower cost," according to the company. "The new XP fibre boosts UF productivity and efficiency while helping to lower capital and operating expenses," said business unit director for filtration at Dow, Cedella Beazley. This fibre, according to Dow, has 35% greater permeability than Dow's previous version. The IntegraFlux modules operate at 40% higher flux compared to their predecessor at the same transmembrane pressure, and produce up to 30% less wastewater with no compromise on the quality of filtrate water. Dow emphasised that the technology will enable it to "aid its customers in addressing water challenges and adhering to strict water treatment standards worldwide. "IntegraFlux modules and IntegraPac skids with XP f ibre are perfect for industrial markets where high productivity water filtration solutions are in high demand," Dow said.