1

CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION
1.1 REVERSE OSMOSIS Reverse Osmosis (RO) is a membrane-based demineralization technique used to separate dissolved solids, such as ions, from solution (most applications involve water-based solutions, which is the focus of this work). embranes in !eneral act as perm- selective barriers, barriers that allow some species (such as water) to selectivel" permeate throu!h them while selectivel" retainin! other dissolved species (such as ions). 1.1.1 HOW DOES REVERSE OSMOSIS WORK? Reverse osmosis works b" usin! a hi!h pressure pump to increase the pressure on the salt side of the RO and force the water across the semi--permeable RO membrane, leavin! almost all (around #$% to ##%) of dissolved salts behind in the re&ect stream. 'he amount of pressure required depends on the salt concentration of the feed water. 'he more concentrated the feed water, the more pressure is required to overcome the osmotic pressure. (n ver" simple terms, feed water is pumped into a Reverse Osmosis (RO) s"stem and "ou end up with two t"pes of water comin! out of the RO s"stem) !ood water and bad water. 'he !ood water that comes out of an RO s"stem has the ma&orit" of contaminants removed and is called permeate. *nother term for permeate water is product water + the" mean the same thin!. ,ermeate is the water that was pushed throu!h the RO membrane and contains ver" little contaminants. 'he -bad. water is the water that contains all of the contaminants that were unable to pass throu!h the RO membrane and is known as the concentrate, re&ect, or brine. *ll three terms (concentrate, re&ect, and brine) are used interchan!eabl" and mean the same thin!. /elow is a simple schematic that shows how an RO s"stem works.

*s the feed water enters the RO membrane under pressure (enou!h pressure to overcome osmotic pressure) the water molecules pass throu!h the semi-- permeable membrane and the salts and other contaminants are not allowed to pass and are dischar!ed throu!h the concentrate stream, which !oes to drain or can be fed back into the feed water suppl" in some circumstances to be rec"cled throu!h the RO s"stem to save water. 'he water that makes it throu!h the RO membrane is called permeate or product water and usuall" has around #$% to ##% of the dissolved salts removed from it. 1.1.2 DIFFERENCE BETWEEN OSMOSIS AND REVERSE OSMOSIS OSMOSIS Osmosis is a naturall" occurrin! phenomenon and one of the most important processes in nature. (t is a process where a weaker saline solution will tend to mi!rate to a stron! saline solution. 12amples of osmosis are when plant roots absorb water from the soil and our kidne"s absorb water from our blood. /elow is a dia!ram which shows how osmosis works. * solution that is less concentrated will have a natural tendenc" to mi!rate to a solution with a hi!her concentration. 3or e2ample, if "ou had a container full of water with a low salt concentration and another container full of water with a hi!h salt concentration and the" were separated b" a semi--permeable membrane, then the water with the lower salt concentration would be!in to mi!rate towards the water container with the hi!her salt concentration.

3i!.1. Osmosis REVERSE OSMOSIS 5hereas Osmosis occurs naturall" without ener!" required, to reverse the process of osmosis "ou need to appl" ener!" to the more saline solution. * reverse osmosis membrane is a semipermeable membrane that allows the passa!e of water molecules but not the ma&orit" of dissolved salts, or!anics, bacteria and p"ro!ens. 6owever, "ou need to -push. the water throu!h the reverse osmosis membrane b" appl"in! pressure that is !reater than the naturall" occurrin! osmotic pressure in order to desalinate (demineralize or deionize) water in the process, allowin! pure water throu!h while holdin! back a ma&orit" of contaminants. /elow is a dia!ram outlinin! the process of RO. 5hen pressure is applied to the concentrated solution, the water molecules are forced throu!h the semi-- permeable membrane and the contaminants are not allowed throu!h.

3i!.0. Reverse Osmosis

1.2 RO MEMBRANES * semi-permeable membrane is a membrane that will allow some atoms or molecules to pass but not others. * simple e2ample is a screen door. (t allows air molecules to pass throu!h but not pests or an"thin! lar!er than the holes in the screen door. *nother e2ample is 8ore-te2 clothin! fabric that contains an e2tremel" thin plastic film into which billions of small pores have been cut. 'he pores are bi! enou!h to let water vapor throu!h, but small enou!h to prevent liquid water from passin!. 1.2.1 FEATURES OF RO MEMBRANES 3eatures of the RO membranes include the followin!) 'he membranes are formed of thin film of pol"meric material several thousand *n!stroms thick cast on pol"meric porous material.

9ommercial membranes have hi!h water permeabilit" and a hi!h de!ree of semi-permeabilit": that is, the rate of water transport must be much hi!her than the rate of transport of dissolved ions. 'he membrane must be stable over a wide ran!e of p6 and temperature, and have !ood mechanical inte!rit". 'he life of commercial membranes varies between 4-$ "ears. On avera!e annual membrane replacement rates stand at $-1$%: this depends on the feed water qualit", pretreatment conditions, and stabilit" of operation. a&or t"pes of commercial reverse osmosis membranes include cellulose acetate (9*) and pol"amide (,*). (t should be noted that membrane choice is often !overned b" compatibilit" considerations rather than separation performance and flu2 related characteristics.

1.2.2 TYPES OF RO MEMBRANES CELLULOSE ACETATE MEMBRANES 'he ori!inal 9* membrane, developed in the late 1#$;<s b" =oeb and >ourira&an, was made from cellulose diacetate pol"mer. 9urrent 9* membrane is usuall" made from a blend of cellulose diacetate and triacetate. 'he membrane preparation process includes thin film castin!, cod bath leachin!, and hi!h temperature annealin!. 'he castin! process is associated with partial removal of the solvent material b" evaporation. 'he cold bath process removes the remainin! solvent and other leachable compounds. 'he annealin! process is made in a hot water bath at a temperature of ?;#;@9. 'he annealin! step improves the semipermeabilit" of the membrane with a

decrease of water transport and a si!nificant decrease of salt passa!e. 'he 9* membranes have an as"mmetric structure with a dense surface la"er of about 1;;;-0;;; * (;.1-;.0 micron) which is responsible for the salt re&ection propert". 'he rest of the membrane film is spon!" and porous and has hi!h water permeabilit". >alt re&ection and water flu2 of a cellulose acetate membrane can be controlled b" variations in temperature and duration of the annealin! step. COMPOSITE POLYAMIDE MEMBRANES 'he composite pol"amide membranes are formed of two la"ers, the first is a porous pol"sulfone support and the second is a semi-permeable la"er of amine and carbo2"lic acid chloride functional !roups. 'his manufacturin! procedure enables independent optimization of the distinct properties of the membrane support and salt re&ectin! skin. 'he resultin! composite membrane is characterized b" hi!her specific water flu2 and lower salt passa!e than cellulose acetate membranes. ,ol"amide composite membranes are stable over a wider p6 ran!e than 9* membranes. 6owever, pol"amide membranes are susceptible to o2idative de!radation b" free chlorine, while cellulose acetate membranes can tolerate limited levels of e2posure to free chlorine. 9ompared to a pol"amide membrane, the surface of cellulose acetate membrane is smooth and has little surface char!e. /ecause of the neutral surface and tolerance to free chlorine, cellulose acetate membranes will usuall" have a more stable performance than pol"amide membranes in applications here the feed water has a hi!h foulin! potential, such as with municipal effluent and surface water supplies.

CHAPTER 2

LITERATURE REVIEW
2.1 INFLUENCE OF FILTRATION CONDITIONS ON THE PERFORMANCE OF NANOFILTRATION AND REVERSE OSMOSIS MEMBRANES IN DIARY WASTEWATER TREATMENT 3iltration performance and foulin! of nanofiltration (B3) and reverse osmosis (RO) membranes in the treatment of diar" industr" wastewater were investi!ated. 'wo series of e2periments were performed. 'he first one involved a B3 membrane ('39->) for treatin! the chemical+biolo!ical treatment plant effluents. 'he second one used a RO membrane ('39-6R) for treatin! the ori!inal effluents from the dair" industr". 'he permeate flu2 was hi!her at hi!her transmembrane pressures and hi!her feed flowrates. 'he curves of permeate flu2 e2hibited a slower increase while the feed flowrate decreased and the pressure increased. embrane foulin! resulted in permeate flu2 decline with increasin! the feed 9OC concentration. 3urthermore, the flu2 decline due to the 9OC increase was found hi!her at hi!her pressures for both B3 and RO membranes. 'he effect of h"drod"namic conditions and foulin! on the filtration performance of the B3 and RO membranes in dair" wastewater treatment was investi!ated. 'he followin! conclusions can be drawn from this work) 'he RO and B3 membranes showed e2cellent performance b" removin! at ##.A% and #D% of the 9OC, respectivel", from feed 9OC concentrations of 7; and 7$; m!El for B3 feedwater and $,;;; and 1;,;;; m!El for RO feedwater.

2.2

CONTROLLING SCALING IN MEMBRANE FILTRATION SYSTEMS

USING A DESUPERSATURATION UNIT >calin! in reverse osmosis (RO) and nanofiltration (B3) s"stems is !enerall" controlled b" limitin! the conversion andEor the addition of antiscalants. *n alternative approach mi!ht be the desupersaturation of membrane concentrate before e.!. the last sta!e of an RO andEor B3 s"stem. * desupersaturation unit (CF) is aimed at reducin! the de!ree of

supersaturation in membrane concentrate stream b" forced precipitation of sparin!l" soluble inor!anic compounds on seed cr"stals. /arium sulfate precipitation was e2amined in a laborator" scale (CF) usin! supersaturated s"nthetic (no or!anic matter) and natural RO and B3 concentrates. 1ffective barium removal for at least 1;; h was observed in the case of s"nthetic concentrate. 1arl" break-throu!h of barium sulfate cr"stallization occurred in B3 concentrate. 'his was attributed to the adsorption of or!anic matter ('O9 G 00 m!El) and subsequent poisonin! of barium sulfate seed cr"stals. 'wo RO concentrates from surface water treatment pilot plants were compared. /arium sulfate removal was not affected (1;; h) b" or!anic matter ('O9 G 10 m!El) in River Rhine water pretreated b" ultrafiltration. 6owever, break-throu!h was observed from River Rhine water with or!anic matter ('O9 G D m!El) pretreated b" ozonation. (rreversible poisonin! of seed cr"stals was attributed to adsorption of or!anic compounds, e.!. low molar mass acids produced b" ozone pretreatment of RO feedwater. (nactivated barium sulfate cr"stals were restored b" backwashin! with acidified (p6 G 0) water.

2.3

GROUNDWATER TREATMENT BY REVERSE OSMOSIS

2.3.1 Effec !f B"#$e Rec%c&#$' !$ F!(&#$' 'he aim of this stud" is focused on the efficienc" of !roundwater treatment b" reverse osmosis (RO). 'he treated water, which is used for bevera!e industr", must be accordin! with the standard qualities. (n this fact, two reverse osmosis modes were studied. 'he first one without brine rec"clin!, and the second one with partial brine rec"clin! ($;%). 'he treatment is followed b" the measurement of the water permeate flow and the treated water conductivit". 'he results showed that the second mode carr" to membrane foulin!. 6owever, in spite of this disadvanta!e, the second mode compared to the first one, allow to decrease the water consumption b" appro2imatel" 0$% in a "ear. 2.) BRACKISH GROUNDWATER TREATMENT BY REVERSE OSMOSIS

IN *ORDAN Hordan is characterised b" an arid to semi-arid climate and its population is increasin! at an annual rate of 4 .?%.5ith such a hi!h population !rowth rate and fast socio-economical development, water demand and wastewater production are steepl" increasin!, and the !ap between water suppl" and demand is !ettin! wider . 3urthermore, the constraints for water resources development are also risin! due to hi!h investment costs and water qualit" de!radation due to over-e2ploitation of aquifers. Cesalination of Red >ea water b" reverse osmosis (RO) andEor brackish !roundwater desalination b" nanofiltration or RO mi!ht be technicall" and economicall" viable to cope with water scarcit" and overcome the water deficit in Hordan. 'he technical-economical feasibilit" of brackish !roundwater treatment b" RO for potable water production was investi!ated in this work. /rackish !roundwater samples were collected from the Iarqa basin, Hordan, and characterised in terms of p6, conductivit", total solids, total dissolved solids, total suspended solids, and volatile solids. 'he water samples were pre-treated throu!h a microfiltration cartrid!e ($, micrometer pore diameter) in order to eliminate the suspended matter. * pilot plant equipped with a 3ilm'ec RO membrane (>54;-0$01) was operated at 0;-4; bar, 7;@9, natural p6 and up to a water recover" ratio of AA.$%. 'he results showed that RO is actuall" efficient since it hi!hl" reduced the content of or!anic and inor!anic matters present in raw waters (re&ections J#D .$%) at a relativel" affordable price (; .0? KEm4). 'his stud" contributes to the development of efficient technolo!ies to produce affordable potable water in shorta!es is a severe problem. editerranean countries where the threat of water

2.+ CONCLUSIONS FROM THE LITERATURE REVIEW

1;

1. 'he permeate flu2 in the B3 membrane increased b" about 7$% while the flow rates increased b" 7;%. On the other hand, the flu2 showed a slower increase at hi!her feed 9OC concentrations and B3 flu2 declined in the ran!e of 44+$0% while the feed 9OC and the transmembrane pressure increased from 7; to 7$; m!El and $ to 10 bar, respectivel". 9 'he decrease in the filtration can be attributed to the increase both in the foulin! la"er and the concentration polarization la"er. >imilarl", a 0A% increase in the permeate flu2 throu!h the RO membrane was achieved with increasin! the feed flow rate b" about $;%. /esides, RO flu2 decline also varied between 1$+ 41% while 9OC values ran!ed from $,;;; to 1;,;;; m!El and pressure ran!ed from ? to 1D bar. 9onsequentl", the flu2 decline in the RO membrane because of increasin! the feed 9OC was lower than that in the B3 membrane. 0. 'he effect of antiscalant and (natural) or!anic matter on barium sulfate !rowth retardation in *5> RO was similar. Or!anic matter in *5> RO concentrate ma" act as a natural antiscalant. 4. 'he treated water, which is used for bevera!e industr", must be accordin!l" with the standard qualities. (n this fact, two reverse osmosis modes were studied. 'he first one without brine rec"clin! and the second one with partial brine rec"clin! ($;%). 'he treatment is followed b" the measurement of the water permeate flow and the treated water conductivit". 'he results showed that the second mode carr" to membrane foulin!. 6owever, in spite of this disadvanta!e, the second mode compared to the first one, allow to decrease the water consumption b" appro2imatel" 0$% in a "ear. 7. 'he performance of a spiral wound RO membrane (3ilm'ec >54;-0$01) was investi!ated for the production of potable water from brackish !roundwater collected from the Iarqa basin, Hordan, after bein! pre-treated b" a micrometer). 3 cartrid!e ($

CHAPTER 3

11

MEMBRANE MODULES AND FILTRATION

3.1 MEMBRANE MODULES 'he two ma&or membrane module confi!urations used for reverse osmosis applications are hollow fiber and spiral wound. Other confi!urations, which include tubular and plate and frame, are used in the food and dair" industr". 3.1.1 HOLLOW FINE FIBER 'his confi!uration uses membrane in the form of hollow fibers, which have been e2truded from cellulosic or non-cellulosic material. 'he fiber is as"mmetric in structure and is as fine as a human hair, about 70 Lmicro meter (C and D$ micro meters OC. illions of these fibers are formed into a bundle and folded in half to a len!th of appro2imatel" 10; cm. * perforated plastic tube, servin! as a feed water distributor is inserted in the center and e2tends the full len!th of the bundle. 'he bundle is wrapped and both ends are epo2" sealed to form a sheet-like permeate tube end and a terminal end which prevents the feed stream from b"passin! to the brine outlet. 'he hollow fiber membrane bundle, 1; cm to 0; cm in diameter, is contained in a c"lindrical housin! or shells appro2imatel" 14A cm lon! and 1$-4; cm in diameter. 'he assembl" has the hi!hest specific surface area, defined as the total area per unit volume, amon! all module confi!urations. 'he pressurized feed water enters the permeator feed end throu!h the center distributor tube, passes throu!h the tube wall, and flows radiall" around the fiber bundle toward the outer permeator pressure shell. 5ater permeates throu!h the outside wall of the fibers into the hollow core or fiber bore, throu!h the bore to the tube sheet or product end of the fiber bundle, and e2its throu!h the product connection on the feed end of the permeator.

10

(n a hollow fiber module, the permeate water flow per unit area of membrane is low, and therefore, the concentration polarization is not hi!h at the membrane surface. 'he net result is that hollow fiber units operate in a nonturbulent or laminar flow re!ime. 'he hollow fine fiber membrane must operate above a minimum re&ect flow to minimize concentration polarization and maintain even flow distribution throu!h the fiber bundle. '"picall", a sin!le hollow fiber permeator can be operated at up to $;percent recover" and meet the minimum re&ect flow required. 'he hollow fiber unit allows a lar!e membrane area per unit volume of permeator that result in compact s"stems. 6ollow fiber perimeter are available for brackish and seawater applications. embrane materials are cellulose acetate blends and pol"amide t"pe material. /ecause of ver" close packed fibers and tortuous feed flow inside the module, hollow fiber modules require feed water of better qualit" (lower concentration of suspended solids) than the spiral wound module confi!uration.

14

3.1.2 SPIRAL WOUND FIBER (n a spiral wound confi!uration two flat sheets of membrane are separated with a permeate collector channel material to form a leaf. 'his assembl" is sealed on three sides with the fourth side left open for permeate to e2it. * feedEbrine spacer material sheet is added to the leaf assembl".

17

* number of these assemblies or leaves are wound around a central plastic permeate tube. 'his tube is perforated to collect permeate from the multiple leaf assemblies. 'he t"pical industrial spiral wound membrane element is appro2imatel" 1;; or 1$; cm lon! and 1; or 0; cm in diameter. 'he feedEbrine flow throu!h the element is a strai!ht a2ial path from the feed end to the opposite brine ends, runnin! parallel to the membrane surface. 'he feed channel spacer induces turbulence and reduces concentration polarization. anufacturers specif" brine flow requirements to control concentration polarization b" limitin! recover" (or conversion) per element to 1; - 0;%. 'herefore, recover" (or conversion) is a function of the feed-brine path len!th. (n order to operate at acceptable recoveries, spiral s"stems are usuall" sta!ed with three to si2 membrane elements connected in series in a pressure tube. 'he brine stream from the first element becomes the feed to the followin! element, and so on for each element within the pressure tube. 'he brine stream from the last element e2its the pressure tube to waste. 'he ,ermeate from each element enters the permeate collector tube and e2its the vessel as a common permeate stream. * sin!le pressure vessel with four to si2 membrane elements connected in series can be operated at up to $;-percent recover" under normal desi!n conditions. 'he brine seal on the element feed end seal carrier prevents the feedEbrine stream from b"passin! the followin! element. >piral wound elements are most commonl" manufactured with flat sheet membrane of either a cellulose diacetate and triacetate (9*) blend or a thin film composite. * thin film composite membrane consists of a thin active la"er of one pol"mer cast on a thicker supportin! la"er of a different pol"mer. 'he composite membranes usuall" e2hibit hi!her re&ection at lower operatin! pressures than the cellulose acetate blends. 'he composite membrane materials ma" be pol"amide, pol"sulfone, pol"urea, or other pol"mers.

1$

3i!.7.>piral wound membrane

3.2 TYPES OF FILTRATION 3.2.1 DEAD,END FILTRATION 'he t"pe of filtration illustrated in fi!ure is calledM dead endM (Mend flowM or Ndirect flowM) filtration. Cead end filtration involves all of the feed water passin! throu!h the membrane, leavin! the solids behind on the membrane. 9onsider a common coffee filter as shown in fi!ure. 3eed water mi2es with the coffee !rounds on one side of the filter.

1?

3i!. $. Cead-end filtration is a batch process that produces one effluent stream !iven one influent stream. 'he water then passes throu!h the filter to become coffee that is lar!el" free of coffee !rounds. Oirtuall" all of the feed water passes throu!h the filter to become coffee. One influent stream, in this case water, produces, onl" one effluent stream, in this case coffee. 'his is dead end filtration. Cead end filtration is a batch process. 'hat means that the filter will accumulate and eventuall" blind off with particulates such that water can no lon!er pass throu!h. 'he filtration s"stem will need to be taken off line and the filter will need to be either cleaned or replaced. 3.2.2 CROSS,FLOW FILTRATION (n cross-flow filtration, feed water passes tan!entiall" over the membrane surface rather than perpendicularl" to it. 5ater and some dissolved solids pass throu!h the membrane while the ma&orit" of dissolved solids and some water do not pass throu!h the membrane. 6ence, cross-flow filtration has one influent stream but "ields two effluent streams. 'his is shown in fi!ure.

1A

3i!. ?. 9ross-flow filtration is a continuous process that produces two effluent streams !iven one influent stream. 9ross-flow helps to minimize foulin! or scalin! of the RO membrane. (n an effort to keep the membrane surface free of solids that ma" accumulate and foul or scale the membrane, tan!ential flow across the membrane surface aids in keepin! the surface clean b" scourin! the surface: minimum flow rates across the membrane surface are required to effectivel" scour the surface. (n theor", cross-flow is a continuous operation, as the scourin! process keeps the membrane surface free of foulants. (n practice, however, the scourin! action of cross flow is not alwa"s enou!h to prevent all foulin! and scalin!. ,eriodicall", the membranes will need to be taken off line and cleaned free of material that has accumulated at the surface.

1D

CHAPTER ) E-PERIMENTAL SETUP

).1 RO SYSTEMS 'he RO s"stems ma" consist of the followin! basic components) 3eed water suppl" unit ,retreatment s"stem 6i!h pressure pumpin! unit embrane element assembl" unit

(nstrumentation and control s"stem ,ermeate treatment and stora!e unit 9leanin! unit =ar!e particles are removed from the feed water usin! mesh strainers or travelin! screens. esh strainers are used in well water suppl" s"stems to stop and remove sand particles, which ma" be pumped from the well. 'ravelin! screens are used mainl" for surface water sources, which t"picall" have lar!e concentrations of biolo!ical debris. (t is common practice to disinfect surface feed water in order to control biolo!ical activit". /iolo!ical activit" in well water is usuall" ver" low, and in ma&orit" of cases, well water does not require chlorination. (n some cases, chlorination is used to o2idize iron and man!anese in the well water before filtration. 5ell water containin! h"dro!en sulfide should not be chlorinated or e2posed to air. (n presence of an o2idant, the sulfide ion can o2idize to elemental sulfur, which eventuall" ma" plu! membrane elements. >ettlin! of surface water in a detention tank results in some reduction of suspended particles. *ddition of flocculants, such as iron or aluminum salts, results in formation of correspondin! h"dro2ides: these h"dro2ides neutralize surface char!es of colloidal particles, a!!re!ate, and adsorb to floatin!

1#

particles before settlin! at the lower part of the clarifier. 'o increase the size and stren!th of the flock, a lon! chain or!anic pol"mer can be added to the water to bind flock particles to!ether. Fse of lime results in increase of p6, formation of calcium carbonate and ma!nesium h"dro2ide particles. =ime clarification results in reduction of hardness and alkalinit", and the clarification of treated water. 5ell water usuall" contains low concentrations of suspended particles, due to the filtration effect of the aquifer. 'he pretreatment of well water is usuall" limited to screenin! of sand, addition of scale inhibitor to the feed water, and cartrid!e filtration. >urface water ma" contain various concentrations of suspended particles, which are either of inor!anic or biolo!ical ori!in. >urface water usuall" requires disinfection to control biolo!ical activit" and removal of suspended particles b" media filtration. 'he efficienc" of filtration process can be increased b" addin! filtration aids, such as flocculants and or!anic pol"mers. >ome surface water ma" contain hi!h concentrations of dissolved or!anics. 'hose can be removed b" passin! feed water throu!h an activated carbon filter. Cependin! on composition of the water, acidification and addition scale inhibitor ma" be required. 'he flow dia!ram of pretreatment s"stem for surface water is shown below. 9artrid!e filters, almost universall" used in all RO s"stems prior to the hi!h pressure pump, serve as the final barrier to water born particles. 'he nominal ratin! commonl" used in RO applications is in the ran!e of $ - 1$ microns. >ome s"stems use cartrid!es with micron ratin!s as low as 1 micron. 'here seems to be little benefit from lower micron rated filters as such filters require a hi!h replacement rate with relativel" small improvement in the final feed water qualit". Recentl", new pretreatment equipment has been introduced to the RO market. (t consists of backwashable capillar" microfiltration and ultrafiltration

0;

membrane modules. 'his new equipment can operate reliabl" at a ver" hi!h recover" rates and low feed pressure. 'he new capillar" s"stems can provide better feed water qualit" than a number of conventional filtration steps operatin! in series. 'he cost of this new equipment is still ver" hi!h compared to the cost of an RO unit.

3i!ure A shows a t"pical process dia!ram for the RO process. (t should be noted that the s"stem is onl" an e2ample, where the level of feed pretreatment depends stron!l" on the qualit" of the feed water. 3eatures of the RO process include the followin!)

3i!.A.RO >"stem

).2 TYPES OF FILTERS 4.2.1 CARBON FILTERS *ctivated carbon filters are used to reduce the concentration of or!anics in RO feed water. 'hese filters are also used to remove o2idants such as free chlorine from RO feed water. *ctivated carbon is derived from natural materials such

01

as bituminous coal, li!nite, wood, fruit pits, bones, and coconut shells, to name a few. 'he raw materials are fired in a low o2"!en environment to create char, which is then activated b" steam, carbon dio2ide or o2"!en. 3or most industrial applications, bituminous carbon is used. >urface water ma" contain various concentrations of suspended particles, which are either of inor!anic or biolo!ical ori!in. >urface water usuall" requires disinfection to control biolo!ical activit" and removal of suspended particles b" media filtration. 'he efficienc" of filtration process can be increased b" addin! filtration aids, such as flocculants and or!anic pol"mers. >ome surface water ma" contain hi!h concentrations of dissolved or!anics. 'hose can be removed b" passin! feed water throu!h an activated carbon filter. 'his is because of the smaller pores size, hi!her surface area and hi!her densit" than other forms of carbon !ivin! bituminous carbon hi!her capacit" for chlorine. 9arbon can also come in one of 3 forms) powdered (,*9), e2truded block (9/), and !ranular (8*9). ost industrial applications used 8*9 as this is the lowest cost of the 4 t"pes of carbon media and this t"pe of carbon can be reused. *ll carbon is characterized b" hi!h surface area. A !ram of carbon can have surface area in e2cess of $;; m0, with 1,$;; m0 bein! achievable77) 6i!h surface area is necessar" for reduction of or!anics and chlorine within reasonable residence time. 9hlorine and other o2idants are removed usin! activated carbon b" an o2idationE reduction reaction. 9hlorine o2idizes the carbon while the chlorine is bein! reduced. 9hlorine ends up formin! h"drochloric acid. 1ffluent concentrations of chlorine are t"picall" less than ;.;$ ppm, which is adequate qualit" for feed to a downstream RO. *ctivated carbon can also be used for chloramine removal, but the reaction time is much lon!er, about $ - 1; minutes in a new bed and up to 30 minutes in a bed near equilibrium. Bote that the carbon filtration removal of chloramines leaves behind some residual ammonia. 'he p6 of the solution must be below about A.D for the ionized form of ammonia (ammonium) to be present and well re&ected b" the RO membrane. 3urthermore, ammonia !as swells the RO membrane leadin! to lower

00

re&ection of dissolved solids b" the membrane. 9arbon filters are not desi!ned to remove suspended solids or bacteria. (n fact, carbon filters encoura!e the !rowth of bacteria: with the or!anics removed throu!h the media providin! nutrients for the microbes.9arbon filters have the followin! influent water requirements to assure optimal operation of the filter)

'urbidit" < $ B'F 3ree chlorine) 4 0 ppm

'O9) P $ppm

).2.2 CATRIDGE FILTERS 9artrid!e filters are usuall" used to directl" pretreat influent water &ust prior to the RO membranes. 9artrid!e filters are desi!ned to prevent resin and media that ma" have carried over from upstream softeners and filters: from reachin! the RO feed pump and dama!in! the impeller as well as reachin! the RO membrane modules and blockin! off the feed channels. 'he" are also desi!ned to remove macro particles that could ph"sicall" abrade or penetrate the thin membrane la"er. 9artrid!e filters are not intended for bulk removal of suspended solids, turbidit", or >C( as is commonl" believed. 'he ratin! of cartrid!e filters is usuall" $ microns nominal (althou!h absolute is recommended), which is much too lar!e for removal of solids that contribute to turbidit" and >C(. 9artrid!e filters with a ratin! of
1 to 3 microns absolute are sometime used when colloidal silica or metal silicates are

present, but these filters can blind off quickl" with bulk solids if the pretreatment prior to the cartrid!e filter is inadequate and, hence, require frequent replacement. 'his increases the operatin! costs for the s"stem due to labor and material e2penses. (n addition to the micron ratin!, cartrid!e filters are also rated in len!th usin! 1;-inch equivalents. 9artrid!e filters can be up to four 1;-inch equivalents, or 7; inches in total len!th. 8enerall", RO s"stems use 0.$-inch diameter

04

cartrid!e filters. 'he number of cartrid!es required is determined b" the flow rate of the s"stem. Cesi!n protocol calls for a ma2imum flow rate of about $ !pm per 1;inch equivalent (0.$-inch diameter) for optimum performance. 9artrid!e filters are !enerall" housed in steel vessels. 'he lar!est standard housin!s hold about twent"-one, 7;-inch filters. 'his housin! can handle a flow rate of about 70; !pm. =ar!er flow rates require multiple housin!s or a custom housin!.
9artrid!e filters should be inspected re!ularl" durin! use to determine the e2tent of foulin! of the filter. 3ilters should be replaced when the differential pressure across them reaches $ psi or 2 weeks, whichever comes first. *t worst, filters operatin! with relativel" clean feed water (such as RO permeate or well water low in iron) should be replaced at least once per month to minimize biofoulin! risks. Cisposable cartrid!e filters are recommended over back-washable filters. /ack-washable filters suffer from several limitations) Risk of breakthrou!h if the backwashin! mechanism fails =ower efficienc" than disposable filters 6i!her biofoulin! risk

(nspection of spent filters can "ield useful information into the nature of foulants that ma" be on the RO membranes. >crapin! of the material trapped b" the filter can be anal"zed for elemental content. 'he results of this anal"sis can directl" lead to up!rades of the pretreatment s"stem.

'he cartrid!e filter is t"picall" a $- to 1;-micron nominal cutoff filter. 'he housin! can be ,O9, FRP, or >>. (t should be equipped with a differential pressure !au!e to measure the pressure drop across the filter. 9artrid!e filters should be chan!ed out with ever" new cleanin! solution.

07

).3 WHAT WILL REVERSE OSMOSIS REMOVE FROM WATER? Reverse Osmosis is capable of removin! up to ##%Q of the dissolved salts (ions), particles, colloids, or!anics, bacteria and p"ro!ens from the feed water (althou!h an RO s"stem should not be relied upon to remove 1;;% of bacteria and viruses). *n RO membrane re&ects contaminants based on their size and char!e. *n" contaminant that has a molecular wei!ht !reater than 0;; is likel" re&ected b" a properl" runnin! RO s"stem. =ikewise, the !reater the ionic char!e of the contaminant, the more likel" it will be unable to pass throu!h the RO membrane. 3or e2ample, a sodium ion has onl" one char!e (monovalent) and is not re&ected b" the RO membrane as well as calcium for e2ample, which has two char!es. =ikewise, this is wh" an RO s"stem does not remove !ases such as 9O0 ver" well because the" are not hi!hl" ionized (char!ed) while in solution and have a ver" low molecular wei!ht. /ecause an RO s"stem does not remove !ases, the permeate water can have a sli!htl" lower than normal p6 level dependin! on 9O0 levels in the feed water as the O0 is converted to carbonic acid. Reverse Osmosis is ver" effective in treatin! brackish, surface and !round water for both lar!e and small flows applications. >ome e2amples of industries that use RO water include pharmaceutical, boiler feed water, food and bevera!e, metal finishin! and semiconductor manufacturin! to name a few.

0$

CHAPTERS + PERFORMANCE PARAMETERS

'here are a handful of calculations that are used to &ud!e the performance of an RO s"stem and also for desi!n considerations. *n RO s"stem has instrumentation that displa"s qualit", flow, pressure and sometimes other data like temperature or hours of operation. (n order to accuratel" measure the performance of an RO s"stem "ou need the followin! operation parameters at a minimum) 1. 3eed pressure 0. ,ermeate pressure 4. 9oncentrate pressure 7. 3eed conductivit" $. ,ermeate conductivit" ?. 3eed flow A. ,ermeate flow D. 'emperature SALT RE*ECTION . 'his equation tells "ou how effective the RO membranes are removin! contaminants. (t does not tell "ou how each individual membrane is performin!, but rather how the s"stem overall on avera!e is performin!. * well-desi!ned RO s"stem with properl" functionin! RO membranes will re&ect #$% to ##% of most feed water contaminants (that are of a certain size and char!e). Rou can determine effective the RO membranes are removin! contaminants b" usin! the followin! equation)
>alt Re&ection % G (9onductivit" of 3eed 5ater + 9onductivit" of ,ermeate 5ater) 2 1;; 9onductivit" of 3eed

'he hi!her the salt re&ection, the better the s"stem is performin!. * low salt re&ection can mean that the membranes require cleanin! or replacement.

0?

SALT PASSAGE . 'his is simpl" the inverse of salt re&ection described in the previous equation. 'his is the amount of salts e2pressed as a percenta!e that are passin! throu!h the RO s"stem. 'he lower the salt passa!e, the better the s"stem is performin!. * hi!h salt passa!e can mean that the membranes require cleanin! or replacement. >alt ,assa!e % G (1- >alt Re&ection %) RECOVERY . ,ercent Recover" is the amount of water that is bein! -recovered. as !ood as permeates water. *nother wa" to think of ,ercent Recover" is the amount of water that is not sent to drain as concentrate, but rather collected as permeate or product water. 'he hi!her the recover" % means that "ou are sendin! less water to drain as concentrate and savin! more permeate water. 6owever, if the recover" % is too hi!h for the RO desi!n then it can lead to lar!er problems due to scalin! and foulin!. 'he % Recover" for an RO s"stem is established with the help of desi!n software takin! into consideration numerous factors such as feed water chemistr" and RO pre--treatment before the RO s"stem. 'herefore, the proper % Recover" at which an RO should operate at depends on what it was desi!ned for. /" calculatin! the % Recover" "ou can quickl" determine if the s"stem is operatin! outside of the intended desi!n. 'he calculation for % Recover" is below) % Recover" G ,ermeate 3low Rate (!pm) 2 1;; 3eed 3low Rate (!pm) 3or e2ample, if the recover" rate is A$% then this means that for ever" 1;; !allons of feed water that enter the RO s"stem, "ou are recoverin! A$ !allons as usable permeate water and 0$ !allons are !oin! to drain as concentrate. (ndustrial RO s"stems t"picall" run an"where from $;% to D$% recover" dependin! the feed water

0A

characteristics and other desi!n considerations. CONCENTRATION FACTOR 'he concentration factor is related to the RO s"stem recover" and is an important equation for RO s"stem desi!n. 'he more water "ou recover as permeate (the hi!her the % recover"), the more concentrated salts and contaminants "ou collect in the concentrate stream. 'his can lead to hi!her potential for scalin! on the surface of the RO membrane when the concentration factor is too hi!h for the s"stem desi!n and feed water composition. 9oncentration 3actor G (1 E (1-Recover" %)) 'he concept is no different than that of a boiler or coolin! tower. 'he" both have purified water e2itin! the s"stem (steam) and end up leavin! a concentrated solution behind. *s the de!ree of concentration increases, the solubilit" limits ma" be e2ceeded and precipitate on the surface of the equipment as scale. 3or e2ample, if "our feed flow is 1;; !pm and "our permeate flow is A$ !pm, then the recover" is (A$E1;;) 2 1;; G A$%. 'o find the concentration factor, the formula would be 1 S (1-A$%) G 7. * concentration factor of 7 means that the water !oin! to the concentrate stream will be 7 times more concentrated than the feed water is. (f the feed water in this e2ample was $;; ppm, then the concentrate stream would be $;; 2 7 G 0,;;; ppm. FLU3lu2 is defined as the volumetric flow rate of a fluid throu!h a !iven area. (n the case of RO, the fluid is water and the area is that of the membrane. (n the lan!ua!e of RO, flu2 is e2pressed as !allons of water per square foot of membrane area per da", (!fd). 'he flu2 of water throu!h an RO membrane is proportional to the net pressure drivin! force applied to the water.

0D

FOULING embrane foulin! is a result of deposition of suspended solids, or!anics, or microbes on the surface of the membrane, t"picall" on the feed Econcentrates side. 3oulin! species include 9olloids, such as alumina and iron-silicates. >ilica can precipitate at concentration below saturation in the presence of aluminum or iron. <Or!anics., which provide nutrients for microbes, 9olor, which irreversibl" adsorbs onto the membrane pol"mer, etals, such as iron and man!anese that precipitate when o2idized: aluminum t"picall" from alum, which is commonl" overfed, particularl" into municipal or surface sources: and h"dro!en sulfide, which releases elemental sulfur upon o2idation, a stick" material ver" difficult if not impossible to remove from a membrane.

CHAPTER /

0#

CONCLUSION Curin! testin! on the brackish !round water, which had a hi!her avera!e 'C> concentration than the surface water, pretreatment with F3 was not used. 'he RO s"stem performed a lot better initiall", but then showed scalin!Efoulin! in the RO membranes too when operatin! at #;-percent recover" and a scale inhibitor dose of 4.0 m!E=. Once a!ain, periodic membrane cleanin! was not able to sustain permeate production. * membrane autops" showed the presence of scale containin! silica, iron, calcium, and aluminum in the tail end membrane element.

REFERENCES

4;

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41

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