HF Pure Water recently participated in the Water, Energy, Technology and Environment Exhibition held in Dubai, UAE. In speaking with numerous people that visited the HF Pure Water booth, it became apparent that there were limited opportunities for waste water treatment as many manufacturers simply dumped their wastewater into the ocean. This was confirmed in a meeting held with the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority. Instead, the overwhelming interest and opportunity was in equipment used for the desalination of seawater for conversion to drinking water.
HF Pure Water offers two technologies that may be used in the desalination of seawater – Reverse Osmosis (Membrane systems) and Advanced Oxidation (UV systems). Pre and post treatment of seawaterwill be needed for conversion to drinking water, depending upon the standards set by local government for drinking water quality.
Membrane systems (Reverse Osmosis) equipment solutions vary in size depending upon the flow rates needed for successful desalination treatment. This technology (after pretreatment), involves the separation of suspended and dissolved impurities from seawater, including ions, from a solutionthrough the application of pressure on a special semi-permeable membrane element.The removal of ionic, organic and suspended / dissolved impurities is accomplishedduring the process. Unlike a filter, which separates by conventional filtration, themembrane element separates using a process called cross-flow filtration. Feed wateris separated into two streams - permeate and concentrate - and collected from bothsides of the membrane element. HF Pure Water can customize its Membrane systems equipment solutions to meet specific customer needs.
As with Membrane systems equipment solutions, Advanced Oxidation equipment solutions also vary in size depending upon the flow rates needed for successful desalination treatment. This technology (after pretreatment) involves using combinations of Ultra Violet light (UV), ozone and hydrogen peroxide to produce hydroxyl radicals, highly reactive oxidizing agents that react with and destroys most organic pollutants in seawater. This ability to completely destroy contaminantsis a major advantage of advanced oxidation over competing processes.
In the HF process, ultraviolet light (h) is used to dissociate hydrogen peroxide (H2O2)into two radicals. As an example, the UV oxidation of dichloromethane (a listed USA EPAPriority Organic Pollutant that is often present as a groundwater contaminant) couldgo through the following oxidation stages:
H2O2 + h -2 OH
-OH + CH2Cl2 H2O + -CHCl2
-CHCl2 + O2 / H+ CO2 + 2HCl
The net result of the above reactions is that the organic contaminant is completelymineralized, meaning that it is converted to either carbon dioxide gas or water andmineral salt; all innocuous constituents.
In the Advanced Oxidation process, knowledge of the known contaminants and flow rate are critical in customizing a solution.
All HF Pure Water equipment is made with stainless steel and comes in a skid mounted designed with fully automated controls. Full service maintenance is provided for all systems. Regardless of the preferred desalination method, HF Pure Water is prepared to provide a complete solution for its customers.
