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Seawater desalination
Did you know?
The first desalination processes: In the 4th century BC, Aristotle observed the principle of distillation. In the 12th century, Adlard de Bath described two experiments in Qustiones naturales : In the sun, after evaporation on a rock, seawater is transformed into salt; when the sun is absent, seawater is heated and under the effect of cooking, it can also be observed to transform into salt. This metamorphosis explains that the sea is saltier in summer than winter, and that the southern seas are saltier than the northern seas. From ancient times, sailors have desalinated seawater in simple boilers on their boats, but such use on an industrial scale is recent.
Aristotle
Key information
In the 1960s, thermal processes were developed and used to desalinate seawater. Also, research was carried out on a desalination process utilizing reverse osmosis. 1978: start-up of the first seawater desalination plant using reverse osmosis, in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. 72% of the earths surface is covered in water. 97% of this water is saline The average salinity of seawater is around 35 g of salt (sodium chloride) per liter that is 3.5% of the waters weight, and can vary depending on the climate: 7g/l in the Baltic Sea, 270g/l in the Dead Sea. The distribution of the remaining 3% (freshwater) is very uneven: 10 countries share 60% of the reserves, while 29 others (in Africa, and the Middle East) face chronic shortages. The desalination of seawater is a solution that increases the available freshwater resources, provides a solution in the event of drought, and for coping with shortages and crisis situations.
Of strategic importance
Desalination is of strategic importance to Veolia Environnement. Seawater is an alternative source that provides a solution to water needs now and for the future. Antoine Frrot
President, Veolia Water
Contents
Page 1 I Of strategic importance by Antoine Frrot I Did you know? I Key information I Research objectives Page 2 I Need to know about Page 3 I Close-up on Research and Development programs Page 4 I For more information I Video fact sheet I Contact
Research objectives
Essentially focused on the process of reverse osmosis, Veolia Environnements research aims to optimize the operation of desalination plants utilizing membrane processes. The research is focused on two main aspects: I Pretreatment of the seawater to limit membrane clogging further down in the treatment process; I Reducing the energy expenditure to cut the cost of desalination and improve the environmental outcomes. Michel Dutang
Director of Research, Development and Technology, Veolia Environnement.
Veolia Environnement Research and Development is working on making desalination an alternative solution accessible to the greatest number both technologically and economically.
Seawater desalination
Need to know about
Seawater is an inexhaustible resource, but it contains 1,000 times the salt set by the WHO for human consumption.
What is a membrane?
The membrane is a flat surface with selective permeability. Its main role is to remove salt. It also retains undesirable components in the water (micro-algae, bacteria, certain viruses, micro-organisms, and micro-pollutants), overcomes turbidity (cloudy water), limits disinfection by-products, and results in the production of treated water. In the case of reverse osmosis, the removal of undesirable physical-chemical biological elements is virtually total.
Upsides
I I I I
shortage of water Fewer chemical reagents Less sludge produced Less costly civil engineering Constant treated water quality
Downsides
insufficient compared with the volume of seawater treated I Disturbance to the marine environment from extraction and reject water with a very high salt content
Module spiral
Perforated header tube Tube collecteur perfor
Membrane Membrane
Membrane Membrane
Pressure Pression
Alimentation Infeed
de mer
OSMOSIS OSMOSE
Page 2 / The magazine of the scientific chronicles / No. 4 / July-August 2005 / Seawater desalination
Seawater desalination
Pilot filtration unit in Perth (Australia).
Pretreatment research
Research is currently underway at Cape Sici in Toulon (France). The aim of this study is to optimize the performance of filtration processes used for seawater pretreatment. These trials will provide precise knowledge about the impact of the various parameters on the quality of the pretreated water (filtration rate, depth of the filtering media beds, etc.). Tests have also been carried out (between February and August 2004) at the Abu Dhabi site (Saudi Arabia), as part of an industrial project. The pilot study has demonstrated the effectiveness and robustness of the pretreatment solutions adopted. These processes achieve excellent results, as they remove between 90 and 99% of the solid particles and almost all the microorganisms.
Membrane research
The membrane is the key component in reverse osmosis facilities. Its replacement represents 5% of treatment costs. Membrane separation (or osmosis) has one weak point: membrane clogging. The aim of the Membrane Center of Expertise (ARAMIS), created in 2004 at Anjou Recherche (Veolia Environnements water research center) is to identify the matter responsible for clogging, and recommend efficient and durable treatment solutions (pretreatment and appropriate cleaning cycles). A thesis at the University of Poitiers (France) and the Banyuls Oceanographic Institute (France) aims in particular to identify the compounds liable to clog reverse osmosis membranes.
Membrane clogging The deposit of material leads to the formation of a layer on the membrane surface, which reduces the filtration flow rate and consequently the modules performance. Clogging is the cause of membrane ageing in three out of four cases.
Page 3 / The magazine of the scientific chronicles / No. 4 / July-August 2005 / Seawater desalination
Seawater desalination
Fanny Demulier, Steeve Sierra, Martin Geisler, Pierre-Yves Maurie and Herv Suty.
Partnerships
I Organic matter characterization ESIP Poitiers esip.univ-poitiers.fr I Marine environment characterization Observatoire Ocanologique de Banyuls-sur-Mer www.obs-banyuls.fr/ I Electrochemistry and characterization of membrane surfaces Universit dAngers : GIRPA Beaucouz www.univ-angers.fr I Decision-making tools Ecole Polytechnique Fdrale de Lausanne, energy, and GIRPA, behavior of pollutants in the environment. www.epfl.ch
Publications I Impact of conventional pretreatment, prior to reverse osmosis desalination membranes, on the fouling potential of seawater LCEE/ESIP UMR CNRS 6008 Universit de Poitiers,France. Sophie Rapenne et Herv Gallard. Observatoire Ocanologique de Banyuls, Universit Pierre et Marie Curie, UMR CNRS No 7621 and 7628, Banyuls-sur-Mer Cedex, France. C. Courties, J.-P. Crou, P. Lebaron Anjou Recherche, Veolia Water Research Center Maisons-Laffitte France Sophie Rapenne, Jrme Leparc Publications presented at AWWA Membrane Technology Conference, Phoenix, United States, March 2005. I Tools for membrane autopsies and antifouling strategies in seawater feeds (review) University of Angers, UMR-MA105, Laboratoire des Sciences de l'Environnement et de l'Amnagement, M. Pontie, A. Thekkedath, J. Duchesne, University of Poitiers, LCEE/ESIP UMR-CNRS 6008, Sophie Rapenne Anjou Recherche, Veolia Water, Valrie Jacquemet, Jrme Leparc, Herv Suty. I La mer, terreur et fascination, Bibliothque Nationale de France, Seuil 2004 Photo credits Barthlemy lAnglais, Livre des proprits des choses, photograph from the publication, La mer, terreur et fascination, Bibliothque Nationale de France, Seuil 2004 (cover).
Regulatory context
EU Water Framework Directive (WFD) of December 22, 2000, transposed into French Law by the Law of April 21, 2004 Water Bill - Bruno Sido
Specialized websites
www.edsoc.com European Desalination Society www.cea.fr Atomic Energy Commissariat www.veoliawatersystems.com Veolia Water www.commission-europeenne.fr European Commission
Contact
Department of Research, Development and Technology 36, rue de Lige 75008 PARIS - France Tel.: +33 (0) 1 71 75 06 60 Fax.: +33 (0)1 71 75 10 40 Mail: fanny.demulier@veolia.com
Page 4 / The magazine of the scientific chronicles / No. 4 / July-August 2005 / Seawater desalination