Engineering Practice

Process Water Treatment

Challenges and Solutions
Clean water is needed by chemical-process plants
for a wide range of process-related and auxiliary
uses. Likewise wide is the range of options available
to the plant for cleaning up the raw, incoming water.
Here are guidelines for making the right choice
Peter Cartwright, Cartwright Consulting Co.

epending on their location and

on other factors, chemical-process-industries (CPI) plants
obtain their process water from
a diverse range of sources (see Process Water Supply the Big Picture,
Chem. Eng., May 2005, pp. 3234.).
The water from most, if not all, of these
sources requires some, if not a great
deal of, contaminant removal onsite in
order to make the water suitable for
use. A wide array of contaminant-removal technologies is available, so it
is important to choose the ones that
are most appropriate for the situation
at hand. Once the choices are made,
certain underlying principles can help
get the process design of the treatment
unit off to a good start.
All water supplies contain contaminants. The type of contaminant can
vary greatly, and the contaminant concentration may range from extremely
low (as in the case of highly pure
water requiring final polishing before
use in semiconductor manufacture), to
very high (as in a typical wastewater
stream that is to be recycled).
What constitutes a contaminant
depends entirely on the application.
For drinking water, for instance, the
contaminants are those defined (for
the U.S.) by the Safe Drinking Water
Act, whereas for semiconductor rinsing, anything other than H20 is a contaminant, and the concentrations of
such contaminants must be as close
to zero as possible. The uses of water
at CPI plants (which range from pe50

troleum refineries to cement mills to

breweries) are wide-ranging, so it is
not possible to generalize the definition of contaminant.
It is virtually impossible to make
water free of any and all contaminants.
The goal of a treatment process is to
reduce the contaminant levels to the
extent required by the application. To
more easily address that removal, it is
convenient to look at contaminants by
category (Table 1).

Removal technologies

No single technology effectively removes all contaminants. The challenge is to specify and design a system
utilizing a combination of technologies
that provide the optimal removal to
meet the particular, use-specific water
quality requirements for the situation
at hand.
In general, a water treatment system consists of three basic components:
pretreatment, primary treatment and
posttreatment. Pretreatment technologies typically protect the primary
treatment technologies from such
problems as fouling and chemical degradation. The primary technologies
bring the water supply to its desired
quality level, and the posttreatment
technologies are designed to keep
the water supply at that quality level
during storage and distribution. Accordingly, the key selection must be
that of the primary treatment technology or technologies. This decision,
in turn, will dictate the selection of

CHEMICAL ENGINEERING WWW.CHE.COM MARCH 2006

TABLE I. WATER CONTAMINANTS

Class
Suspended
solids
Dissolved
organics
Dissolved
ionics (salts)
Microorganisms

Gases

Typical examples
Dirt, clay, silt, dust,
insoluble metal oxides and hydroxides,
colloidal materials
Trihalomethanes,
synthetic organic
chemicals, humic
acids, fulvic acids
Heavy metals, silica, arsenic, nitrates,
chlorides, carbonates
Bacteria, viruses,
protozoan cysts,
fungi, algae, molds,
yeast cells
Hydrogen sulfide,
carbon dioxide,
methane, radon

pretreatment technologies. The choice

of posttreatment technologies will
be dictated by the need for storage
and distribution, the instantaneous
flow requirements, and water quality
maintenance issues.
Table 2 summarizes several waterpurification processes with regard to
their effectiveness in removing a particular class of contaminants. Because
of the wide range of contaminants in
each contaminant class, there are certainly exceptions to the effectiveness
of a particular treatment process; with
that in mind, this table serves as a
useful and basically accurate guide.

PRETREATMENT
Filtration

Filtration removes suspended solid

contaminants mechanically, by use of
a porous medium that allows water to
pass while retaining the solids. In general, filters used for water treatment
consist of either (a) bed filters, namely,
containers that are partially filled with
a porous bed of inert particles, or (b)
manufactured cartridges or bags, typically constructed of a synthetic porous
fabric, and usually designed to process
smaller flowrates than a bed filter.
Some bed filters or cartridge filters are

TABLE II, EFFECTIVENESS OF WATER PURIFICATION PROCESSES

Treatment
Process &
Technology
Filtration:
Bed filtration
Cartridge
filtration
Bag filtration
Precoat (DE)

Suspended
Solids

Types of contaminants
Dissolved
Dissolved MicroOrganics
Ionics
organisms
(salts)

Gases

Very effective
Very effective

NA
NA

NA
NA

NA
NA

NA
NA

Very effective
Very effective

NA
Partially
effective

NA
NA

NA
NA

NA
NA

Very
effective

NA

NA

Partially
effective

NA

NA

Very
effective
Very
effective
Very
effective

NA

Partially
effective
NA
NA
NR

Adsorption:
NR
Activated
carbon
Membrane technologies:
Microfiltration
Very effective
Ultrafiltration

NR

Nanofiltration

NR

Reverse Osmosis

NR

Thermal technologies:
NR
Distillation
Freezing

NR

Electrical technologies:
NA
Electrodialysis
NA
Electrodeionization
Chemical technologies:
Ion exchange
NR

Partially
effective
Effective

NA

Very
effective
Very
effective

NA

Very
effective
Very
effective

Very
effective
NR

NA

Effective
Effective

NA
NR

NA
NA

Effective
Very
effective

Source for Figure 1 and 2: Water Quality Assn.

NA
FIGURE 1. Bed filters are effective for
removing suspended solids from water

NA

NA

NA

Ozonation

NA

Partially
effective

Very
effective
Partially
effective

NA

NA

Very
effective

NA

Use of chlorine
compounds
Irradiation:
Ultraviolet

NA

NA

NA

Effective

NA

NA

Partially
effective

NA

Effective

NA

NA= not applicable NR= not recommended (not cost effective)

classified as adsorptive filters, as discussed below. Precoat filters (see below)

also serve for water pretreatment.
The unit of measurement used in
connection with filtration for contaminant removal is the micrometer, m,
equivalent to one-millionth of a meter
(the smallest particle that can be seen
by the unaided eye measures 40 m).
Bed filters. In a bed filter, the water
pressure itself provides the force
needed for passage through the filter
medium or media. Many types of inert,
uniformly sized materials can serve
as the media. The bed filter shown in
Figure 1 employs three: coal, sand and
garnet. The flow of water can be either
from bottom up or from top down. Typical bed filters can remove suspended
solids down to about 10 m.
An advantage of bed filters is that
they can be backwashed to remove
entrapped solids, and, therefore, these

filters have very long lifetimes. Obviously, they must be taken offline during backwashing.
Cartridge filters. A typical filter in
the form of a cartridge is shown in
Figure 2. Cartridge filters are thickwalled tubes measuring typically 2 3/4
in. (7 cm) in outside diameter by 10 or
20 in. (25 or 50 cm) long, and they are
constructed of any one of a number of
synthetic materials, including rayon,
polypropylene, cellulosic polymers,
nylon or polytetrafluoroethylene.
In one type of construction, the filter is string-wound: the material, in
string-like form, is wound around the
core in a pattern that creates a tortuous path through which the water
must flow. Another type of construction, which also forces the water to
flow through such a path, is instead
fabricated of nonwoven, feltlike materials. A third type contains a mem-

FIGURE 2. Cartridge filters can be fabricated in any of several configurations

brane consisting of a porous polymer

sheet through which the water is
forced. This last-named cartridge is
the most effective version for removing particles of very small size. The
particle-removal rating for cartridge
filters ranges from above 100 m to
less than 0.1 m.
Bag filters. These usually consist of
bags created from nonwoven fabrics,
which are supported within housings.
They have filtration characteristics
similar to those of cartridge filters.
Adsorptive filters. Activated carbon,
sometimes referred to as activated
charcoal, has an extremely large surface area per unit volume because
of its enormous number of very fine
pores. This material is particularly
effective in removing dissolved gases,
such as chlorine and most volatile
hydrocarbons, as well as many other
dissolved organics. Activated carbon

CHEMICAL ENGINEERING WWW.CHE.COM MARCH 2006

51

Engineering Practice
filters are available either in bed-type
configurations or in cartridge constructions similar to filter cartridges.
Various types of activated carbon are
available; the choice depends on the
contaminant to be removed. Although
it is possible to reactivate activated
carbon, it is usually more cost effective
to replace the material upon exhaustion. Other adsorptive media, such as
activated alumnia, are specific for certain dissolved contaminants such as
arsenic and fluoride ions.
Precoat, or diatomaceous earth
(DE), filters. These compact, lightweight filters can remove particles as
small as 0.1 m from water without
the need for prior particle destabilization (coagulation). The term, precoat,
refers to the requirement to feed the
filtering medium (diatomaceous earth)
into a stream of water in order to coat
a fine cloth or screen, the septum, with
the medium. Initially, the DE layer is
about 3 mm thick. Additional DE may
be added during the filter run (body
feed), and the total medium thickness
may ultimately reach 10 mm or more.
The filters are backwashed, discharging
both the captured suspended solids and
the diatomaceous earth medium. To
re-initiate the filtering cycle, DE must
first be coated onto the septum again.

Chemical pretreatment

Normal water supplies contain certain

dissolved salts which, when concentrated beyond their solubility level,
precipitate out and can foul or interfere
with the primary treatment technologies downstream. Perhaps the most notorious of these salts is calcium carbonate, which is in a saturated condition
in virtually all non-seawater supplies.
A traditional water softener (sodium
ion exchange) replaces the calcium ion
with sodium to prevent the formation
of scale. Another approach consists of
pH adjustment with an acid, which
converts the carbonate ion into carbon
dioxide and water.
For many years, a traditional pretreatment technology for large volumes
of water has been coagulation or flocculation. Specific chemicals are added
that react with suspended solids in
the water supply, causing them to aggregate into large particles to facilitate
removal by settling or filtration.
52

FIGURE 4. Microfiltrations role consists of the removal of suspended solids

Reverse osmosis is a technique used

mainly to remove salts from water.

The membrane rejects over 99% of

salts content, as well as virtually
FIGURE 3. Membrane technologies em100% of macromolecules with molecuploy crossflow, not conventional, filtration
lar weights above 100 Daltons. Figure
6 illustrates reverse osmosis, which
PRIMARY TREATMENT
typically separates materials less
Membrane technologies
than 0.001 m (10 angstroms) in size.
In membrane technologies, a semi- As with ultrafiltration, reverse osmopermeable membrane separates con- sis is used to remove dissolved matetaminants from the water by a process rials, but its primary application is in
known as crossflow filtration (also lowering the content of salts or minercalled tangential flow filtration). The als. Polymers used in RO (as well as in
bulk solution flows over, and parallel nanofiltration; see below) membranes
to, the filter surface, while, under pres- include cellulose acetate, cellulose trisure, a portion of the water is forced acetate, polyamide and thin-film comthrough the membrane to produce a posite types. These latter membranes
permeate stream. The turbulent flow of are typically composed of a thin film,
the feedwater over the membrane sur- fabricated by coating one of a number
face minimizes accumulation of par- of amide-type polymers onto a polysulticulate matter there, and facilitates fone layer.
continuous operation. Figure 3 further Nanofiltration (NF) can be considexplains crossflow membrane filtration ered loose reverse osmosis (RO). It
by contrasting it with conventional fil- rejects dissolved ionic contaminants
tration in conventional filtration, the but to a lesser degree than RO. NF
entire solution is pumped through the membranes reject multivalent salts
filter medium, whereas only a portion to a higher degree than monovalent
goes through in the crossflow filtration salts (for example, 98% rejection verprocess. Conventional filtration is es- sus 20%). These membranes have
sentially a batch process, while cross- MWCOs for macromolecules below
flow filtration is a continuous process.
500 Daltons. Nanofiltration is illusMicrofiltration (MF) involves the re- trated in Figure 7.
moval of insoluble contaminants ranging in size from 0.1 to 10 m (1,000 to Advanced oxidation methods
100,000 angstroms). Figure 4 depicts Advanced oxidation technologies
the mechanism of crossflow microfil- (AOTs) cover a number of primary
tration.
treatment technologies designed to reUltrafiltration (UF; Figure 5) re- move dissolved organic contaminants
moves materials in the 0.001-to-0.1- as well as microorganisms.
m range (10 to 1,000 angstroms).
In general, strong oxidants will
Ultrafiltration is employed to take break organic bonds, and since all miout dissolved nonionic contaminants croorganisms are organic, AOTs will
(macromolecules), typically organ- inactivate them. With sufficient oxidaics, whereas microfiltration is used tive power, it is theoretically possible
mainly to remove suspended solids. to break down all organic compounds
Removal properties of UF membranes into carbon dioxide, water and any adare usually expressed in terms of mo- ditional elements that may have been
lecular weight cutoff (MWCO), which present in the original compound (such
typically range from about 1,000 up as chlorine). AOTs include ultraviolet
to 50,000 Daltons. Typical micro- and irradiation, ozonation, and hydrogen
ultrafiltration membrane polymers peroxide addition.
include polysulfone, cellulosic acetate Ultraviolet irradiation is a technology that emits light energy at a
and polyamide types.

CHEMICAL ENGINEERING WWW.CHE.COM MARCH 2006

FIGURE 5. Ultrafiltration can hold back

suspended solids and macromolecules

FIGURE 6. Reverse osmosis retains

solids, macromolecules and salts

FIGURE 7. Nanofiltration works better

on multivalent salts than on monovalent

wavelength peaking at about 254

nanometers (nm). At that wavelength,
many microorganisms are inactivated,
including most bacteria, some viruses
and Cryptosporidium parvum, a pathogenic protozoan cyst. In addition to the
254 nm wavelength for microorganism inactivation, 185-nm is optimal
for breaking organic bonds; however,
approximately four times the power or
contact time is required for doing so.
Although relatively inexpensive to
purchase and operate, ultraviolet irradiation systems have the following
disadvantages:
Since the light travels in straight
lines, suspended solids or any other
obstruction will reduce this technologys effectiveness
The lamps can become coated with
suspended solids or organic deposits, which reduce the transmission
Over time, UV lamps lose their ability to generate sufficient energy and
must be replaced
Ozonation. Ozone is one the most
powerful oxidants available, second
only to fluorine. It is produced as a
result of an electrical discharge in
oxygen or air. Technically, ozone is an
allotrope of oxygen with the chemical formula O3. It will revert back to
oxygen in approximately 20 minutes
in ultrapure water. Ozone is the pungent odor prevalent in the air near
lightning strikes, and often noticeable
around copying machines where electrical discharges occur.
Although only slightly soluble in
water, dissolved ozone is extremely
effective in inactivating microorganisms; it also oxidizes certain water
contaminants such as iron, manganese and hydrogen sulfide, and it is
partially effective in breaking down
dissolved organic contaminants.
Ozone is not without its drawbacks.
It requires dry air, as discussed below;
because it is short-lived, it has to be
prepared onsite; and it requires very
inert materials of construction. Ozone
also reacts with bromine in water supplies to form bromate ions, suspected
carcinogens.

Ozone is produced, onsite, by two

methods: ultraviolet irradiation and
corona discharge. The first of these
methods employs 185-nm ultraviolet
energy reacting with dissolved oxygen
in the water. Whereas the concentration of ozone produced in this matter
is not sufficient for microorganism
inactivation, it can be used for oxidation of inorganic and organic contaminants. Corona discharge, the approach
more widely used (especially in large
installations), utilizes the creation of
a spark across a dielectric to produce
gaseous ozone from either air or oxygen. The gas is then introduced into
the water stream, either through the
use of a venturi or by means of a diffuser submerged in the water. This approach produces relatively high (typically 4%) concentrations of dissolved
ozone, sufficient to inactive microorganisms and accomplish the other
performance objectives of ozonation.
The primary disadvantage of the
corona discharge approach is that if
there is moisture in the air (dew point
greater than 40 C) nitric acid is
formed, which is difficult to eliminate
and will cause severe corrosion problems. This factor precludes the application of corona discharge ozonation
for small applications.
Treatment with hydrogen peroxide. The oxidizing capabilities of technologies such as ultraviolet irradiation and ozonation can be enhanced
(especially for organics destruction)
with the addition of hydrogen peroxide. Available as a liquid, hydrogen
peroxide is widely employed by itself
for the disinfection of ultrapure water
systems, such as those in the semiconductor and pharmaceutical industries.
It breaks down into oxygen and water,
and thus does not leave any other residuals in the system.

distillation is very effective in removing suspended solids and dissolved

salts, as well as most microorganisms.
Distillation also provides disinfection of the water. Its shortcomings include high-energy utilization and high
maintenance costs.
Electrodialysis. Electrodialysis is an
electrochemical membrane-separation
process in which ions (under d.c. voltage) are transferred through a pair
of ion-selective membranes, from a
water stream into a more concentrated
stream for discharge. Electrodialysis
removes only the ionic solutes.
Ion exchange (deionization). Deionization is a term casually given to
the use of ion exchange resins for the
removal of ionic contaminants. Cation
resins adsorb cationic contaminants
(positive charge) and exchange them
for hydrogen ions; anion exchange
resins adsorb anionic contaminants
(negative charge) and replace them
with hydroxyl ions. The hydrogen and
hydroxyl ions combine to form water;
hence the term, deionization. The
resins require regeneration with acid
and caustic solutions.
When anion and cation resins are
mixed together in a single bed, an arrangement known as mixed bed ion
exchange, they produce the highest
purity of water (from an ionic standpoint) commercially available. If the
water is run through individual tanks
each containing one kind of resin, this
known as two-bed ion exchange; it
produces a water quality comparable
from an ionic standoint to that of reverse osmosis. On the other hand, ion
exchange technology is not effective in
removing suspended solids, microorganisms or dissolved organics.
Electrodeionization (EDI). Electrodeionization, (or continuous deionization, CDI), is basically a combination
of electrodialysis and mixed-bed ion
exchange, wherein ion exchange resins are encapsulated between layers
of electrodialysis membranes. This
technology is capable of producing the
same quality of ionic purity as mixed
bed ion exchange resins. Its primary

Other primary technologies

Distillation. When distillation is employed for primary treatment, all the

nonvolatile contaminants are theoretically left behind. Figure 8 illustrates
a typical water distillation unit. During the production of ultrapure water,

CHEMICAL ENGINEERING WWW.CHE.COM MARCH 2006

53

Engineering Practice
advantages over the latter are that it
does not require regeneration.
Electrodeionization is a continuous
process. And it appears to be fairly
proficient at removing dissolved organics and microorganisms (although
it is not a cost-effective treatment option for either of those two contaminant categories if dissolved ionics are
not also present).
Thermal destruction. Organics in
water can also be broken down through
the application of a number of thermal
technologies, usually combining heat
with a catalyst. However, these technologies are site-specific and, because of
their high capital and operating costs,
are usually employed in the treatment
of heavily polluted liquids such as
those at U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) Superfund sites, rather
than in treating water supplies for use
within a process plant.
Bioremediation. This technology is
used almost exclusively for the reduction of BOD (Biochemical Oxygen Demand). It is primarily used for wastewater treatment, and only rarely for
treatment of incoming water. Bioremediation employs bacteria which
feed on the organics and break them
down during their normal metabolic
processes. For a recent review of related technology, see Biological Wastewater Treatment, Chem. Eng., October
2005, pp. 4451.
An interesting combination of old and
new technologies consists of membrane
bioreactors (MBR), the incorporation of
microfiltration or ultrafiltration with
bioremediation to continuously filter
the treated water to remove dissolved
macromolecules and/or suspended solids. As part of the bioremediation process, MBR is used almost exclusively
for wastewater treatment.

POSTTREATMENT
Polishing treatment

Polishing of water supplies is employed to remove trace contaminants

that may have entered the water supply during storage and distribution.
It is well understood that the higher
the water purity, the more aggressive
the water is. Although many of the common materials of construction are inert
to high purity water, ultrahigh-purity
water (characterized by, for instance,
54

FIGURE 8. While it may be a far cry

from a petroleum-refinery hydrocarbon splitter, this distillation vessel
is appropriate for primary treatment
during water purification

Microorganisms
that
affect
human health are known as pathogens. Immuno-compromised indi
viduals, such as the very old, the

very young, AIDS patients and

people undergoing certain kinds of

chemotherapy, may react adversely

to low concentrations of microorganisms that do not affect the nor

mal population. The point is that

virtually all water supplies into

which humans come into contact
Source: Water Quality Assn.
(including those supplies in process plants) must be disinfected.
18 megohm resistance) is so aggresBasically, three distinctive types of
sive that no matter what materials are treatment are used to disinfect water
used for its storage and distribution, supplies: chemical, radiation and methe water quality will eventually dete- chanical.
Chemical. In general, all chemical
riorate, and polishing is required.
In general, polishing technologies disinfectants today utilize oxidizing
are the same as (or very similar to) pri- agents. A strong reducing agent, formmary treatment technologies; however, aldehyde, is very effective and has
as they are required only to remove a been used in the past with excellent
relatively small quantity of contami- results; however, it is now prohibited
nants, polishing systems usually re- in most industrialized countries bequire less resins or fewer membrane cause the vapors have been found to
elements to return the water to its op- be hazardous to human health.
timal quality level. On the other hand,
Of the oxidizing chemicals, the
the distribution system may operate at halogens are most commonly used,
a much higher flowrate, particularly in with the exception of fluorine, which
the case of recirculation systems.
is much too dangerous and difficult to
One component of the polishing sys- handle. Chlorine is the most popular
tem may consist of point-of-use (POU) in the U.S., where chlorinated water
treatment: just prior to the actual use supplies have been prevalent for the
of the purified water as it leaves the last 100 years. The form of chlorine
distribution loop, it is treated with a most commonly used for municipal
submicron cartridge filter, ultrafiltra- drinking water treatment is gaseous
tion membrane, or another appropri- chlorine; for residential and other
small applications, chlorine is either
ate type of treatment technology.
delivered in the form of liquid sodium
Disinfection
hypochlorite or solid pellets of calcium
Disinfection, which is used in several hypochlorite. The chemical species of
types of chemical process plants, con- interest here is the hypochlorite ion,
sists of inactivating microorganisms which will inactivate almost all pathoor removing them from water supplies. genic microorganisms.
A particularly important feature of
Microorganisms that are commonly
found in water supplies include bacte- chlorination is that it persists (leaves
ria, viruses, protozoan cysts, algae and a residual) in the water supply to enfungi. Within these broad classes may sure long-term disinfection properties.
be hundreds of thousands of different On the other hand, chlorine reacts
species, each with its own response in with certain organic compounds in
the face of specific inactivation technol- the water (naturally occurring or othogies. Among these can be variations in erwise) to form a family of suspected
individual microorganisms suscepti- carcinogens known as trihalomethbility to high temperatures, particular anes. In the past 20 years or so, many
UV wavelength, oxidation potential, municipalities (but not many process
exposure time, and so on, as discussed plants) have included ammonia with
in more detail below.
chlorine in their disinfection process

Ci

CHEMICAL ENGINEERING WWW.CHE.COM MARCH 2006

HM_Da

in order to produce chloramines which

do not form trihalomethane byproducts. A disadvantage of this approach
is that chloramines are not as stable
as chlorine alone.
As stated earlier, ozone is the most
powerful oxidant available on a practical basis. Because of its outstanding
oxidation characteristics, it is an excellent disinfectant; and in spite of its
drawbacks cited earlier, it is the most
widely used municipal disinfectant in
Europe.
Radiation. As a disinfection technology, ultraviolet irradiation is perhaps
the most widely used technology for
non-municipal applications, including
chemical process plants. It has significant limitations, however, in terms
of efficacy when compared to ozone.
As with ozone, ultraviolet irradiation
leaves no residual.
Mechanical. It is possible to physically filter out microorganisms using
membrane technologies. In particular,

microfiltration with its sub-micron

pore sizes will readily remove the
protozoan cysts and the larger sized
bacteria, whereas, ultrafiltration is
generally effective with the rest of the
classes, depending upon its pore size.
A complication, however, is the fact
that because bacteria are viable, growing microorganisms, they will grow
through membranes. This is a controversial issue; however, it is widely accepted that when water remains stagnant on a membrane surface, bacteria
will, in just a matter of hours, have colonized on the permeate (downstream)
side. During the process of colonization, biofilm layers are formed, which
shield the bacteria beneath the layers
from disinfectants and cleaners. Biofilm also tends to collect suspended
solids and other fouling materials.
Another important consideration with
mechanical treatment is that the microorganisms are physically removed
but not inactivated.

SYSTEM DESIGN
REQUIREMENTS

Successful implementation of water

treatment technologies requires incorporating the right combination of
them into a total system that produces
the appropriate water quality with the
greatest reliability and at the lowest
possible capital and operating costs.
The most important initial parameters to consider are:
Feedwater quality
Treated-water quality requirements
Volume or flowrate requirements
As regards feedwater quality, a thorough water analysis is essential.
That analysis should include those
parameters which influence the
technology selection, such as suspended solids, dissolved organics,
microorganism concentration and
water temperature (the last-named
is particularly relevant with respect
to the use of membrane-based water
treatment). Feedwater quality most

INTERKAMA+
FACTORY AUTOMATION
INDUSTRIAL BUILDING AUTOMATION
ENERGY

GET NEW TECHNOLOGY FIRST

PIPELINE TECHNOLOGY
SUBCONTRACTING
DIGITAL FACTORY

Circle 27 on p. 72 or go to adlinks.che.com/5827-27

INDUSTRIAL FACILITY MANAGEMENT & SERVICES

MICROTECHNOLOGY
RESEARCH & TECHNOLOGY

SPECIAL HIGHLIGHTS IN 2006:

INDUSTRIAL AUTOMATION
INDUSTRIAL
AUTOMATION
WITH ROBOTICS
ROBOTICS WORLD
WITH
WORLD

HM_Dach_eng_200x140_ChemEngin_IC1 1

ENERGY
ENERGYWITH
WITH
WORLD
DIALOGUE
WORLDENERGY
ENERGY
DIALOGUE

w w w.hannovermesse.com
PARTNER
PARTNERCOUNTRY
COUNTRY
INDIA
INDIA

10.02.2006 17:04:18 Uhr

Engineering Practice
significantly affects the selection of
pretreatment technologies.
To determine the required treatedwater quality, on the other hand,
the engineer must have a complete
understanding of the effect of water
quality upon the intended use (for instance, product synthesis, or rinsing).
In many cases, guidance is available
from industry standards. Some of
these may be mandated, whereas others are simply recommended.
As for the total volume or flowrate,
the total daily volume requirement
generally determines the production
rate required for the primary treatment technologies. The instantaneous flow rate (gallons or liters per
minute) and duration (minutes) typically dictate the size of the distribution system (storage tank capacity
and pump flowrate).
There are a number of other factors that may influence treatment
system design, including physical

size limitations of the system hazardous waste considerations, and

the relevant regulations and the required permits.

Conclusions

There are a myriad of excellent technology choices to treat water for uses
in chemical processing facilities.
While far from an exhaustive review
of all the technology choices, this article has presented a number of the
technologies that are most relevant
for process plants, along with some
of the engineering considerations associated with total water-treatmentsystem design. It is incumbent on the
design engineer to be able to select the
technologies in the right combination
to produce the optimum results for
his or her particular requirements. Of
course, there are a number of skilled
and experienced consulting engineers
capable of providing help.
In closing, it is fitting to point out

that regardless of the plants purity

requirements for its process water,
the source of that water (prior to
treatment as outlined above) can
readily be wastewater from within
the same facility, or even from a
municipal sewage plant. This fact,
which often surprises the non-specialist, serves a testimonial to the effectiveness of the treatment schemes

outlined above.
Edited by Nicholas P. Chopey

Author
Peter Cartwright, P.E., formed Cartwright Consulting Co. (U.S. Office 8324 16th Ave. South,
Minneapolis, MN 55425-1742; Phone: 952-8544911. European Office President Kennedylaan
94, 2343 GT Oegstgeest, Netherlands; Phone:
31-71-5154417. Email: cartwrightconsul@cs.com),
in 1980. He specializes in both marketing and
technical consulting, in high-technology separation processes for water purification, wastewater
treatment, and food and chemical processing applications. A 2001 recipient of the Award of Merit
from the Water Quality Assn., he has written
dozens of articles and several book chapters, lectured around the world, and been awarded three
patents for water purification. He holds a 1961
bachelors degree in chemical engineering from
the University of Minnesota.

Circle 16 on p. 72 or go to adlinks.che.com/5827-16