WhatisReverseOsmosis?

ReverseOsmosisisatechnologythatisusedtoremovealarge
majorityofcontaminantsfromwaterbypushingthewaterunder
pressurethroughasemipermeablemembrane.

ThisarticleisaimedtowardsanaudiencethathaslittleornoexperiencewithReverseOsmosisandwillattempt
toexplainthebasicsinsimpletermsthatshouldleavethereaderwithabetteroverallunderstandingofReverse
Osmosistechnologyanditsapplications.

Thisarticlecoversthefollowingtopics:

UnderstandingReverseOsmosis

ReverseOsmosis,commonlyreferredtoasRO,isaprocesswhereyoudemineralizeordeionizewaterby
pushingitunderpressurethroughasemipermeableReverseOsmosisMembrane.

Osmosis

TounderstandthepurposeandprocessofReverseOsmosisyoumustfirstunderstandthenaturallyoccurring
processofOsmosis.

Osmosisisanaturallyoccurringphenomenonandoneofthemostimportantprocessesinnature.Itisa
processwhereaweakersalinesolutionwilltendtomigratetoastrongsalinesolution.Examplesofosmosisare
whenplantrootsabsorbwaterfromthesoilandourkidneysabsorbwaterfromourblood.

Belowisadiagramwhichshowshowosmosisworks.Asolutionthatislessconcentratedwillhaveanatural
tendencytomigratetoasolutionwithahigherconcentration.Forexample,ifyouhadacontainerfullofwater
withalowsaltconcentrationandanothercontainerfullofwaterwithahighsaltconcentrationandtheywere
separatedbyasemipermeablemembrane,thenthewaterwiththelowersaltconcentrationwouldbeginto
migratetowardsthewatercontainerwiththehighersaltconcentration.
Asemipermeablemembraneisamembranethatwillallowsomeatomsormoleculestopassbutnotothers.A
simpleexampleisascreendoor.Itallowsairmoleculestopassthroughbutnotpestsoranythinglargerthan
theholesinthescreendoor.AnotherexampleisGoretexclothingfabricthatcontainsanextremelythinplastic
filmintowhichbillionsofsmallporeshavebeencut.Theporesarebigenoughtoletwatervaporthrough,but
smallenoughtopreventliquidwaterfrompassing.

ReverseOsmosisistheprocessofOsmosisinreverse.WhereasOsmosisoccursnaturallywithoutenergy
required,toreversetheprocessofosmosisyouneedtoapplyenergytothemoresalinesolution.Areverse
osmosismembraneisasemipermeablemembranethatallowsthepassageofwatermoleculesbutnotthe
majorityofdissolvedsalts,organics,bacteriaandpyrogens.However,youneedto'push'thewaterthroughthe
reverseosmosismembranebyapplyingpressurethatisgreaterthanthenaturallyoccurringosmoticpressure
inordertodesalinate(demineralizeordeionize)waterintheprocess,allowingpurewaterthroughwhileholding
backamajorityofcontaminants.

BelowisadiagramoutliningtheprocessofReverseOsmosis.Whenpressureisappliedtotheconcentrated
solution,thewatermoleculesareforcedthroughthesemipermeablemembraneandthecontaminantsarenot
allowedthrough.


HowdoesReverseOsmosiswork?

ReverseOsmosisworksbyusingahighpressurepumptoincreasethepressureonthesaltsideoftheROand
forcethewateracrossthesemipermeableROmembrane,leavingalmostall(around95%to99%)ofdissolved
saltsbehindintherejectstream.Theamountofpressurerequireddependsonthesaltconcentrationofthe
feedwater.Themoreconcentratedthefeedwater,themorepressureisrequiredtoovercometheosmotic
pressure.

Thedesalinatedwaterthatisdemineralizedordeionized,iscalledpermeate(orproduct)water.Thewater
streamthatcarriestheconcentratedcontaminantsthatdidnotpassthroughtheROmembraneiscalledthe
reject(orconcentrate)stream.

AsthefeedwaterenterstheROmembraneunderpressure(enoughpressuretoovercomeosmoticpressure)
thewatermoleculespassthroughthesemipermeablemembraneandthesaltsandothercontaminantsarenot
allowedtopassandaredischargedthroughtherejectstream(alsoknownastheconcentrateorbrinestream),
whichgoestodrainorcanbefedbackintothefeedwatersupplyinsomecircumstancestoberecycledthrough
theROsystemtosavewater.ThewaterthatmakesitthroughtheROmembraneiscalledpermeateorproduct
waterandusuallyhasaround95%to99%ofthedissolvedsaltsremovedfromit.
ItisimportanttounderstandthatanROsystememployscrossfiltrationratherthanstandardfiltrationwherethe
contaminantsarecollectedwithinthefiltermedia.Withcrossfiltration,thesolutionpassesthroughthefilter,or
crossesthefilter,withtwooutlets:thefilteredwatergoesonewayandthecontaminatedwatergoesanother
way.Toavoidbuildupofcontaminants,crossflowfiltrationallowswatertosweepawaycontaminantbuildup
andalsoallowenoughturbulencetokeepthemembranesurfaceclean.

WhatwillReverseOsmosisremovefromwater?

ReverseOsmosisiscapableofremovingupto99%+ofthedissolvedsalts(ions),particles,colloids,organics,
bacteriaandpyrogensfromthefeedwater(althoughanROsystemshouldnotbereliedupontoremove100%
ofbacteriaandviruses).AnROmembranerejectscontaminantsbasedontheirsizeandcharge.Any
contaminantthathasamolecularweightgreaterthan200islikelyrejectedbyaproperlyrunningROsystem
(forcomparisonawatermoleculehasaMWof18).Likewise,thegreatertheionicchargeofthecontaminant,
themorelikelyitwillbeunabletopassthroughtheROmembrane.Forexample,asodiumionhasonlyone
charge(monovalent)andisnotrejectedbytheROmembraneaswellascalciumforexample,whichhastwo
charges.Likewise,thisiswhyanROsystemdoesnotremovegasessuchasCO2verywellbecausetheyare
nothighlyionized(charged)whileinsolutionandhaveaverylowmolecularweight.BecauseanROsystem
doesnotremovegases,thepermeatewatercanhaveaslightlylowerthannormalpHleveldependingonCO2
levelsinthefeedwaterastheCO2isconvertedtocarbonicacid.

ReverseOsmosisisveryeffectiveintreatingbrackish,surfaceandgroundwaterforbothlargeandsmallflows
applications.SomeexamplesofindustriesthatuseROwaterincludepharmaceutical,boilerfeedwater,food
andbeverage,metalfinishingandsemiconductormanufacturingtonameafew.

ReverseOsmosisPerformance&DesignCalculations

ThereareahandfulofcalculationsthatareusedtojudgetheperformanceofanROsystemandalsofordesign
considerations.AnROsystemhasinstrumentationthatdisplaysquality,flow,pressureandsometimesother
dataliketemperatureorhoursofoperation.InordertoaccuratelymeasuretheperformanceofanROsystem
youneedthefollowingoperationparametersataminimum:

1.Feedpressure
2.Permeatepressure
3.Concentratepressure
4.Feedconductivity
5.Permeateconductivity
6.Feedflow
7.Permeateflow
8.Temperature

SaltRejection%

ThisequationtellsyouhoweffectivetheROmembranesareremovingcontaminants.Itdoesnottellyouhow
eachindividualmembraneisperforming,butratherhowthesystemoverallonaverageisperforming.Awell
designedROsystemwithproperlyfunctioningROmembraneswillreject95%to99%ofmostfeedwater
contaminants(thatareofacertainsizeandcharge).YoucandetermineeffectivetheROmembranesare
removingcontaminantsbyusingthefollowingequation:

Thehigherthesaltrejection,thebetterthesystemisperforming.Alowsaltrejectioncanmeanthatthe
membranesrequirecleaningorreplacement.

SaltPassage%

Thisissimplytheinverseofsaltrejectiondescribedinthepreviousequation.Thisistheamountofsalts
expressedasapercentagethatarepassingthroughtheROsystem.Thelowerthesaltpassage,thebetterthe
systemisperforming.Ahighsaltpassagecanmeanthatthemembranesrequirecleaningorreplacement.

Recovery%

PercentRecoveryistheamountofwaterthatisbeing'recovered'asgoodpermeatewater.Anotherwayto
thinkofPercentRecoveryistheamountofwaterthatisnotsenttodrainasconcentrate,butrathercollectedas
permeateorproductwater.Thehighertherecovery%meansthatyouaresendinglesswatertodrainas
concentrateandsavingmorepermeatewater.However,iftherecovery%istoohighfortheROdesignthenit
canleadtolargerproblemsduetoscalingandfouling.The%RecoveryforanROsystemisestablishedwith
thehelpofdesignsoftwaretakingintoconsiderationnumerousfactorssuchasfeedwaterchemistryandRO
pretreatmentbeforetheROsystem.Therefore,theproper%RecoveryatwhichanROshouldoperateat
dependsonwhatitwasdesignedfor.Bycalculatingthe%Recoveryyoucanquicklydetermineifthesystemis
operatingoutsideoftheintendeddesign.Thecalculationfor%Recoveryisbelow:

Forexample,iftherecoveryrateis75%thenthismeansthatforevery100gallonsoffeedwaterthatenterthe
ROsystem,youarerecovering75gallonsasusablepermeatewaterand25gallonsaregoingtodrainas
concentrate.IndustrialROsystemstypicallyrunanywherefrom50%to85%recoverydependingthefeedwater
characteristicsandotherdesignconsiderations.

ConcentrationFactor

TheconcentrationfactorisrelatedtotheROsystemrecoveryandisanimportantequationforROsystem
design.Themorewateryourecoveraspermeate(thehigherthe%recovery),themoreconcentratedsaltsand
contaminantsyoucollectintheconcentratestream.Thiscanleadtohigherpotentialforscalingonthesurface
oftheROmembranewhentheconcentrationfactoristoohighforthesystemdesignandfeedwater
composition.

Theconceptisnodifferentthanthatofaboilerorcoolingtower.Theybothhavepurifiedwaterexitingthe
system(steam)andendupleavingaconcentratedsolutionbehind.Asthedegreeofconcentrationincreases,
thesolubilitylimitsmaybeexceededandprecipitateonthesurfaceoftheequipmentasscale.

Forexample,ifyourfeedflowis100gpmandyourpermeateflowis75gpm,thentherecoveryis(75/100)x
100=75%.Tofindtheconcentrationfactor,theformulawouldbe1(175%)=4.

Aconcentrationfactorof4meansthatthewatergoingtotheconcentratestreamwillbe4timesmore
concentratedthanthefeedwateris.Ifthefeedwaterinthisexamplewas500ppm,thentheconcentrate
streamwouldbe500x4=2,000ppm.

Flux

Forexample,youhavethefollowing:
TheROsystemisproducing75gallonsperminute(gpm)ofpermeate.Youhave3ROvesselsandeachvessel
holds6ROmembranes.Thereforeyouhaveatotalof3x6=18membranes.Thetypeofmembraneyouhave
intheROsystemisaDowFilmtecBW30365.ThistypeofROmembrane(orelement)has365squarefeetof
surfacearea.

Tofindtheflux(Gfd):
Thefluxis16Gfd.

Thismeansthat16gallonsofwaterispassedthrougheachsquarefootofeachROmembraneperday.This
numbercouldbegoodorbaddependingonthetypeoffeedwaterchemistryandsystemdesign.Belowisa
generalruleofthumbforfluxrangesfordifferentsourcewatersandcanbebetterdeterminedwiththehelpof
ROdesignsoftware.IfyouhadusedDowFilmtecLE440iROmembranesintheaboveexample,thentheflux
wouldhavebeen14.Soitisimportanttofactorinwhattypeofmembraneisusedandtotryandkeepthetype
ofmembraneconsistentthroughoutthesystem.

FeedWaterSource Gfd

SewageEffluent 510

SeaWater 812

BrackishSurfaceWater 1014

BrackishWellWater 1418

ROPermeateWater 2030

MassBalance

AMassBalanceequationisusedtohelpdetermineifyourflowandqualityinstrumentationisreadingproperly
orrequirescalibration.Ifyourinstrumentationisnotreadingcorrectly,thentheperformancedatatrendingthat
youarecollectingisuseless.

YouwillneedtocollectthefollowingdatafromanROsystemtoperformaMassBalancecalculation:

1.FeedFlow(gpm)
2.PermeateFlow(gpm)
3.ConcentrateFlow(gpm)
4.FeedConductivity(S)
5.PermeateConductivity(S)
6.ConcentrateConductivity(S)

Themassbalanceequationis:

(Feedflow1xFeedConductivity)=(PermeateFlowxPermeateConductivity)
+(ConcentrateFlow*ConcentrateConductivity)
1FeedFlowequalsPermeateFlow+ConcentrateFlow

Forexample,ifyoucollectedthefollowingdatafromanROsystem:
PermeateFlow5gpmConcentrateConductivity1200S
ThentheMassBalanceEquationwouldbe:

(7x500)=(5x10)+(2*1200)

3,5002,450

Thenfindthedifference

(Difference/Sum)100

((3,5002,450)/(3,500+2,450))*100

=18%

Adifferenceof+/5%isok.Adifferenceof+/5%to10%isgenerallyadequate.Adifferenceof>+/10%is
unacceptableandcalibrationoftheROinstrumentationisrequiredtoensurethatyouarecollectingusefuldata.
Intheexampleabove,theROmassbalanceequationfallsoutofrangeandrequiresattention.

UnderstandingthedifferencebetweenpassesandstagesinaReverseOsmosis(RO)
system

ThetermstageandpassareoftenmistakenforthesamethinginanROsystemandcanbeconfusing
termonologyforanROoperator.Itisimportanttounderstandthediffferncebetweena1and2stageROanda
1and2passRO.

Differencebetweena1and2stageROSystem

InaonestageROsystem,thefeedwaterenterstheROsystemasonestreamandexitstheROaseither
concentrateorpermeatewater.

Inatwostagesystemtheconcentrate(orreject)fromthefirststagethenbecomesthefeedwatertothe
secondstage.Thepermeatewateriscollectedfromthefirststageiscombinedwithpermeatewaterfromthe
secondstage.Additionalstagesincreasetherecoveryfromthesystem.


Array

InaReverseOsmosisSystemanarraydescribesthephysicalarrangementofthepressurevesselsina2stage
system.PressurevesselscontainROmembranes(usuallyfrom1to6ROmembranesareinapressure
vessel).EachstagecanhaveacertainamountofpressurevesselswithROmembranes.Therejectofeach
stagethenbecomesthefeedstreamforthenextsuccessivestage.The2stageROsystemdisplayedonthe
previouspageisa2:1arraywhichmeansthattheconcentrate(orreject)ofthefirst2ROvesselsisfedtothe
next1vessel.

ROSystemwithConcentrateRecycle

WithanROsystemthatcan'tbeproperlystagedandthefeedwaterchemistryallowsforit,aconcentrate
recyclesetupcanbeutilizedwhereaportionoftheconcentratestreamisfedbacktothefeedwatertothefirst
stagetohelpincreasethesystemrecovery.


SinglePassROvsDoublePassRO

ThinkofapassasastandaloneROsystem.Withthisinmind,thedifferencebetweenasinglepassROsystem
andadoublepassROsystemisthatwithadoublepassRO,thepermeatefromthefirstpassbecomesthe
feedwatertothesecondpass(orsecondRO)whichendsupproducingamuchhigherqualitypermeate
becauseithasessentiallygonethroughtwoROsystems.

Besidesproducingamuchhigherqualitypermeate,adoublepasssystemalsoallowstheopportunityto
removecarbondioxidegasfromthepermeatebyinjectingcausticbetweenthefirstandsecondpass.C02is
undesirablewhenyouhavemixedbedionexchangeresinbedsaftertheRO.Byaddingcausticafterthefirst
pass,youincreasethepHofthefirstpasspermeatewaterandconvertC02tobicarbonate(HCO3)and
carbonate(CO32)forbetterrejectionbytheROmembranesinthesecondpass.Thiscan'tbedonewitha
singlepassRObecauseinjectingcausticandformingcarbonate(CO32)inthepresenceofcationssuchas
calciumwillcausescalingoftheROmembranes.


ROPretreatment

ProperpretreatmentusingbothmechanicalandchemicaltreatmentsiscriticalforanROsystemtoprevent
fouling,scalingandcostlyprematureROmembranefailureandfrequentcleaningrequirements.Belowisa
summaryofcommonproblemsanROsystemexperiencesduetolackofproperpretreatment.

Fouling

Foulingoccurswhencontaminantsaccumulateonthemembranesurfaceeffectivelypluggingthemembrane.
Therearemanycontaminantsinmunicipalfeedwaterthatarenakedtothehumaneyeandharmlessfor
humanconsumption,butlargeenoughtoquicklyfoul(orplug)anROsystem.Foulingtypicallyoccursinthe
frontendofanROsystemandresultsinahigherpressuredropacrosstheROsystemandalowerpermeate
flow.ThistranslatesintohigheroperatingcostsandeventuallytheneedtocleanorreplacetheRO
membranes.FoulingwilltakeplaceeventuallytosomeextentgiventheextremelyfineporesizeofanRO
membranenomatterhoweffectiveyourpretreatmentandcleaningscheduleis.However,byhavingproper
pretreatmentinplace,youwillminimizetheneedtoaddressfoulingrelatedproblemsonaregularbasis.

Foulingcanbecausedbythefollowing:
1.Particulateorcolloidalmater(dirt,silt,clay,etc.)
2.Organics(humic/fulvicacids,etc)
3.Microorganisms(bacteria,etc).BacteriapresentoneofthemostcommonfoulingproblemssinceRO
membranesinusetodaycannottolerateadisinfectantsuchaschlorineandtheforemicroorganismsare
oftenabletothriveandmultiplyonthemembranesurface.Theymayproductbiofilmsthatcoverthe
membranesurfaceandresultinheavyfouling.
4.BreakthroughoffiltermediaupstreamoftheROunit.GACcarbonbedsandsoftenerbedsmaydevelopan
underdrainleakandifthereisnotadequatepostfiltrationinplacethemediacanfoultheROsystem.

Byperforminganalyticaltests,youcandetermineifthefeedwatertoyourROhasahighpotentialforfouling.
TopreventfoulingofanROsystem,mechanicalfiltrationmethodsareused.Themostpopularmethodsto
preventfoulingaretheuseofmultimediafilters(MMF)ormicrofiltration(MF).Insomecasescartridgefiltration
willsuffice.

Scaling

Ascertaindissolved(inorganic)compoundsbecomemoreconcentrated(rememberdiscussionon
concentrationfactor)thenscalingcanoccurifthesecompoundsexceedtheirsolubilitylimitsandprecipitateon
themembranesurfaceasscale.Theresultsofscalingareahigherpressuredropacrossthesystem,higher
saltpassage(lesssaltrejection),lowpermeateflowandlowerpermeatewaterquality.Anexampleofa
commonscalethattendstoformonanROmembraneiscalciumcarbonate(CaCO3).

ChemicalAttack

Modernthinfilmcompositemembranesarenottoleranttochlorineorchloramines.Oxidizerssuchaschlorine
will'burn'holesinthemembraneporesandcancauseirreparabledamage.Theresultofchemicalattackonan
ROmembraneisahigherpermeateflowandahighersaltpassage(poorerqualitypermeatewater).Thisis
whymicroorganismgrowthonROmembranestendstofoulROmembranessoeasilysincethereisnobiocide
topreventitsgrowth.

MechanicalDamage

PartofthepretreatmentschemeshouldbepreandpostROsystemplumbingandcontrols.If'hardstarts'occur
mechanicaldamagetothemembranescanoccur.Likewise,ifthereistoomuchbackpressureontheRO
systemthenmechanicaldamagetotheROmembranescanalsooccur.Thesecanbeaddressedbyusing
variablefrequencydrivemotorstostarthighpressurepumpsforROsystemsandbyinstallingcheckvalve(s)
and/orpressurereliefvalvestopreventexcessivebackpressureontheROunitthatcancausepermanent
membranedamage.


PretreatmentSolutions

BelowaresomepretreatmentsolutionsforROsystemsthatcanhelpminimizefouling,scalingandchemical
attack.

MultiMediaFiltration(MMF)

AMultiMediaFilterisusedtohelppreventfoulingofanROsystem.AMultiMediaFiltertypicallycontainsthree
layersofmediaconsistingofanthracitecoal,sandandgarnet,withasupportinglayerofgravelatthebottom.
Thesearethemediasofchoicebecauseofthedifferencesinsizeanddensity.Thelarger(butlighter)
anthracitecoalwillbeontopandtheheavier(butsmaller)garnetwillremainonthebottom.Thefiltermedia
arrangementallowsthelargestdirtparticlestoberemovednearthetopofthemediabedwiththesmallerdirt
particlesbeingretaineddeeperanddeeperinthemedia.Thisallowstheentirebedtoactasafilterallowing
muchlongerfilterruntimesbetweenbackwashandmoreefficientparticulateremoval.

AwelloperatedMultiMediaFiltercanremoveparticulatesdownto1520microns.AMultiMediaFilterthat
usesacoagulantaddition(whichinducestinyparticlestojointogethertoformparticleslargeenoughtobe
filtered)canremoveparticulatesdownto510microns.Toputthisinperspective,thewidthofahumanhairis
around50microns.

AmultimediafilterissuggestedwhentheSiltDensityIndex(SDI)valueisgreaterthan3orwhentheturbidityis
greaterthan0.2NTU.Thereisnoexactrule,buttheaboveguidelinesshouldbefollowedtopreventpremature
foulingofROmembranes.

Itisimportanttohavea5microncartridgefilterplaceddirectlyaftertheMMFunitintheeventthattheunder
drainsoftheMMFfail.ThiswillpreventtheMMFmediafromdamagingdownstreampumpsandfoulingtheRO
system.

Microfiltration(MF)

Microfiltration(MF)iseffectiveinremovingcolloidalandbacteriamatterandhasaporesizeofonly0.110m.
MicrofiltrationishelpfulinreducingthefoulingpotentialforanROunit.Membraneconfigurationcanvary
betweenmanufacturers,butthe"hollowfiber"typeisthemostcommonlyused.Typically,thewaterispumped
fromtheoutsideofthefibers,andthecleanwateriscollectedfromtheinsideofthefibers.Microfiltration
membranesusedinpotablewaterapplicationsusuallyoperatein"deadend"flow.Indeadendflow,allofthe
waterfedtothemembraneisfilteredthroughthemembrane.Afiltercakethatmustbeperiodicallybackwashed
fromthemembranesurfaceforms.Recoveryratesarenormallygreaterthan90percentonfeedwatersources
whichhavefairlyhighqualityandlowturbidityfeeds.

AntiscalantsandScaleInhibitors

Antiscalantsandscaleinhibitors,astheirnamesuggests,arechemicalsthatcanbeaddedtofeedwaterbefore
anROunittohelpreducethescalingpotentialofthefeedwater.Antiscalantsandscaleinhibitorsincreasethe
solubilitylimitsoftroublesomeinorganiccompounds.Byincreasingthesolubilitylimits,youareableto
concentratethesaltsfurtherthanotherwisewouldbepossibleandthereforeachieveahigherrecoveryrateand
runatahigherconcentrationfactor.Antiscalantsandscaleinhibitorsworkbyinterferingwithscaleformation
andcrystalgrowth.Thechoiceofantiscalantorscaleinhibitortouseandthecorrectdosagedependsonthe
feedwaterchemistryandROsystemdesign.

Softeningbyionexchange

AwatersoftenercanbeusedtohelppreventscalinginanROsystembyexchangingscaleformingionswith
nonscaleformingions.AswithaMMFunit,itisimportanttohavea5microncartridgefilterplaceddirectlyafter
thewatersoftenerintheeventthattheunderdrainsofthesoftenerfail.

SodiumBisulfite(SBS)injection

Byaddingsodiumbisulfite(SBSorSMBS),whichisareducer,tothewaterstreambeforeanROattheproper
doseyoucanremoveresidualchlorine.

GranularActivatedCarbon(GAC)

GACisusedforbothremovingorganicconstituentsandresidualdisinfectants(suchaschlorineand
chloramines)fromwater.GACmediaismadefromcoal,nutshellsorwood.Activatedcarbonremovesresidual
chlorineandchloraminesbyachemicalreactionthatinvolvesatransferofelectronsfromthesurfaceofthe
GACtotheresidualchlorineorchloramines.Thechlorineorchloraminesendsupasachlorideionthatisno
longeranoxidizer.

ThedisadvantageofusingaGACbeforetheROunitisthattheGACwillremovechlorinequicklyattheverytop
oftheGACbed.ThiswillleavetheremainderoftheGACbedwithoutanybiocidetokillmicroorganisms.AGAC
bedwillabsorborganicsthroughoutthebed,whichispotentialfoodforbacteria,soeventuallyaGACbedcan
becomeabreedinggroundforbacteriagrowthwhichcanpasseasilytotheROmembranes.Likewise,aGAC
bedcanproduceverysmallcarbonfinesundersomecircumstancesthathavethepotentialtofoulanRO.

RODataTrendingandNormalization

TheROmembranesaretheheartoftheROsystemandcertaindatapointsneedtobecollectedtodetermine
thehealthoftheROmembranes.Thesedatapointsincludethesystempressures,flows,qualityand
temperature.Watertemperatureisdirectlyproportionaltopressure.Asthewatertemperaturedecreasesit
becomesmoreviscousandtheROpermeateflowwilldropasitrequiresmorepressuretopushthewater
throughthemembrane.Likewise,whenthewatertemperatureincreasestheROpermeateflowwillincrease.
Asaresult,performancedataforanROsystemmustbenormalizedsothatflowvariationsarenotinterpreted
asabnormalwhennoproblemexists.Thenormalizedflows,pressuresandsaltrejectionshouldbecalculated,
graphedandcomparedtothebaselinedata(whentheROwascommissionedorafterthemembraneswere
cleanedorreplaced)tohelptroubleshootanyproblemsandalsodeterminewhentocleanorinspectthe
membranesfordamage.DatanormalizationhelpsdisplaythetrueperformanceoftheROmembranes.Asa
generalruleofthumb,whenthenormalizedchangeis+/15%fromthebaselinedatathenyouneedtotake
action.Ifyoudon'tfollowthisrulethenROmembranecleaningsmaynotbeveryeffectiveatbriningthe
membranesbacktonearnewperformance.

ROMembraneCleaning

ROmembraneswillinevitablyrequireperiodiccleaning,anywherefrom1to4timesayeardependingonthe
feedwaterquality.Asageneralrule,ifthenormalizedpressuredroporthenormalizedsaltpassagehas
increasedby15%,thenitistimetocleantheROmembranes.Ifthenormalizedpermeateflowhasdecreased
by15%thenitisalsotimetocleantheROmembranes.YoucaneithercleantheROmembranesinplaceor
havethemremovedfromtheROsystemandcleanedoffsitebyaservicecompanythatspecializesinthis
service.Ithasbeenproventhatoffsitemembranecleaningismoreeffectiveatprovidingabettercleaningthan
onsitecleaningskids.

ROmembranecleaninginvolveslowandhighpHcleanerstoremovecontaminantsfromthemembrane.
ScalingisaddressedwithlowpHcleanersandorganics,colloidalandbiofoulingaretreatedwithahighpH
cleaner.CleaningROmembranesisnotonlyaboutusingtheappropriatechemicals.Therearemanyother
factorsinvolvedsuchasflows,watertemperatureandquality,properlydesignedandsizedcleaningskidsand
manyotherfactorsthatanexperiencedservicegroupmustaddressinordertoproperlycleanROmembranes.

Summary

ReverseOsmosisisaneffectiveandproventechnologytoproducewaterthatissuitableformanyindustrial
applicationsthatrequiredemineralizedordeionizedwater.FurtherposttreatmentaftertheROsystemsuchas
mixedbeddeionizationcanincreasethequalityoftheROpermeateandmakeitsuitableforthemost
demandingapplications.ProperpretreatmentandmonitoringofanROsystemiscrucialtopreventingcostly
repairsandunscheduledmaintenance.Withthecorrectsystemdesign,maintenanceprogram,and
experiencedservicesupport,yourROsystemshouldprovidemanyyearsofhighpuritywater.