Desalination (a Filtration + Separation publication) Volume 4 Issue 1Desalination news2

UAE projects for CH2M HILLCH2M HILL has delivered design, construction, and commissioning services to the Sharjah Electricity and Water Authority for two seawater reverse osmosis (SWRO) desalination plants in the United Arab Emirates: the Layyah SWRO desalination plant located about 15 km northeast of Dubai; and the Khor Fakkan SWRO plant, located on on the east coast of the UAE, facing the Arabian Sea. A third plant, the Kalba SWRO desalination plant located near the Khor plant, is currently under construction and is expected to be on-line by mid-2009.

The three new desalination plants will provide more than 60,000 m3 per day of high-quality desalinated water to the people of Sharjah. The Layyah and Khor Fakkan sites use dual-stage media filters for treatment of the raw seawater prior to reaching the high-pressure SWRO system.

The Layyah site incorporates a dissolved air floatation system before the media filters for enhanced removal of particulates and better protection against accidental oil spills and seasonal algae blooms. Instead of conventional media filters, the Kalba desalination plant will use high-performance ultrafiltration membranes specifically designed for SWRO pretreatment applications.

“The Emirate of Sharjah needs additional water supplies,” said Felix Wang, commissioning manager and process engineer, CH2M HILL. “Salty water comes from the taps in some areas, such as Khor Fakkan. The new desalination plants will serve a critical need in the existing distribution network.”

www.ch2m.com

Camel riding next to the Mediterranean – two SWRO desalination projects will benefit

from ERI’s energy-saving products.

ERI secures two large-scale Algerian desalination projectsEnergy Recovery, Inc (ERI) has been awarded two large-scale energy recovery contracts for seawater reverse osmosis (SWRO) desalination plants in Algeria.

The first, the Souk Tleta SWRO desalination plant, located in Tlemcen in Northwestern Algeria, will have a total capacity of 200,000 m3/day and is slated to begin operation in the first half of 2010.

This plant, built by Hyflux, will provide desalinated seawater to the Algerian Energy Company (AEC), the state-owned national water entity of Algeria. Under the contract, ERI will supply the plant with 260 PX-220 energy recovery devices that will save an estimated 21 MW of energy.

The second plant, the Fouka SWRO desalination plant located in Tipasa near the city of El Jazair, is designed to produce 120,000 m3/day. It is being developed by Acciona Agua of Spain and SNC Lavalin International of Canada and is scheduled to begin operation in early 2010. ERI will

supply 138 ERI PX-220 energy recovery devices to the project, which are expected to save nearly 13 MW of energy or over 113,000 MWh per year.

In total, ERI says that it is helping to produce over 1.5 million m3/day of drinking water for the Algerian region alone, saving an estimated 440 MW of energy on an ongoing basis.

“This contract award, along with Tlemcen Souk Tleta, consolidate ERI as the preferred supplier of energy recovery devices in the Mediterranean basin,” said Borja Blanco, ERI’s GM and VP, mega projects division. “Eight major desalination projects have been awarded by different contractors in Algeria so far, and all of them with ERI PX technology.”

www.energyrecovery.com

US$15 million investment for nanotechnology

NanoH2O’s nanocomposite technology

can decrease energy requirements.

NanoH2O Inc, a developer of next generation reverse osmosis membranes for desalination

and water reuse, has secured US$15 million in funding to commercialise the company’s ThinFilm Nanocomposite (TFN) seawater reverse osmosis membrane technology.

“NanoH2O is leveraging nanotechnology to pioneer better performing membranes for desalination and wastewater reuse,” said Jeff Green, founder and CEO of NanoH2O. “This round of funding allows us to quickly take our next generation technology to market and ultimately make desalinated water more affordable and readily available.”

The TFN technology improves membrane permeability,

maintaining requisite salt and contaminant rejection and increasing fouling resistance, thus helping decrease energy requirements and increase productivity, the company says. It can achieve a 100% increase in membrane permeability when compared to existing seawater reverse osmosis membranes coupled with enhanced fouling resistance.

The investors are Oak Investment Partners and Khosla Ventures. Brian Hinman from the former company has joined NanoH2O’s board of directors.

www.nanoh2o.com