Development of a full-cycle water remediation process

Abstract

Abstract A full-cycle water remediation process has been developed by expanding the capacity of an existing water treatment technology that uses combined ozonation and ultrafiltration membrane processes. The developed water reclamation process treated the effluent of a full-scale wastewater treatment plant in Canada that uses biological treatment processes to treat municipal wastewater, and reduced the colour, turbidity, suspended solids, iron and pathogen content of the effluent. The removal of hardness from the wastewater effluent was accomplished by the precipitation process. The use of lime (0.2 g/L) in the presence of NaOH operating at pH 11 showed the best results, reducing the water hardness by 89.1%. The advanced treatment capability of ozonation (8–10% w/w) and polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) hollow fiber ultrafiltration (UF) membrane produced a reliable source of water for municipal, industrial and agricultural use. The developed process offers important environmental benefits by reducing the diversion of water from sensitive ecosystems, decreasing wastewater discharge and preventing pollution.