Purification Plant Research Articles

Energy saving analysis for pump-motor set in water purification plant using variable speed drive.

The induction motor is known to be the most reliable motor in the industry and is also the most energy-consuming load worldwide. It is noticeable in some production areas that the use of a high-capacity induction motor is not required at some operating times, and therefore it is important to control the speed of the induction motor to suit the operating requirements and obtain highly efficient performance. This paper presents a case study of a drinking water purification plant that uses a variable speed drive (VSD) as a speed controller for one of its induction motors to drive the pump. The VSD is connected to the motor in question to regulate its speed and maintain the external pressure of the station at an appropriate value that ensures water delivery to all branches of the network. 24-hour power consumption measurements of the respective engine with and without the use of a VSD are studied and analyzed to determine the potential for energy savings. Finally, a case study simulation is presented to compare the simulation results with the actual results.

Эффект интенсивного окисления сероводорода дымовых газов содорегенерационного котла при производстве целлюлозы

Despite the transition to the Swedish technology for regenerating black liquor from pulp production plants, even in those regions of Russia where the standard daily average levels of hydrogen sulfide and methyl mercaptan in the air of populated areas have been achieved, a number of problems remain with emissions of reduced sulfur. In many cities, onetime concentrations of reduced sulfur, especially at night, may exceed the permissible ones. In addition to flue gas emissions from soda recovery boilers, there are other, less intensive sources of harmful emissions in the cooking, evaporation and wood-chemical workshops, in the causticization and lime regeneration workshops, there are emissions from unorganized sources and from the open surface of wastewater treatment facilities. The population living near such plants feels the unpleasant odor of methyl mercaptan. This study has aimed to develop a new technology for reducing gas emissions of reduced sulfur into the environment, applicaple for different sources. The results of testing an industrial installation for purification of gas emissions from a soda recovery boiler in a scrubber with nozzle irrigation have been presented. Based on the measurements of the technological parameters of the operation mode of the gas purification plant and the determination of the composition of the irrigation solution, the analysis of the results obtained has been performed. During the tests, a high degree of hydrogen sulfide capture at a low pH value has been achieved. It has been established that hydrogen sulfide has been captured as a result of its oxidation before entering the irrigation solution in fine droplets of condensate formed on micron-sized particles of sulfate and sodium carbonate. The results of this study have been compared with the results of the studies conducted by Stanford University and the P.P. Shirshov Institute of Oceanology of the Russian Academy of Sciences. The possibility of hydrogen peroxide formation under our test conditions in the surface layer of fine droplets formed during the condensation of water vapour on dust particles has been analyzed. The suposed cause of the obtained effect has been determined to be the thermomechanical deformation of the surface layer of the droplets.

Enhanced efficiency of water purification plant by combined riverbank filtration

Water shortages occur due to several factors, with drought being one of the biggest drivers. Another major environmental issue related to the contamination of freshwater systems worldwide is thousands of micropollutants, although they generally occur at low concentration levels. The provision of safe drinking water to the population in rural developing nations remains a problem, in particular when surface water and shallow wells or non-watertight headworks wells serve as sources of drinking water. Dramatically changing raw water qualities, floods and high rainfall events anthropogenic pollution, lack of electricity supply in developing regions demand new and adapted solutions for treatment and rendering water safe for distribution. Our study aimes to find another source of water supply using riverbank filtration (RBF). The RBF is a water treatment method that removes water from rivers by pumping wells into a nearby alluvial aquifer. Several physical, chemical, and biological processes that occur underground improve the quality of surface water and eliminate the need for traditional potable water treatment. Additional treatment techniques in this process include biological degradation, sorption, and filtration. Physical, chemical, and microbiological variables were used to assess the effectiveness of the RBF system in Upper Egypt. Our study proposes a workable water treatment strategy that replaces RBF treatment or pretreatment technique for high-quality Nile water to eliminate or reduce surface water pollutants without the use of chlorine.

Направления совершенствования сероочистки, осушки и переработки природного газа

The results of the work of the staff of the Department of “Chemical Technology of Oil and Gas Refining” of Astrakhan State Technical University in the field of separation of three-phase reservoir mixture, increasing the efficiency of desulfurization, improving the process of drying gas and the production of continuous hydrocarbons – raw materials for petrochemistry. The influence of the quality of raw materials entering processing on the formation of deposits in technological equipment has been studied. Reconstruction of the inlet and three-phase separators of high-pressure reservoir mixture separation plants by installing a vibration damper and a depulsor on the reservoir mixture supply line to the installation, as well as reconstruction of the input of raw materials into the separator of the installation. The use of the KPG-200 defoamer and the KPG-200 AV antifoamer made it possible to reduce the consumption rate of defoaming reagents several times in gas purification plants from acidic components. The influence of various impurities on the foaming of working amine solutions (mechanical impurities, coal dust, products of thermal destruction of amine, thermostable salts, corrosion inhibitors) has been determined. It was revealed that the products of thermal degradation of amine have the greatest effect at concentrations above 3% by weight. A method for reducing the content of mechanical impurities in a solution of diethanolamine in a constant magnetic field has been developed and introduced into an industrial desulfurization plant. The filtration efficiency increases 2.6 times, the foam height is halved, and the foam stability is quadrupled. At the same time, the activity of the defoamer increases by 1.7 times. The mathematical dependence of the height of the protective layer of aluminum oxide in an adsorber with zeolite on impurities of diethanolamine has been experimentally found. The effectiveness of the developed improved distribution ring device is shown, the use of which makes it possible to practically eliminate dead zones in the zeolite layer and thereby increase the efficiency of the adsorption process and increase the inter-regeneration period on the drying unit. Studies of the catalytic pyrolysis of the butane fraction using CVM-type pentasils modified with the introduction of chromium can reduce the process temperature compared with the thermal decomposition of raw materials by more than one hundred degrees 100 °C.

Lutetium-177 Therapy in Italy: Environmental Impact Assessment in Anticipation of Its Widespread Use in Prostate Cancer Treatment.

This article addresses the evolving state of lutetium-177 radiopharmaceutical therapies in Italy, focusing on the importance of the definition of patient management practices regarding the approved treatments based on [177Lu]Lu-DOTATATE for neuroendocrine tumors and [177Lu]Lu-PSMA-617 for metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer. Italian medical facilities are facing new challenges with the increase in the demand for such therapies while transitioning from restrictive hospitalization requirements to more flexible outpatient options. Therefore, four management strategies are described here, varying from immediate discharge after the administration to 24-h hospitalization, and their environmental and radiation safety implications are evaluated through simple models aimed at assessing the effective doses on the local population and wastewater purification plant workers. Results show that, while higher effective doses may be caused by an immediate discharge-based modality, they remain within acceptable limits, particularly when dealing with a smaller number of patients. Prolonged hospitalizations guarantee superior radiation safety levels but might not be sustainable with the expected increase in patient volumes in the future.

Distillation and gas stripping purification plants for the JUNO liquid scintillator

The optical and radiochemical purification of the scintillating liquid which will fill the detector of the JUNO experiment plays a crucial role in achieving its scientific goals. Given its gigantic mass and dimensions, and an unprecedented target value of about 3% at 1MeV in energy resolution, JUNO has set severe requirements on the parameters of its scintillator, such as attenuation length (Lat>20m at 430nm), light yield, and content of radioactive contaminants (238U,232Th<10-15g/g). To accomplish these needs, the scintillator will be processed using several purification methods, including distillation under vacuum and gas stripping, carried out in two large-scale plants installed at the JUNO site.In this paper, the layout, operating principles, and technical aspects which have driven the design and construction of the distillation and gas stripping plants are reviewed. The distillation is effective in enhancing the optical properties and removing high-boiling radioactive impurities (238U, 232Th, 40K), while the stripping process exploits pure water steam and high-purity nitrogen to extract gaseous contaminants (222Rn, 39Ar, 85Kr, O2) from the scintillator. The plant operating parameters have been tuned during the recent commissioning phase at the JUNO site and several quality control measurements and tests have been performed to evaluate the performances of the plants. Preliminary results on the efficiency of these purification processes will be shown.

Machine learning regression-based prediction model for the autonomous control of coagulant dosing in smart water purification plants

ABSTRACT The global issue of water scarcity is escalating due to urbanization and increased demand. This paper proposes a machine learning (ML) regression-based model for automatic coagulant dosing control in smart water purification plants (SWPPs).1 The model uses random forest (RF), light gradient boosting machine (LGBM), extreme gradient boosting (XGB), and k-nearest neighbors (KNN) algorithms. Performance metrics include MAE, MSE, RMSE, MAPE, and R2. The RF algorithm showed superior performance, with MAE of 0.005, MSE of 0.002, RMSE of 0.05, and MAPE of 0.000 for anion-poly aluminum chloride dosing, and MAE of 0.007, MSE of 0.00, RMSE of 0.02, and MAPE of 0.000 for Polymax dosing. The RF model's performance is due to its robust handling of large datasets and ensemble learning approach. Limitations include testing only two coagulants and reliance on historical data. These findings suggest integrating advanced water management, energy systems, and facility management to make SWPPs feasible and efficient, establishing a foundation for future applications of ML in chemical processes.

An analytical study of TEG loss in a natural gas purification plant based on high-pressure droplet angular scattering

In the process of purifying natural gas, natural gas dehydration plants use triethylene glycol (TEG) as a solvent for absorption. However, the loss of TEGs in the form of droplets can pollute pipelines and create a technological challenge. Using the geometric optical approximation (GOA) method, a model was developed to predict the scattering of droplets at high pressure. Based on this model, a device was designed and constructed to inspect droplets in external pipelines and distillation column tailgate lines online, which are the outlets of the natural gas dehydration unit (TEG absorber tower) of four columns in stable production. This device analyzes the components of the sampled droplets and performs online inspection to ensure smooth and safe operation. The results of the experiment indicate that the TEG content in the droplet samples exceeded 80%, which helped identify the source of the loss. The amount of treatment directly affected the concentration and distribution features of the entrained droplets, whereas the impact of the gas-phase pressure change was negligible. This study investigated three different forms of filtration separation, which provided industrial data for the separation and recovery process of entrained droplets. This study provides a new testing tool and method to examine plate towers under high pressure and provides a theoretical reference for dewatering procedures in natural gas purification plants.

Cyclone-coalescence separation technology for enhanced droplet removal in natural gas purification process

Natural gas is increasingly recognized as a clean energy source due to its high quality, low pollution levels, and abundant availability. However, certain gas fields contain complex components that require purification for efficient transportation and utilization. Addressing these issues involves efficient gas–liquid separation technology. Existing gas–liquid separation units face challenges such as efficiency, liquid entrainment, energy consumption, and the need for consumable replacement. This study focuses on a novel cyclone-coalescence separator that combines centrifugal and coalescence principles. Implemented in a high-acid natural gas purification plant in China, the cyclone-coalescence separator demonstrated efficiency primarily influenced by gas velocity and diameter. Optimal performance was observed with a 75 mm diameter reactor at velocities of 8–12 m s−1, achieving a peak efficiency of 96%. The hydrophilic glass fiber with a monofilament structure can coalesce droplets effectively. In practical industrial use, under operational conditions, the hydrocyclone's liquid discharge rate is 89.6 kg·h−1 with an inlet concentration of 382.7 g·m3. Over a 400-h cycle, the cyclone-coalescence separator demonstrated superior separation performance with an average liquid discharge volume of 9.09 mg·kg−1, compared to 4.93 mg·kg−1 for the precision filter. This successful industrial implementation presents a promising approach to natural gas purification.

Business on Nickel Downstreaming with China and European Union Lawsuits

That the downstream nickel business between Indonesia and China aims to obtain maximum profits for the welfare of the Indonesian people, which is based on legal regulations issued by the Indonesian government. As Chinese companies are building purification and processing plants or nickel smelters in Indonesia with a large investment value, the Indonesian government obtains a substantial advantage from the export through the export of domestically processed nickel. Also, Indonesian and Chinese companies both benefit from having a nickel smelter or refining and processing factory in Indonesia. These advantages encompass Chinese investment in Indonesia, job creation in Indonesia, and increased export outcomes. However, this development has raised concerns in the European Union, primarily because Indonesia recently banned the export of nickel ore. Instead, Indonesia has encouraged the domestic processing of nickel ore to add value to nickel products. Indonesia as one of the world’s largest nickel producers has regulations in terms of nickel exports. This is stated in the Regulation of the Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Number 11 of 2019 concerning the Second Amendment to the Regulation of the Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Number 25 of 2018 concerning the Business of Mineral and Coal Mining. In this regulation, Indonesia imposes a ban on the export of nickel ore. Related to this ban, the European Union also reacted by filing a lawsuit filed at the World Trade Organization (WTO). Based on the Constitution, the welfare of the Indonesian people is the main goal through the management of natural resources, so outside parties or other countries cannot intervene.

An interpretable machine learning-based pitting corrosion depth prediction model for steel drinking water pipelines

Steel pipes are a crucial element of the water supply system and are necessary for safely delivering large quantities of water from purification plants to consumers. Corrosion is a significant factor that deteriorates the interior and exterior of the steel pipes. Although the effectiveness of machine learning has been demonstrated in various fields, machine learning has rarely been used to identify corrosion mechanisms in buried steel pipes. A hybrid machine-learning–based corrosion depth prediction model was developed by integrating a corrosion depth trend prediction model based only on elapsed years with machine-learning algorithms. Shapley additive explanation (SHAP) was used to analyze the hybrid machine-learning–based corrosion depth prediction models, revealing corrosion mechanisms and explaining the interactions among influencing factors through global and local interpretations. The SHAP local interpretation showed that the hybrid machine-learning–based corrosion depth prediction models can effectively capture the interrelationship between soil and water corrosiveness.

Analysis of noise reduction in natural gas pressure-boosted power generation equipment

Abstract To address the issue of excessive noise from the natural gas pressure-boosted power generation equipment, this paper conducts a noise analysis on the equipment at a natural gas purification plant in the Southwest oil and gas field. It identifies the primary sources and mechanisms contributing to the noise from the pressure-boosted power generation equipment. The paper clarifies the effectiveness of the existing noise control measures. It proceeds to conduct indoor experimental research on the noise reduction effects of different combinations of sound insulation and absorption materials. It selects optimal noise reduction strategies suitable for different frequency spectra of noise sources and proposes recommendations for noise reduction measures. Additionally, it employs CadnaA software to simulate and validate the noise reduction effects.

Phylogeographic Analysis of Mycobacterium kansasii Isolates from Patients with M. kansasii Lung Disease in Industrialized City, Taiwan.

Little is known about environmental transmission of Mycobacterium kansasii. We retrospectively investigated potential environmental acquisition, primarily water sources, of M. kansasii among 216 patients with pulmonary disease from an industrial city in Taiwan during 2015-2017. We analyzed sputum mycobacterial cultures using whole-genome sequencing and used hierarchical Bayesian spatial network methods to evaluate risk factors for genetic relatedness of M. kansasii strains. The mean age of participants was 67 years; 24.1% had previously had tuberculosis. We found that persons from districts served by 2 water purification plants were at higher risk of being infected with genetically related M. kansasii isolates. The adjusted odds ratios were 1.81 (1.25-2.60) for the Weng Park plant and 1.39 (1.12-1.71) for the Fongshan plant. Those findings unveiled the association between water purification plants and M. kansasii pulmonary disease, highlighting the need for further environmental investigations to evaluate the risk for M. kansasii transmission.

Process study of ceramic membrane treatment for water treatment residuals from lake and reservoir water purification plants in severe cold regions

Process study of ceramic membrane treatment for water treatment residuals from lake and reservoir water purification plants in severe cold regions

Establishment and analysis of online energy baseline for water purification plants: A case study in Kaohsiung city, Taiwan

Water and energy are closely linked and are crucial for national security and economic development. Most water providers prioritise the stability of water supply and aim to reduce energy consumption under the premise of a stable supply. The average energy required to supply water in Taiwan in one of the lowest worldwide. In the Kaohsiung area, the average energy used by a water purification plant to provide 1 m3 of water is 0.32 kWh/m3, lower than the world average of 0.37 kWh/m3. However, the most energy-consuming plant (Weng Park water purification plant) uses eight times as much energy as the least energy-consuming plant (Pingding water purification plant). Most studies focus on the energy required to provide 1 m3 of water. This study combined attributes of four plants, such as the amount of energy consumed, quantity of water supplied, purified, and collected, and weather data. These data were used to model energy baselines for water providers. Artificial intelligence was imported into Microsoft Azure machine learning to train the model, which was verified using another Kaohsiung plant and one overseas to establish an online energy baseline modelling system that can be applied in various water purification plants.

Erosion and intergranular corrosion induced failure of S31254 stainless steel – Case study on Venturi scrubber in a natural gas purification plant

The flue gases such as SO2, SO3, and CO2 generated during the purification process of sulfur-containing natural gas need to be treated to a certain concentration before they can be discharged into the atmosphere. The flue gas unit of a purification plant in Sichuan adopts the new Cansolv flue gas treatment process. After running for a period of time, the Venturi scrubber experienced severe corrosion failure, resulting in equipment shutdown and significant economic losses. This paper utilizes an actual failed device as a case study to analyze the corrosion environment of the Venturi scrubber. It conducts a comprehensive failure analysis, encompassing material mechanical properties, metallographic analysis, and failure microstructure analysis, aiming to elucidate the reasons behind the Venturi scrubber failure. Systematic analysis shows that the manufacturing materials used in this scrubber meet all design requirements. However, flue gas at temperatures reaching 280 °C enters the scrubber tower at a flow rate exceeding 10 m/s. The dissolution of acidic gases leads to a significant drop in the pH of the cooling water to 1, manifesting evident signs of erosion corrosion and intergranular corrosion on the material surface. These observations suggest that erosion and intergranular corrosion in high-temperature acidic environments are the predominant factors contributing to the corrosion failure of the Venturi scrubber.

Evaluating the Smart Technology Level of Water Purification Plants

Key TakeawaysThe features of a smart water purification plant (SWPP) can include autonomous operation of treatment processes, energy management optimization, and facility preservation, using approaches that include artificial intelligence technology.Evaluation indicators were developed to measure the level of technology in K‐water's SWPPs.Practical demonstration at three K‐water SWPPs was used to validate the effectiveness of these indicators.

Houston's Northeast Water Purification Plant Completes Phase 1 Expansion

Houston's Northeast Water Purification Plant Completes Phase 1 Expansion

Calculation Steps of Designing a conventional water purification plant

Calculation Steps of Designing a conventional water purification plant

Ultrasonic regeneration of activated carbon in water plants and correlation of adsorption performance

In this study, ultrasonic-backwashing regeneration at different frequencies as well as adsorption experiments were carried out on eight-year-old activated carbon from the filter tank of a water purification plant. The number of pores with transitional sizes between those of micropores (< 2 nm) and mesopores (2–50 nm) was higher after regeneration, and an enlargement of micropores into mesopores was observed. The average particle size of the regenerated carbon decreased by 2.35 %–4.00 %, and there was no significant fragmentation. In XPS characterization, the peak intensities of C, O, and N functional groups were decreased after regeneration, so ultrasonic regeneration disrupted the covalent bonds formed between carbon atoms and other elements. The microbial community diversity of the regenerated carbon was analyzed and compared with that of the original carbon, showing them to be largely the same. Organic-matter-related water-quality indexes and activated carbon adsorption performance indexes upon regeneration were studied and found to be well correlated. After multiple ultrasonic regeneration, the strength is still not <90 %.