Electrodialysis and Nanofiltration of Surface Water for Subsequent Use
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ARTICLE IN PRESS Water Research 37 (2003) 3867–3874 Electrodialysis and nanofiltration of surface water for subsequent use as infiltration water B. Van der Bruggena,*, R. Milisa, C. Vandecasteelea, P. Bielenb, E. Van Sanb, K. Huysmanb a Laboratory for Environmental Technology, Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Leuven, W. de Croylaan 46, Heverlee B 3001, Belgium b Pidpa Water Production—Purification and Pilot Plant Department, Desguinlei 246, Antwerpen B 2018, Belgium Received 18 September 2002; accepted 6 May 2003 Abstract In order to achieve stable groundwater levels, an equilibrium between the use of groundwater for drinking water production and natural or artificial groundwater recharge by infiltration is needed. Local governments usually require that the composition of the water used for artificial recharge is similar to the surface water that is naturally present in the specific recharge area. In this paper, electrodialysis (ED) and nanofiltration were evaluated as possible treatment technologies for surface water from a canal in Flanders, the North of Belgium, in view of infiltration at critical places on heathlands. Both methods were evaluated on the basis of a comparison between the water composition after treatment and the composition of local surface waters. The treatment generally consists of a tuning of pH and the removal of contaminants originating from industrial and agricultural activity, e.g., nitrates and pesticides. Further evaluation of the influence of the composition of the water on the characteristics of the artificial recharge, however, was not À 2À envisaged. In a case study of water from the canal Schoten-Dessel, satisfactory concentration reductions of Cl ,SO4 ; À À + 2+ + 2+ NO3 ; HCO3 ; Na ,Mg ,K and Ca were obtained by ultrafiltration pretreatment followed by ED. Nanofiltration with UTC-20, N30F, Desal 51 HL, UTC-60 and Desal 5 DL membranes resulted in an insufficient removal level, especially for the monovalent ions. r 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Keywords: Electrodialysis; Nanofiltration; Membrane treatment; Surface water; Groundwater recharge 1. Introduction million m3/year, of which 59.4% (171 million m3) was effectively used in 1998 [1]. The effect of intensive use of At present, approximately 50% of the water volume groundwater resources (on a relatively small surface produced by the Flemish drinking water companies area of 13522 km2) on a longer time scale may eventually originates from deep groundwater layers, corresponding lead to depletion of groundwater layers in certain to a volume of 170 million m3/year in 1998. The Flemish regions. As a rule of thumb, water management has to industry is allowed to extract an additional 288 be considered an important element in the national economy when the use of water exceeds 30% of the water reserves; Flanders falls into this category. There- *Corresponding author. Tel.: +32-16-32-23-40; fax: +32-16- fore, the Flemish Government promotes the use of 32-29-91. surface water for industrial purposes and the saving of E-mail addresses: [email protected] groundwater resources for activities where the use of (B. Van der Bruggen), [email protected] (E. Van San), groundwater has a high additional value [2]. Currently, [email protected] (K. Huysman). there is a decrease of the fraction of groundwater used 0043-1354/03/$ - see front matter r 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/S0043-1354(03)00296-3 ARTICLE IN PRESS 3868 B. Van der Bruggen et al. / Water Research 37 (2003) 3867–3874 for drinking water production (from 53.1% in 1990 to characteristics are not studied; the legal requirement of 48.5% in 2000 [3]), which has prompted a re-evaluation using water with similar composition to the natural of industrial authorizations for the use of groundwater. surface waters is accepted as a practical guideline for The latter policies and a rising taxation on wastewater drinking water companies. However, it is acknowledged discharge resulted in an increased interest of different that further studies on the influence of the water (and industries in water reuse [4–6]. However, in spite of these soil) composition will be useful for the evaluation of the actions, local problems may still occur and other options criteria for a safe sustainable groundwater management are being explored. One of these options is the artificial by using artificial recharge methods. recharge of groundwater layers with alternative water RO can be used to eliminate small organic com- sources. The water source may be treated wastewater [7], pounds, including pharmaceuticals, and ions [18,19].In as is the case in the municipal wastewater reuse project view of protecting the quality of existing groundwater in Tel Aviv, Israel [8], and in the drinking water sources, the composition of the infiltration water should production process of the IWVA in Koksijde, Flanders be as close as possible to the groundwater composition [9]. At IWVA, domestic wastewater is treated by or to the infiltrating surface water that was already microfiltration followed by reverse osmosis (RO) and present, and no additional contaminants should be infiltrated in the dunes. The natural environment ensures introduced. Another aspect of the water composition a quality of the ‘‘new’’ groundwater comparable to that that should be investigated carefully is the danger of of the ‘‘original’’ groundwater in the dunes. Hygienic blocking the infiltration system due to the precipitation aspects were taken into consideration and appear to be of solid products. For example, certain solubility under control. Another well-known project was carried products can be exceeded locally when infiltration water out in California, where potable use of groundwater contacts soil components. from aquifers recharged with treated sewage effluent RO may result in too low permeate concentrations for seemed to be the technological answer to water scarcity. ions. The RO permeate is usually very corrosive and However, the protests against the link between sewage may extract ions from soil minerals. After infiltration, water and drinking water, even after soil infiltration, concentrations increase upon contact with the soil. The prove that this issue is still not cleared out [10]. treated water eventually has the same ‘‘natural’’ quality Conventional groundwater recharge is usually as the groundwater, without causing contamination. achieved by putting surface water in basins, furrows, However, due to interference with geochemical trans- ditches, or other facilities where it infiltrates into the soil formations [20], the composition of the groundwater and moves downward to recharge aquifers [11]. Direct may change due to the impact of groundwater recharge recharge is achieved with injection wells in the aquifer [21]. Moreover, RO requires a large energy input and [11]. A large number of hydrogeological studies were produces a brine that can create disposal problems. carried out to estimate the impact of recharge on the This paper compares two treatment technologies, groundwater level [12–14]. Stable groundwater levels are electrodialysis (ED) and nanofiltration (NF), as possible desirable, and may require the use of complex models, alternatives to RO in a case study where only low especially where the locations of groundwater recharge concentrations of synthetic organics and pesticides are and of groundwater withdrawal are different. However, present. Surface water from a canal was treated by both this paper only describes surface methods prior to methods after an adequate pretreatment; the removal artificial recharge that should provide a water quality levels with both processes were compared to the acceptable for subsequent use in recharge basins on the concentrations found in natural surface waters at the basis of legal requirements; discussions on the risk of location where groundwater recharge is envisaged. contamination if groundwater recharge is carried out with contaminated water can be found elsewhere [15,16]. Drinking water companies working on sustainable 2. Materials and methods groundwater management are usually faced with legal requirements concerning the quality of the water used 2.1. Feed water for recharge: the composition should be similar to the composition of the water naturally occurring in the area. The raw water used in this study originates from the Aspects of controlling groundwater quality during canal Mol-Dessel in Flanders, Belgium. Pidpa, the groundwater recharge are not always fully documented drinking water company in the region, carried out the in literature. A study on the environmental fate of pretreatment of the raw water using a 300 mm prefilter pharmaceutical components [17] indicated a high followed by ultrafiltration (UF). The UF membrane was persistence of pharmaceuticals under aerobic and manufactured by X-Flow, The Netherlands, and had a anaerobic groundwater conditions, with elimination length of 1.5 m, a membrane surface 35 m2; the levels below 20%. In this article, effects of the water capillaries had a diameter of 0.8 mm. FeCl3 at a and soil composition on the groundwater and soil concentration around 3 ppm was used as a coagulant ARTICLE IN PRESS B. Van der Bruggen et al. / Water Research 37 (2003) 3867–3874 3869 Table 1 prevent migration of chloride ions to the anode rinsing Composition of the UF permeate used as feed for electro- solution, which would lead to Cl2 production at the dialysis and nanofiltration anode. The dimensions of the membranes are 2 2 Component Concentration (mg/l) 100 Â 100 mm with an active surface of 58 cm . The distance between two membranes is 0.5 mm. The spacers À HCO3 88.3 2+ are made of silicone and polyester. Ca 58.7 The volume of the diluate, the concentrate and the SO2À 31.0 4 electrode rinsing is 2.5 l. Sampling was done from the ClÀ 27.3 Na+ 20.9 recirculation line through each vessel; pH and con- À ductivity were measured continuously. The feed velocity NO3 15.6 Mg2+ 6.3 in the stack ranged from 7.5 to 10 cm/s.