Municipal and Industrial Water Production

Securing sustainable water supply sources is a major challenge in the US particularly in the Southwest where surface freshwater resources are limited. Reverse Osmosis desalination has been identified as the solution to this challenge. However, in view of the volumes involved, the safe and cost effective disposal of RO concentrate has become increasingly limited in scope and availability. Geo’s specialist knowledge is increasingly being used by municipalities and water authorities around the world for design of SAL-PROC and ROSP based treatment systems for a number of objectives including 1) feed pretreatment for improved water recovery from desalination processes, 2) salt load and volume reduction for effective concentrate management and 3) use of new generation design parameters for large evaporation ponds and storage basins based on enhanced evaporation systems and volume reduction technologies.

Effective saline effluent volume reduction in industrial operations is particularly problematic due to the higher concentrations of salts and contaminants in concentrate from conventional volume reduction methods. Such concentrates often cannot meet regulatory disposal guidelines thus requiring additional treatment at elevated costs to the plant operators. Geo provides specialist advice and treatment technologies for salt and contaminants removal to achieve guidelines for regulated discharge or zero discharge. Geo’s technologies are also being used for recovery of saleable products from industrial effluents to offset treatment costs.

With global warming and the role that carbon dioxide emissions plays in it, it is important that the suppliers of treated water and producers and suppliers of volume reduction technologies (including desalination processes) to evaluate the potential effects of their activities on greenhouse gas emissions while also assessing the impact of CO2 footprint on their operations. Geo is capable of assisting such evaluations which may involve Life Cycle Analysis (LCA) and advising clients on potential application of CCPR technology for CO2 mitigation and carbon credit generation.

Saline discharge (left). SEPCON treatment facility (center). Cleaner environment (right).