TY - JOUR
T1 - Bioflocculation
T2 - Chemical free, pre-treatment technology for the desalination industry
AU - Bar-Zeev, Edo
AU - Belkin, Natalia
AU - Liberman, Boris
AU - Berman-Frank, Ilana
AU - Berman, Tom
N1 - Funding Information:
We thank IDE for partial funding and granting us access to the Hadera desalination plant, Israel. Partial support (to TB) for this study was provided by the Mayim Consortium , Magnet Programs , Office of the Chief Scientist , Israel Ministry of Industry , Trade and Labor . This research is part of the PhD thesis requirements for Natalia Belkin.
PY - 2013/6/1
Y1 - 2013/6/1
N2 - Rapid sand filtration (RSF), proceeded by chemical coagulation and flocculation, is a commonly used, effective pretreatment in the desalination industry. We designed and tested a novel, large pilot-scale, two-stage granular Rapid Bioflocculation Filter (RBF) based on a first-stage Bioflocculator (BF) unit followed by a mixed-media bed filter (MBF). The BF filter bed consisted of an extremely porous volcanic Tuff granular medium which provided an enlarged surface area for microbial development and biofilm proliferation. We compared the efficiency of the pilot RBF to that of a full-scale RSF, operating with upstream chemical coagulation, by measuring the removal from the same untreated seawater feed of key factors related to membrane clogging: SDI, turbidity, chlorophyll a (Chl a) and transparent exopolymer particles (TEP). After 2 weeks of operation, the Tuff grains were colonized extensively by coccoid bacteria that formed biofilm along the entire BF. With bacterial colonization and biofilm development, numerous aggregates of bacteria and some algal cells embedded in an amorphous organic matrix were formed on and within the Tuff grains. By 1-3 months, the biotic diversity within the Tuff filter bed had increased to include filamentous bacteria, cyanobacteria, fungi, protista and even crustaceans and marine worms. During and for ~24h after each cleaning cycle (carried out every5 to 7 days by upward flushing with air and water), large numbers of floc-like particles, from ~15μm to~2mm in size were observed in the filtrate of the BF unit. Microscopic examination of these flocs (stained with Alcian Blue and SYTOR 9) showed that they were aggregates of many smaller particles with associated bacteria and algae within a polysaccharide gel-like matrix. These biogenic flocs (bioflocs) were observed to form during normal operation of the RBF, accumulating as aggregates of inorganic and organic material on the Tuff surfaces. With each flush cleaning cycle, these bioflocs were released into the BF effluent but were retained by the second phase MBF unit. No flocs were seen in the MBF filtrate. Over a year-long study, both the pilot RBF and the full-scale RSF showed similar filtration efficiencies, measured as the percentage removal of Chl a, TEP, turbidity and SDI from the same seawater feed. These results indicate the potential of the bioflocculation approach with no chemical additives as an alternative to conventional RSF pretreatment for large SWRO facilities.
AB - Rapid sand filtration (RSF), proceeded by chemical coagulation and flocculation, is a commonly used, effective pretreatment in the desalination industry. We designed and tested a novel, large pilot-scale, two-stage granular Rapid Bioflocculation Filter (RBF) based on a first-stage Bioflocculator (BF) unit followed by a mixed-media bed filter (MBF). The BF filter bed consisted of an extremely porous volcanic Tuff granular medium which provided an enlarged surface area for microbial development and biofilm proliferation. We compared the efficiency of the pilot RBF to that of a full-scale RSF, operating with upstream chemical coagulation, by measuring the removal from the same untreated seawater feed of key factors related to membrane clogging: SDI, turbidity, chlorophyll a (Chl a) and transparent exopolymer particles (TEP). After 2 weeks of operation, the Tuff grains were colonized extensively by coccoid bacteria that formed biofilm along the entire BF. With bacterial colonization and biofilm development, numerous aggregates of bacteria and some algal cells embedded in an amorphous organic matrix were formed on and within the Tuff grains. By 1-3 months, the biotic diversity within the Tuff filter bed had increased to include filamentous bacteria, cyanobacteria, fungi, protista and even crustaceans and marine worms. During and for ~24h after each cleaning cycle (carried out every5 to 7 days by upward flushing with air and water), large numbers of floc-like particles, from ~15μm to~2mm in size were observed in the filtrate of the BF unit. Microscopic examination of these flocs (stained with Alcian Blue and SYTOR 9) showed that they were aggregates of many smaller particles with associated bacteria and algae within a polysaccharide gel-like matrix. These biogenic flocs (bioflocs) were observed to form during normal operation of the RBF, accumulating as aggregates of inorganic and organic material on the Tuff surfaces. With each flush cleaning cycle, these bioflocs were released into the BF effluent but were retained by the second phase MBF unit. No flocs were seen in the MBF filtrate. Over a year-long study, both the pilot RBF and the full-scale RSF showed similar filtration efficiencies, measured as the percentage removal of Chl a, TEP, turbidity and SDI from the same seawater feed. These results indicate the potential of the bioflocculation approach with no chemical additives as an alternative to conventional RSF pretreatment for large SWRO facilities.
KW - Bioflocculator
KW - Desalination pretreatment
KW - Rapid sand filtration
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84876734723&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.watres.2013.03.013
DO - 10.1016/j.watres.2013.03.013
M3 - Article
C2 - 23566330
AN - SCOPUS:84876734723
SN - 0043-1354
VL - 47
SP - 3093
EP - 3102
JO - Water Research
JF - Water Research
IS - 9
ER -
