Journal article
Evaluation of transparent exopolymer particles and microbial communities found post-UV light, multimedia and cartridge filtration pre-treatment in a SWRO plant
S Balzano, C Le Lan, AV Ellis, H Compas, K Newton, T Jamieson, M Brown, SC Leterme
Desalination and Water Treatment | TAYLOR & FRANCIS INC | Published : 2015
Abstract
Seawater reverse osmosis desalination is affected greatly by membrane biofouling which reduces membrane lifetimes and increases cost of permeate production. This work reports on the analysis of pre-treated seawater from a small-scale desalination plant operating with a three-stage pre-treatment system namely, (1) medium-pressure ultraviolet (MP-UV) disinfection, (2) multimedia filtration (MMF), and then finally, (3) cartridge filtration. Transparent exopolymeric particles (TEPs), chlorophyll a, phytoplankton, bacteria and viruses were evaluated in the pre-treated seawater after each pre-treatment stage over a one-year period (July 2012–July 2013). The concentration of TEPs was found to occas..
View full abstractGrants
Funding Acknowledgements
The authors acknowledge the financial support of the National Centre of Excellence in Desalination Australia which is funded by the Australian Government through the National Urban Water and Desalination Plan. The authors are also grateful to P. Meacham and T. Kirby for their assistance in sampling and N. Nedelkov for coordinating the work required at the Penneshaw desalination plant. We also thank Xavier Denis and Camille Moreau for helping with sampling and processing some nutrient samples. We sincerely thank C. Macardle from the Flow Cytometry Unit of the Flinders Medical Centre for providing access to the flow cytometer.