DELOACH BLOG

Water Treatment

When planning and designing a man made on land aquaculture or pisciculture facility.

The most important key element is the quality of the water. For operations developing in Florida or the Caribbean it is important to remember that water quality varies in Florida and other states in the US and typically requires some type of water treatment. For fresh and salt water land based farms that utilize tanks located inside of a building the water needs to be treated and pure from any naturally occurring contaminants such as hydrogen sulfide (H2S), iron (Fe+), and even carbon dioxide (CO2).

The most cost effective way to treat incoming water for aquaculture farming and remove hydrogen sulfide, iron, and lower carbon dioxide is the use of a “degasification” tower. A degasification tower or degasifier is a piece of process equipment. Degasifiers can also be referred to as a “decarbonator” or “air stripper” or even “aeration tower”. The degasification tower is a vertical column designed to remove certain types of contaminants by “stripping” the molecules of converted gases and expelling them from the water as a gas. The science is based upon “Henry’s Law” and it relies upon the disproportionate varying vapor pressures of gases.

If the incoming raw water contains levels of sulfides or hydrogen sulfide gases it is recommended to remove the hydrogen sulfide to improve the water quality and reduce the risk of the development and formation of bacteria that can thrive on the Sulfur. In addition hydrogen sulfide is corrosive and will cause harm to other components within the process if left untreated. It is important to adjust the pH of the raw feed water prior to degasification to ensure full conversion of the sulfides into hydrogen sulfide gas (H2S) to enable the degasification process to perform and remove up to 99.99% of the harmful contaminants without adding additional chemicals. This saves money and improves quality of the product!

Topics: water quality, degasification, pH levels of water, water treatment, hydrogen sulfide (H2S), pH levels, Alkalinity, Decarbonation, Caribbean, carbon dioxide, decarbonator, degasifier, gases, carbonic acid, H2S Degasifier, Aqua Farming, Fish Farming, Aquaculture, Pisciculture

DeLoach Industries made history in 1977 at the City of Cape Coral Florida water treatment plant with its large scale “degasification towers” connected to what was to become the first municipal water treatment facility in the United States to deploy the use of reverse osmosis on a large-scale production municipal treatment plant.

The Cape Coral water treatment plant for came online in 1977 and produced 3 million gallons of water per day (GPD) or 11.35 liters of purified and treated water utilizing the “reverse osmosis” process. By 1985 the plant had expanded as it kept up with growth to produce 15 million gallons per day making it at the time the world’s largest “reverse osmosis” water treatment plant facility.

Topics: water quality, pH levels of water, water treatment, advanced treatment solutions, water plant, hydrogen sulfide (H2S), pH levels, Alkalinity, scaling, chlorine, caustic, Decarbonation, wastewater, carbon dioxide, degasifier, RO membrane, RO system, H2S Degasifier

Caustic solution for Sodium hydroxide water treatment of Sodium Hydroxide

There are many industries that require the use of a caustic scrubber which is considered a chemical scrubber and they range from the municipal industry, mining, semiconductor markets, pulp and paper, and chemical refining.  There is a wide variety of industrial processes that generate noxious or corrosive off gases that require treatment and a comparison is made between biological Vs. chemical.  Often biological scrubbers have limitations due to concentrations, composition, or temperature of the contaminants and if the gas stream contains acid fumes then a biological scrubber is quickly ruled out.

The odor control selection is often fraught with choices of capital cost over operational cost and quite often comes down to familiarity from the designer or purchaser.  It is always a good idea to freshen up the industrial odor control the do’s and don’t’s before selecting the final solution.  If the off-gas source that needs to be treated is hydrogen sulfide (H2S) or some other type of gas stream produced by an acid or ammonia it will often require neutralization for human health reasons and to protect equipment or may be required to meet regulatory compliance. Caustic scrubbers may be either vertical or horizontal by design, but both utilize a packed media bed of either random packing or trays to allow the gas fumes to meet the recirculating caustic solution which then forces the reaction to occur.

Topics: water treatment issues, water quality, degasification, pH levels of water, odor control, water treatment, advanced treatment solutions, biological scrubber, water plant, odor control scrubber, hydrogen sulfide (H2S), Chemical Odor, pH levels, caustic, wastewater, carbon dioxide, degasifier, gases, caustic solution, sodium hydroxide water treatment

What type of Odor Control Scrubber do I select?

Topics: water treatment issues, water quality, degasification, pH levels of water, odor control, water treatment, advanced treatment solutions, biological scrubber, water plant, odor control scrubber, hydrogen sulfide (H2S), pH levels, degasifier, gases

The type of Odor Control Wet Scrubber selected for the treatment and neutralization of Ammonia (NH3) gases depends on several variables, including the type and source of the ammonia gas and whether or not it is “Free” ammonia and or unionized.

Ammonia is a very miscible and stable molecule with solid hydrogen bonds, making it very soluble in water and difficult to treat without using a properly designed and sized ammonia scrubber. The concentrations, air flow rates, temperature of the gas stream, and chemical reagents being utilized, such as caustic to remove and then treat the ammonia, all play a significant role in the removal efficiency of the ammonia gas scrubber system. Unlike other types of “odor control scrubbers,” an ammonia scrubber is much more sensitive to variables such as the gas stream temperature because of the solubility of ammonia.

Ammonia is produced from nitrogen and hydrogen 

the process is called the Haber Process by combining nitrogen with air and adding pressure, you can make ammonia.

It takes about 200 atmospheres of pressure, and the process varies from refinery to refinery. Still, on average, you can only make approximately 15% of ammonia during each pass which takes multiple passes to achieve the 15%. The reaction to make ammonia is exothermic when produced in a refining process. 

However, ammonia is also formed in nature in smaller quantities. Most ammonia (90%) is utilized for fertilizer production, but ammonia can be found in food, pharmaceutical products, and cleaning supplies. When ammonia gas is released into the air, it has a very noxious and pungent odor that can be dangerous to inhale, so often, odor control scrubbers are required to capture and treat the ammonia gas.

Topics: water treatment issues, water quality, degasification, pH levels of water, odor control, water treatment, advanced treatment solutions, biological scrubber, water plant, odor control scrubber, hydrogen sulfide (H2S), Chemical Odor, pH levels, Decarbonation, dissolved gases, wastewater, degasifier, gases, H2S Degasifier, Ammonia

The water treatment industry has developed and evolved over the years to continue to find new ways to produce degassed water,

Topics: water quality, degasification, pH levels of water, water treatment, advanced treatment solutions, water plant, safety, hydrogen sulfide (H2S), Chemical Odor, media packing, pH levels, Decarbonation, dissolved gases, wastewater, Global, carbon dioxide, decarbonator, degasifier, gases, RO membrane, H2S Degasifier, degassed water

Opting for the appropriate odor control scrubber can lead to significant cost savings!

We have discussed the importance of understanding the source and concentration of an odor issue before selecting the type of treatment or odor control system. In addition to these critical items is the consideration of operating costs.

Many types of odor control systems work and remove odors, but selecting and designing a system that works efficiently and effectively without breaking the bank can be challenging.

For a design professional and the system supplier, it is essential to consider what an owner, and their operators, will face to maintain the odor control system.

For example, carbon absorption has been around for many years and is a very effective method for removing noxious odors from an air stream. However, the use of carbon in municipal operations is seldom seen these days due to the extreme cost of disposal or on-site regeneration of the carbon once it has been spent. The same can be said about other odor control processes that utilize chemicals, such as potassium permanganate.

Topics: water quality, odor control, water treatment, biological scrubber, water plant, odor control scrubber

In the past two decades, there has been a remarkable development and improvement in wastewater technologies, driven by both necessity and stringent governmental regulations.

Today, municipalities and countries worldwide are recognizing the vital importance of recycling wastewater into clean drinking water. In certain regions like the Caribbean and other foreign nations, the wastewater to the drinking water industry is not merely a choice but a necessity.

To address our global needs and challenges, the recycling of wastewater to produce safe drinking water has become an everyday practice, empowered by cutting-edge technologies such as "Ultra-Filtration" and "Membrane Bio-Reactors" (MBR). These technologies continue to advance, offering much-needed solutions to the world's water scarcity issues. Moreover, due to stricter governmental requirements for wastewater recycling, the purity standards achieved through this process often surpass those of conventional water treatment methods. To foster global growth, it is crucial for professionals and consumers alike to acknowledge and embrace wastewater recycling whenever and wherever it is applicable to meet our evolving needs.

One of the key elements in the wastewater recycling process is the removal of contaminants, such as hydrogen sulfide gas, through advanced treatment methods. Hydrogen sulfide gas, a common byproduct of various industrial processes, can pose significant risks to water quality. Through technologies like Ultra-Filtration, this harmful gas can be effectively eliminated, ensuring the production of safe drinking water.

Another crucial aspect of wastewater treatment is addressing water turbidity. Turbidity refers to the cloudiness or haziness of water caused by the presence of suspended particles. By employing techniques like Membrane Bio-Reactors (MBR), wastewater can undergo thorough filtration, effectively removing suspended solids and improving water clarity. This ensures that the recycled water meets stringent purity standards and is suitable for drinking.

Topics: water quality, advanced treatment solutions, Safe drinking water, wastewater, Recycling, Caribbean, Global

Water treatment in the Caribbean poses unique challenges due to the specific characteristics of the region.

Topics: water treatment issues, water quality, degasification, pH levels of water, water treatment, advanced treatment solutions, water plant, odor control scrubber, pH levels, Alkalinity, Recycling, Caribbean, Global

Do you need to remove or increase your reverse osmosis system's hydrogen sulfide removal efficiency?

The industrial water treatment market has many forms of water treatment processes. Most of us would agree that maintaining high water standards and quality requires using multiple treatment systems to achieve results.  Let’s face it, we do not win or get a “that a boy” when we design and build the best reverse osmosis system.

When we turn the brand-new water system on, the water has a "rotten egg odor." Yes, that is an embarrassing moment! 

The problem is we typically design around what we can see or read.  When was the last time you reviewed a water sample that provided details of how much-dissolved gas was in the water?  Most likely never.  A typical water treatment system may deploy reverse osmosis as the primary treatment method, and why true RO will remove particles that have size and weight (ions and molecules) typically defined as a certain size (micron), but RO does nothing to remove the dissolved gases that are already entrained within the water naturally or were created by adjusting the pH.  

Topics: water treatment issues, water quality, degasification, pH levels of water, water treatment, advanced treatment solutions, hydrogen sulfide (H2S), pH levels, Alkalinity, Langilier index (LSI), H2S Degasifier, H2S H2O, removing hydrogen sulfide in water