Beruflich Dokumente
Kultur Dokumente
Abstract
The potabilisation plant is an essential part of evaporative desalination plants facilities. Remineralization
systems are designed and installed in the past years using different process approaches finalized to achieve
satisfactory potable water properties with respect to corrosiveness and health aspects. The process developed for
40 MIGD Ras Laffan plant is based on calcium carbonate and CO2 MSF vent gases addition followed by
sodium hypochlorite from sea water electrochlorination blending and can be considered the most efficient
system to match the best potable water quality. In this paper the process model is described and the simulation
results are examined and compared with the field operating data.
Keywords: Potabilisation; Remineralization; pH adjustment; Acid dosing; Sea water salinity; Carbonate system;
Mass balance
Presented at the Conference on Desalination and the Environment, Santa Margherita, Italy, 22–26 May 2005.
European Desalination Society.
0011-9164/05/$– See front matter Ó 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved
276 G. Migliorini, R. Meinardi / Desalination 182 (2005) 275–282
e
100 and capital costs, according to the process
lin
ium
description of section 2, the plant has been
Co2 (mg /l)
ibr
O designed in by pass mode, so only part of
uil
Co lim per Eq
es atio distillate is processed into the blending plant.
to n
ne p
50 filt ath
er in
4. Plant description
B
4.1. Gas gathering system
C
CS The four desalination units are served by the
C
0 100 200 300 vent gas gathering system, that is composed by
Alkalinity (ppm in CaCO3)
two identical lines, each one gathering the gas
from a different couple of evaporation units.
Fig. 1. Remineralization process diagram in lime- The gas extracted from the distillers is
stone dissolution filter. gathered in a CO2 receiver positioned at the
suction of the CO2 liquid ring compressors.
The treated water is then mixed to a In order to keep constant the pressure in
bypassed distillate in a blending chamber to the vent gas inlet line, part of the compressed
obtain the final product characteristics. gas from the drain separator is recycled back
Sodium hydroxide solution to increase the to the compressor suction line.
pH in the potable water is dosed pH-con- The compressed gas passes through a
trolled to the by-pass distillate line before drain separator, in which the water is sepa-
the blending chamber. rated from the gas and collected.
Hypochlorite solution dosing is also The vent gas from two desalination units
accomplished in the blending chamber pro- joins with the vent gas from the other two
portionally to the potable water flow and desalination units after the drain separator.
the residual chlorine content in the blended The compressed gas flows to the carbon
water. filters one in operation and one in stand by;
Corrosion inhibitor is fed into the blend- after the carbon filters the compressed gas is
ing chamber proportionally to the potable conveyed to the CO2 absorption section.
water flow to prevent corrosion phenomena. In Fig. 2 a scheme of the plant is reported.
At the end of the treatment water shall In Fig. 3 a plant overview is shown.
contain the required alkalinity at pH around
8 as required.
4.2. Distillate system
The raw distillate flow is divided into three
3. Ras Laffan remineralization plant main part streams:
characteristics to the absorbers
The Ras Laffan potable water blending to the absorber by-pass
plant has been designed with a nominal to the blending chamber.
278 G. Migliorini, R. Meinardi / Desalination 182 (2005) 275–282
vent gas
Gas
from
Gathering
distillers
distillate
water CO2 Limestone
Degasifier
from Absorbers Filters
distillers
Blending product
Chamber water
The streams coming from the absorber The atmospheric CO2 degassing tower pro-
and the one coming from the absorber by- vide to remove some remaining free carbon
pass will join and they will be sent to the dioxide and to increase the content of oxygen.
limestone filters section. The air necessary for degassing is supplied
The general principle on which the total by two air fans one operating and one in hot
distillate flow rate is distributed in these three stand by.
streams is based on the setting of two The water coming out from the degasifier
percentages: tower is gravity-conveyed to the blending
the percentage of distillate to the absorber chamber situated below the tower; the by-
by pass within a range of 20–30% of the passed raw distillate also is directed to the
total distillate water flowrate. blending chamber.
the percentage of distillate to the absorbers
within a range of 5–10% of the total dis- 5. Carbonic acid equlibrium
tillate water flowrate. All the phase of the remineralization process
These two percentages will be fixed by the can be followed by means of the salts balance and
operator from DCS. trough the carbonic species equilibria [2].
The distillate flow rate to blending chamber The pH of most natural waters is generally
depends on the streams through the absorbers assumed to be controlled by the carbonic acid
and the absorbers by-pass flow rate. system.
In the pipe conveying distillate to the The applicable equilibrium reactions are:
blending chamber the dosages of sodium
hydroxide solution, Hypochlorite solution CO2 þ H2 O $ ðH2 CO3 Þ $ Hþ þ HCO3
and corrosion inhibitor solution has been
foreseen. ð2Þ
From the absorber, the acidified water
HCO3 ! Hþ þ CO3 ð3Þ
joins with the absorber by-pass stream and
the total flow rate is conveyed to the lime-
The CO2/HCO3 /CO32 equilibrium in
stone filters and from there to the degasifier.
the water can be calculated starting from
The following parameters are monitored
alkalinity and pH values through the calcu-
on limestone filter section inlet header:
lation of the following equations:
Pressure
Temperature
kw ¼ ½Hþ ½OH ð4Þ
Conductivity
The system is designed to have six filters in ½Hþ ½HCO3
operation. k1 ¼ ð5Þ
½CO2
The carbonated water coming from the
limestone filters is fed to the degassing tower. ½Hþ ½CO3 ¼
On the incoming water from the limestone k2 ¼ ð6Þ
½HCO3
filters the following parameters are
monitored:
where:
pH
Kw = ionisation product of water; K1 = first
Conductivity
dissociation constant; K2 = second dissoc-
Temperature transmitter
iation constant.
280 G. Migliorini, R. Meinardi / Desalination 182 (2005) 275–282
and the actual values resulting from the The carbonic species equilibrium reaction
laboratory analysis. constants implemented within the model fit
The kinetic equations implemented within well the operating results as compared for
the model, describing the reaction rate of the the final product water stream.
limestone dissolution with the CO2, fit well
the operating results as shown from the com-
8. Conclusions
parison at the limestone filters outlet.
In fact the M-alkalinity value resulting The remineralization plant is an essential
from the model is in compliance with the part of the potable water production systems
measured values and the same is for the starting from distillation plants.
CO2 excess at the limestone filters outlet eval- For this reason, in the early 2000 our
uated by means of the pH value. company decided to develop his own process
to assure a optimal final product water for his [3] High temperature scale inhibitors for sea water
clients. distillation, Watson Desalination Consultants,
The Ras Laffan remineralization plant has October Naxassas 1979.
[4] W. Stumm and James J. Morgan, Aquatic
fully performed the guaranteed data and can
Chemistry—An Introduction Emphasizing Che-
be considered on of the best plant of this mical Equilibria in Natural Waters, John Wiley
technology installed in the world. and sons, New York 1981.
[5] H. Ludwig and M. Hetschel, Treatment of dis-
tillate and permeates from seawater desalination
References plants. Desalination, 58 (1986) 135–154.
[1] Industrial Water Treatment Practice, Butter- [6] Y. Yamauchi, K. Tanaka and K. Hattori, Remi-
worths, London, 1961. neralization of desalinated water by limestone
[2] H.E. Homig, Sea Water and Sea Water Distilla- dissolution f1ilters. Desalination, 66 (1987)
tion, Vulkan Verlag, ESSEM 1978. 365–383.