featurearticle

In steam generation systems, ensuring the quality of the boiler feed water
is essential for successful unit operation. Power plants traditionally
employ a multi-step process to remove impurities from the influent water.
Belwo, New Logic Research Inc, USA, explains why its VSEP technology,
fitted with NF or RO membrane modules, is a commercially viable
alternative to exisitng boiler feed water treatment processes.

Feed Water Treatment for

Industrial Boilers & Power Plants

o ensure the proper operation of steam generation systems,

it is essential that the purity of the boiler feed water is high.
High quality feed water will reduce the use of boiler
chemicals because of less frequent blowdown requirements
(reducing blowdown frequency by as much as a factor of ten).
Lower blowdown frequency lowers fuel costs. Furthermore, scale
build-up is reduced because there are less impurities in the boiler
feed water to foul heat transfer surfaces. The lower concentration
of impurities also reduces corrosion rates in the boiler. When a
boiler is used to run a steam turbine, blade erosion is less likely to
occur because of the high quality of steam generated.
The use of reverse osmosis (RO) in feed water purification
systems can cuts chemical costs by reducing the frequency of ion
exchange regeneration. A complete system, which includes RO
and ion exchange, typically produces a more cost effective system
when compared to systems that do not use RO. However,
conventional RO systems require pretreatment units, which
obviously adds to the total cost of the system.
Silicate and colloidal deposits decrease boiler efficiency and
also cause premature failure of turbines. Ultrafiltration (UF) can

VSEP
treatment
system
City water
Chemical injection
(opional)
Concentrate
to disposal

Ion exchange
polishing units

remove more than 99% of colloidal silica, as well as precipitated

iron and aluminum. The reduction in particulate matter,
suspended solids and total organic carbon (TOC) also enhance
turbine and boiler efficiency. However, the use of conventional
membrane technologies can suffer from substantial membrane
fouling problems.

VSEP Membrane System

Technological advances in membrane filtration systems have
created an opportunity for industrial boiler and steam power
plants to effectively treat boiler feed water streams. The
Vibratory Shear Enhanced Processing technology or VSEP
makes it possible to filter influent water, without the fouling
problems exhibited by conventional membrane systems. The
VSEP membrane system can significantly reduce total dissolved
solids (TDS), total suspended solids (TSS), total organic carbon
(TOC), colour bodies, silica and hardness from influent streams
originating from city water, well water, and river/surface waters,
and therefore minimize treatment cost.
The VSEP treatment system can use UF, nanofiltration
(NF) or RO membrane modules to generate a permeate
stream that meets the quality criteris for boiler feed water,
e.g. concentrations of suspended and dissolved solids, silica
and hardness. After final polishing with ion exchange
resins, the clear permeate can be used as boiler feed water.
In summary, the VSEP treatment system can be used to
treat boiler feed water with only minor final polishing by
ion exchange resins. VSEP will eliminate pretreatment
requirements and can substantially reduce chemical usage
for regeneration, and therefore reduce disposal of spent
regenerant and the associated costs.

Storage tank with

sterile vent filter
Boilers
Supply pump

Post
treatment filter

Figure 1: A single VSEP membrane system can replace

a multi-stage pretreatment for boiler feed water.

28 June 2003

Process Conditions
The influent water to a power plant can come from a variety
of sources, including groundwater well (aquifer), surface
water or a municipality, so it has to be treated to meet the
quality requirements for boiler feed water.
For boiler feed water treatment, depending on its
requirements, a number of processes can be used,
including chemical treatment/lime softening, dual media
ISSN 0015-1882/03 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

featurearticle
filtration, carbon
adsorption,
conventional RO
Steam
H2SO4
Two industrial
PLC
Heat exchanger
membranes and final
scale VSEPs
(stage I)
ion exchange resin
Heat
City water
polishing. However,
Feed
Equalization
exchanger
tank
significant waste is
tank
(stage II)
generated from these
Feed
pump
unit operations,
Steam condensate
including spent carbon
to drain
and spent regenerating
Concentrate to
Concentrate
chemicals from the ion
disposal
tank
exchange resins.
To avoid scale in the
boilers, power plants
normally utilize a
Treated
Treated water to final polishing
multi-step process to
water tank
remove the hardness of
Treated
water pump
the incoming water, i.e.
chemical treatment or
ion exchange, as well as
Figure 2: Schematic showing how VSEP integrates into a boiler feed water
other less advanced
treatment process.
methods, such as multimedia filtration. These
multi-step processes can be replaced by a single pass VSEP
10 mg/l of silica, and 510 S of conductivity. The permeate
system, which will purify the influent in one step.
concentration is reduced to <15 mg/l of hardness, <1 mg/ l of
A process schematic for the treatment of boiler feed water
silica, and ~10 S of conductivity, all well below the designed
using a VSEP treatment system is presented in Figure 1. This
water quality limits.
system can use either NF or RO membrane filtration system to
replace the entire pretreatment step that would be usually
Conclusions
required, i.e. lime or cation softening, dual media filters, carbon
adsorbers, and conventional RO units. City water can be treated
Using a NF or RO module in the VSEP system is a
in a single step VSEP treatment system followed by a final ion
commercially viable option for the treatment of boiler feed
exchange polishing unit. The treated boiler feed water can then
water at industrial boilers and power plants. Nearly 80% of the
be fed to the boiler via a supply pump.
influent water is recovered as treated water suitable for final
polishing at a boiler facility, while less than 20% is disposed as
concentrate.
Boiler Feed Water Treatment
Membrane selection is based on material compatibility, flux
rates
(capacity) and concentration requirements (hardness, silica,
Figure 2 is a process block flow diagram, showing the integration
TDS, conductivity). In this example, the hardness reduction is
of VSEP systens into a boiler feed water treatment process at an
over 90% and TDS and conductivity are also reduced by a
industrial manufacturing facility. The city water is preheated in
similar amount.
the Stage I heat exchanger, and then further heated with a
New Logic Research has successfully installed VSEP
steam-heated exchanger to a temperature of 42 C. The higher
separation technology into many industrial processes. The
feed temperature improves permeate flux through the VSEP
industrial boilers and power plants, as well as the cogeneration
treatment unit and provides the energy drive for the first
industries effort to meet system performance criteria and
exchanger. The preheated water is introduced into the
environmental regulations can be helped by combining
equalization tank, where sulfuric acid can be added for pH
membrane filtration with VSEP technology.
adjustment. Other chemicals, such as alum and polymer, can
The development towards applications for industrial boilers
also be injected at this point to help coagulation. The
and power plants, along with the availability of new membrane
equalization tank effluent is then transferred to the feed storage
materials and VSEP technology, make it possible to treat the
tank where it is fed to the VSEP units at a rate of 473 litres/min.
more difficult streams with technically and economically
Two industrial scale VSEP units process the preheated city water.
successful results.
VSEP generates a permeate stream of approximately
380 litres/min, which is sent to the heat recovery exchanger and
Contact:
then stored in the treated water tank prior to final polishing by
New Logic Research Inc,
ion exchange. A concentrated waste stream is generated at a flow
1295 Sixty Seventh Street,
rate of 95 litres/min, which is routed to the holding ponds and
Emeryville, CA 94608, USA.
Tel: +1 510 655 7305,
then the sewer.
Fax: +1 510 655 7307;
Two industrial VSEP treatment units are used. The raw city
E-mail: info@vsep.com;
Website: www.vsep.com
water has a concentration of 160 to 240 mg/l of hardness,

Filtration+Separation

June 2003

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