Facts At Your Fingertips Water Treatment: lon Exchange Resins Department Eaitor: Scott Jenkins Jermoval of dissolved ions from industriel process water, boiler feedwater or wastewater is a ‘common challenge for facilities in the chamical process industries (CPI) lon exchange (XX) systems offer one possible solution for demineraliza- tion, purification or wastewater-treat- ‘ment applications. lon exchange systems facilitate reversible chemical reactions in which the ions targeted for removal are captured electrostat- cally and replaced by other ions of similar charge. Key components of 1X eyatems are ion exchange resins, ‘This one-page reference provides an overview of how IX resins work in in- dustrial water treatment Resin characteristios resins are generally composed of crossinked organic polymers, shaped into small beads usually measuring between 0.25 and 1.25, mm in diameter. The most common 1X resin material is polystyrene with dvinylbenzene crosslinks. This type Of resin is used in the majority of IK applications. Although the basic res- in components are often the same, the resins have bean moditied in ‘many ways to meet the requirements Of specific applications and provide longer resin ite. The polymer matrix of the beads contains dispersed ion-active sites, \which are charged functional groups ‘covalently bound to the polymer backbone. The charged functional ‘groups, which can be negative or positive, attract ions of the oppo: site charge through electrostatic in- teractions. For example, a common functional group found in cation IX resins ig the sulfonate anion (S037, ‘A counterion solution containing so- ium cations (Na*) is applied to the resin. The Na* ions are held to the bound SO5- anions by electrostatic attraction, so the resin carries @ net neutral charge (Figure 1) CCounterions for the resin are: cho- sen such that when they are ex- changed and are released into the treated water, they wil not pres- ent problems’ for subsequent use, ‘and the problematic ions will bbe removed. In general, the reater the size and valency Of an ion, the greater affinity it wil have with fons of an op: posite charge. 1X operations In general, water _contain- ing undesirable ions. flows through. bed of resin beads and the problematic ions are exchanged for ions of similar charge that were frst applied — x we on co Sil hy Bt oo No ae 0 FIGURE 1. Charged futon groups corset ound te to the resin. The functional paymerbackooect he on excane res are ey 0 {Groups and intial counterions sly tremovemndesrate nso ete wat are designed such that the ions inthe treated water will have a great- er affinity for the charged functional groups and will disiodge the existing ions and take their piace, bonding \with the functional groups through shared electrostatic attraction (2) For example, in water-softening applications, water containing Ca? (or Mg? ions flows through the res- in bed, Since the SO3- functional ‘groups have a greater affinity for the hardness cations than for the Nav ions, the hardness ions cisplace the NNa* fons, which then flow out of the 1K unit as part of the treated stream, while the Ca?> or Mg? are retained bby the IX resin [2]. The imputities are captured from the feedwater until they saturate the IX resin material, after which they must be flushed out with a regener ant solution. These typically consist, of concentrated salts, acids or bases. By flushing the resin, the contaminant ions are released into a waste stream, {and the cations and anions in the res- inare restored for another cycle. Resins are designed to resst ther. maldegradation and oxdizingagents, {as well as organic fouling. In adcition to polystyrene-dlvinylbenzene resins, there are newer resins with an acrylic structure, which increases their resis tance to organic fouling, Resin categories ‘The ionizable groups attached to the resin bead determine the functional cepabilly of the resin. Generaly, in- ustriat-water-treatment resins are classified into four categories: ‘Strong acid cation (SAC) exchange resins. SAC resins are composed of a polystyrene matrix with a sulfonate (SOz) functional group that is either Charged with sodium ions for water softening applications, or hycrogen ions (H+) for demineralization. Weak acid cation (WAC) exchange resins. WAG resins are composed cf an aarytic polymer with carboxylic acid functional groups. Due to their high affinity for hydrogen ions (H’), WAC resins are typically used to se- lectively remove cations associated with aikalinty. Strong base anion (SBA) exchange resins. SBA resins are typically com= posed of a polystyrene matrix with fixed anions at exchange sites that yield either chloride tons or hydroxide ‘ons (OF). Weak base anion (WBA) exchange resins. WBA resins are unique in that, they do not have exchangeable ions, and are therefore used as acid ab: sorbers to remove anions associated with strong mineral acids. Chelating resins are also evalable for selective removal of certain metals and other substances, . References 1 Suave ogc Stee" ender fazer Sm SE 9 em 2017. De 01, CHEMICAL ENGINEERING WWW.CHEMENGONUNE.COM JUNE 2020