Sulfuric Acid Pretreatment Elimination Reduces OPEX for City of Palm Coast?s Membrane Softening Plant

Eliminating sulfuric acid injection in the NF feed at the City of Palm Coast site improved cartridge filter run times and led to a significant reduction in chemical consumption. The total annual savings in operation costs were estimated to be approximately $145,000. A laboratory analysis performed for this study indicated that the foulant matrix consisted of sulfur/metallic sulfides and organics. While, pH adjustment can reduce the membrane scaling potential, it can also lead to aggravated biofouling or inorganic fouling. As a result, groundwaters containing hydrogen sulfide, natural organic matter, and high levels of hardness compound their operational issues by using sulfuric acid pretreatment.