Saltworks Technologies has announced the first full-scale order for an industrial Ultra High-Pressure Reverse Osmosis (UHP RO) system with Nitto high performing HYDRANAUTICS™ PRO-XP1 spiral wound membranes rated to 1,800 psi (124 bar).
Ultra high-pressure RO builds on the pedigree of seawater reverse osmosis systems, but operates at 50% higher pressure—beneficially halving the volume of brine generated. This means less waste and more clean water. Saltworks started working on UHP RO two years ago, quickly finding that HYDRANAUTICS™ membranes offered best-in-class performance. The Company has since been pilot testing UHP RO on various customer applications including mining waters, factory wastewater, ion exchange regeneration waste, and cooling tower blowdown.
The first full scale industrial client, a US manufacturer of advanced materials, will use the system for a win-win scenario: achieving a 10 times reduction in disposal volume, while recovering clean water for re-use.
Saltworks' CEO, Ben Sparrow, commented "We see wide applications for UHP RO to help clients save money, save water, and reduce waste. As PFAS becomes more important in North America, UHP RO is set to play a significant part of in solutions, driving down waste volumes sent to disposal wells or to destruction. In our testing, HYDRANAUTICS™ membranes have out-performed expectations and enable the next generation of reverse osmosis and brine recovery."
Regarding this new membrane product, Hydranautics' VP of Technology, Dr. Craig Bartels, added "As a technological leader in the industry, Nitto has a long line of industry 'firsts' as well as having advanced manufacturing facilities with the latest in automation technology. The PRO-XP1 is a new ultra high-pressure product in the PRO series line, which offers novel NF and RO products for treatment of the most difficult industrial wastewater applications."
Although UHP RO builds on seawater RO, it requires speciality membranes, new spiral element designs, and process-control art to enable the solution.