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Pacific Advanced Civil Engineering, Inc. (PACE) of Fountain Valley, CA has been selected for one of three U.S. Bureau of Reclamation grants as part of innovative pilot-scale water treatment technologies and processes for inland desalination. PACE’s project, “Development of a Novel Photobiological Process to Improve Water Recovery in Brackish Groundwater Desalination,” will be given $100,000 in federal funding for a year-long project, including a two-month period of pilot testing at USBR’s Brackish Groundwater National Desalination Research Facility (BGNDRF) in Alamogordo, New Mexico.
Reclamation’s innovative funding program began in 2016 when they solicited and received 12 proposals. These proposals were reviewed and six projects were invited to interact with the Applications Review Committee, in-person, and pitch their proposal. This interactive event was hosted at the BGNDRF on October 19-20.
PACE, along with the Enhanced Recovery from Impaired Water Resources: Field-Scale Validation of Hybrid Ion Exchange-Membrane (HIX-M) Desalination Process from Lehigh University and the Pilot Evaluation of a Sustainable Autonomous Brackish Groundwater Desalination System from the University of North Texas will share in the $299,685 that Reclamation has dedicated to help in assuring sustainable water supplies in the future. Specifically, in addition to the $100,000 that PACE will receive, the Lehigh University project is being granted $99,726 and the University of North Texas will receive $99,959 in federal funding.
“Reclamation and its partners are working to assure sustainable water supplies and provide clean and reliable water supplies for the Western United States,” Commissioner Estevan López said. “Through the development of new water treatment technologies, such as the ones announced today, impaired waters will become a new and reliable source of water for communities throughout the country and specifically in the West.”
The PACE project will be conducting a pilot-scale test of a novel photobiological process utilizing diatoms to rapidly remove inorganic scalants from reverse osmosis (RO) concentrate. PACE has received support and cooperation for this project from the University of Arizona, the University of California Riverside, the University of California Irvine, Tech & Business Consulting, Orange County Water District (OCWD), West Basin Municipal Water District (WBMWD), Water Replenishment District of Southern California (WRD), and Las Virgenes Municipal Water District (LVMWD). Pace considers Alamogordo, New Mexico as an ideal location for their project, because it has naturally brackish groundwater and plenty of sunlight year-round for the photobiological process. Bench scale studies have already been conducted by PACE using diatoms and the initial testing has proven to be successful.
“I found some naturally occurring diatoms. I cultured and tested them to remove silica… and it worked,” stated Keisuke Ikehata, PhD, PE, PEng Advanced Water R&D manager at PACE. The pilot-scale project is the next step toward applying this technology at a commercial scale with real life applications.
The process of reusing wastewater and desalinating brackish groundwater generally involves membrane desalination such as RO. Reverse osmosis is a water purification technology that removes salts and organic materials from water to create safe drinking water. While RO does produce an extremely clean supply of water, most systems today can only recover up to 80 percent or less of the water fed into the system, resulting in 20 percent of the water becoming concentrated brine. This brine is highly enriched with inorganic scalants including silica, calcium, iron, manganese, and phosphorus.
To reduce the volume of concentrated brine from the first phase of RO through this novel process, the brine is transferred to a photobioreactor that employs photosynthetic microorganisms (diatoms) to naturally consume the silica and other scalants as a nutrient for growth. Diatoms need light to grow and absorb those contaminants, so the photobioreactor is placed under a prominent light source, in this case sunlight, for rapid mineral removal. The treated brine is then passed through a second phase of RO. The project goal is a recovery of more than 90 percent of water, which represents a significant improvement over current industry standards.
“I’m very glad people see the value of this research. It could be a viable option to help this thirsty world,” said Dr. Ikehata.
PACE participated in Reclamation’s challenging interview process to obtain their $100,00 award. Dr. Ikehata, along with Dr. Ron Rovansek, PE, LEED AP, led a one-hour presentation to the Applications Review Committee on behalf of the PACE project.
PACE is a specialized civil engineering firm offering advanced water resource services since 1987. Through the application of knowledge, creativity, and innovative design, they develop aesthetic, environmentally sustainable and practical engineering services and solutions. These wide range of water engineering services include water, wastewater, stormwater management, water resource permitting, and many more that are both economically viable and environmentally sustainable.
A full description of the three winning projects is available at www.usbr.gov/research. The funding provided today supports the White House’s Water Innovation Strategy to address Water Resource Challenges and Opportunities for Water Technology Innovation. Reclamation’s Desalination and Water Purification Research Program works with researchers and partners to develop more innovative, cost-effective, and technologically efficient ways to desalinate water. Learn more at: http://www.usbr.gov/research/st/pitchtopilot.html.
