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The scarcity and change in water quality reinforce the need to reuse effluents in water intensive industries as the petrochemical ones. In this article, the tertiary effluent from a Petrochemical Complex in Southern Brazil was used as feed water in a pilot unit with a capacity of 1 m³.h−1 to produce industrial water to be reused as clarified or demineralized water (ultra-pure water). For the treatment, an integrated system composed of ultrafiltration (UF), reverse osmosis (RO) and electrodeionization (EDI) was used. The parameters evaluated were aluminum, calcium, chloride, electrical conductivity (EC), color, chemical oxygen demand (COD), iron, magnesium, pH, total suspended solids (TSS), sulfate and turbidity. The UF/RO system operated with average permeate fluxes of 6.6 and 6.7 L.h−1.m−2, respectively. For the EDI, the operational parameters (flow rate, electric current and EC in the feed water) were optimized, considering the percentage of conductivity removal (%RC) as a response, by using response surface methodology (RSM) based on a central composite design (CCD). The best predicted values of flow rate, electric current and conductivity of the feed water were 6.6 L.min−1, 1.27 A, and 22.2 µS.cm−1, respectively. The %RC predicted in the software was 98.2%, similar to the mean value at the midpoint 97.1%. The EDI system was operated with the model conditions, and the product water reached the necessary quality to be reused as demineralized water in the Southern Petrochemical Complex in Brazil. Industrial reuse can reduce 20% raw water collection and 70% of the effluent volume disposed in the soil, thus reducing the water footprint, and increasing the sustainability of the petrochemical industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the problems of water availability in Brazil and throughout the world, there is a need to search for water supply alternatives. Brazil, despite being a country rich in water resources, has non-uniform water distribution which presents an imbalance between supply and demand in different regions of the country. The northeast region is the most affected by the lack of water, mainly the semiarid northeast, followed by the southeast. The installation of desalination plants in Brazil is a favorable option for solving water supply problems in Brazil, since it is an efficient technique already used in many countries. However, its significant energy consumption makes it necessary to search for alternative energy technologies for its supply. One such option is incineration. Thus, the present study consists of an energetic and economic feasibility analysis of the installation of a desalination plant in Brazil, using incineration as an energy source. Through energy analysis, the results showed that incineration does not produce enough energy to power the desalination plant. For a population of 500,000, the incineration plant provides only 36% of the energy required by desalination. However, this frame can increase to 73% with the use of municipal consortia. The economic analysis was carried out using desalination cost (DC) as a parameter, and three sensitivity analyses were carried out in order to assess possible reductions in this cost: variation in the import rate, the tax rate, and the use of municipal consortia. The results showed that while the use of consortia and favorable public policies to guarantee national production of this technology are very important in reducing costs, government incentives to reduce the tax rate promote the greatest reduction in the DC, reaching 0.956 USD/m3 for a population of 500,000 inhabitants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The reverse osmosis (RO) process has been increasingly applied to landfill leachate treatment. The published literature reports several studies that investigated the technical feasibility of RO. However, information about process costs is scarce. Also, companies that run leachate treatment plants do not provide actual costs. To fill this gap, this study aimed to evaluate the treatment costs of a full-scale RO for the treatment of landfill leachate located in Rio de Janeiro State, Brazil. A procedure was proposed to estimate the capital expenses (CAPEX), operational expenses (OPEX), and specific total treatment cost, the total cost per m3 of treated leachate, of the leachate treatment by membrane process, and the results obtained are discussed. The CAPEX for this full-scale RO was estimated at MUS$ 1.413, and OPEX ranged from US$ 0.132 to US$ 0.265 m−3 per year. The cost of leachate treatment has been estimated at US$ 8.58 m−3 considering the operation of the RO-unit for 20 years after landfill closure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Our objective was to evaluate the physicochemical parameters of waste brine from reverse osmosis desalination plants and to evaluate the physicochemical parameters of soils where it is discharged in rural communities in the western Potiguar region of the state of Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil. Soil samples of two types (Eutrophic Red Argisol and Fluvic Neosol) were collected in the dry and rainy seasons in two communities at two distances from the discharge point (1 and 2 m) and at the point itself, in two layers for each point (0–20 and 20–40 cm). In addition, samples of waste brine were taken from the desalination plants for the evaluation of the physicochemical quality and contamination risks. All brine samples were classified as C3 or C4, which is, extremely high risk of salinization, needing special practices for salinity control. The two soils that received the brine presented significant alterations of their attributes and quality throughout the periods. This was more pronounced in the dry season and the layers of soils with a greater amount of clay, which resulted in the soil receiving different classifications, which were influenced directly by the brine. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The chemical composition and the impacts of reject brine disposal from desalination plants on soils of the west of Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil, were evaluated. Soil samples in the 0.0-0.2 and 0.2-0.4 m profiles were collected at three points of reject brine influences (0, 0.8 and 1.6 m of reject brine site) and a point in the native forest (without the influence of reject brine) for chemical characterization. The analysis showed that 25% of the native forest soils have problems of salinity and/or sodicity, suggesting that salt-affected soils already existed in some communities even without the disposal of brine. The variability between the results on analysis of soil chemical properties from study lands suggests an individual assessment of potential risk of soil salinization due to the disposal of reject brine from desalination plants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

End-of-life reverse osmosis (EoL-RO) elements are a valuable product currently disposed into the landfill. However, other noble destination options need to be taken into consideration. Direct reuse and conversion to other types of membranes have already been technically addressed and proved their feasibility, for example. Nevertheless, from a sustainable perception, they need to be assessed in terms of their environmental, economic, and social dimensions. Hence, this work integrated an environmental life-cycle assessment to a socioeconomic evaluation of five disposal options for the EoL-RO elements in Brazil. Regarding environmental aspects, results converged from those seen for developing countries, where direct reuse and conversion to the UF membrane posed as better options. Additionally, recycling of parts presented itself as the most inexpensive alternative (U$$ 0.36/element). On the social aspect, recycling was outreached by reuse and conversion to the UF membrane, since these two would hopefully provide regular jobs with greater social security. • The disposal of end-of-life reverse osmosis is growing and needs to be addressed considering the life-cycle thinking. • Reuse and conversion were the end-of-life alternatives that presented the best environmental and socioeconomic gains. • Transportation should be taken into account because it can add more environmental burden than landfill disposure. • These results indicate that RO elements urgently need to be directed to other purposes rather than landfill disposure. • It is important to encourage other membrane designs to help improving the use of these elements after their first lifespan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Seawater intrusion into the Pombas River, source of freshwater to Praia de Leste on the coast of Parana in Brazil presents a problem to the water utility as most water treatment plants in Brazil are conventional. To find a solution to this problem, a pilot plant (1 m3/h) consisting of ultrafiltration (UF) followed by reverse osmosis (RO) was developed and evaluated. For testing, brackish water was produced with a concentration of 1,500 ± 100 mg/L of total dissolved solids (TDS), mixing seawater and fresh water. To evaluate the water quality, TDS, electrical conductivity, pH, temperature, apparent color, turbidity, alkalinity, total hardness, calcium, chloride and sulfate were monitored. For operational performance, flowrates, osmotic pressure, filtration rate, recovery rate and mass balance were analyzed. On average, the UF system removed 96.4% of turbidity and 98.6% of apparent color; whereas the RO system removed 99.4% of TDS. The overall average recovery (UF and RO) was 45.81% with average osmotic pressure of 8.21 bar, filtration rate of 30.7 L/h/m² in the UF system and 21.7 L/h/m² in the RO system. From a water quality point of view, the system was effective in processing brackish into fresh water of high quality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Desalination using reverse osmosis (RO) elements is increasing worldwide. In addition to creating technical alternatives to extend their life-cycle, it is also important to assess how circular economy can be encouraged considering the role of the involved stakeholders. To help address this issue, this work proposed a transition pathway towards more sustainable waste management scenarios. It was built using a three-step methodology whose highlight was to use life-cycle assessment results to classify the level of institutional and sustainable disruption of three disposure options (reuse/chemical conversion/recycling of materials). Once built, a system-level perspective was used to explore potential win, losses, and conflicts from the actors involved in the waste chain. It was seen that the current scenario follows a linear take-make-disposal structure and there is a need to promote actors that will actually perform direct reuse and chemical conversion of the membranes. However, even if these actors are encouraged, they might encounter a resistance of business-as-usual, since there is no legal restriction for landfill disposal. In addition, institutional framework needs to be addressed to avoid direct competition and promote partnership with these and other actors in the waste chain. • A transition pathway was proposed to assess changes in reverse osmosis waste management. • To build the transition pathway, life-cycle analysis results were integrated to the current waste management scenario. • Reuse/conversion posed as the most environmentally friendly and institutionally disruptive options. • To implement recycling of materials might encounter drawbacks because of management difficulties. • It is important to avoid competition for resources and promote partnerships within the waste chain. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• RO-EDR hybrid process treating petrochemical wastewater. • RO-EDR hybrid process produced high quality industrial process water. • Integrated membrane processes allowed water recovery in the industry. • Water reuse in a petrochemical industry. The objective of this work is to increase the recovery of water through a Reverse Osmosis + Electrodialysis Reversal (RO-EDR) hybrid process, where the EDR is used to recover water from the reject produced by the RO technology. The wastewater used in the experiments was collected in a petrochemical industry, located in southern Brazil, after conventional treatment (biological and stabilization ponds). The RO tests were carried out in a pilot equipment, having a spiral membrane module, with a membrane area of 7.2 m2. For the EDR tests, it was used a pilot equipment, with 300 ion-selective membranes, with a total membrane area of 28.8 m2. The results show that the application of EDR technology was adequate for the treatment of the RO reject, obtaining a removal efficiency above 90% for chlorides and alkalinity. The recovered water comply with standards for reuse in cooling towers. In addition, the full recovery of the treated water was satisfactory, reaching a recovery rate of 87.3%, turning the EDR-RO hybrid process as a prominent one. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Low wind speeds allow direct coupling of windmill and reverse osmosis. • At lower flow rates, windmill pressure and gradients increase. • Accumulator mitigates excessive pressure gradients. • Lower windmill pump flow rates yield higher fresh water production. Installing windmills in dispersed communities with scarce water resources and a limited conventional electricity grid, such as the semi-arid regions of northeast Brazil with a low human development index, visibly improves people's quality of life. The situation becomes even more challenging when the artesian wells, from which windmills draw water, contain brackish water, as more energy must be employed for desalination. Reverse osmosis (RO) desalination systems have been employed worldwide and are todays most common. However, RO membrane systems can only withstand mild pressure variations, which can limit their direct use with conventional windmills since windmills' reciprocating pumps produce abrupt pressure variations. In this context, the present work aims to experimentally quantify the pressure gradients caused by piston pumps driven by windmills and confirm whether they can be used in conjunction with RO systems. To this end, an experimental apparatus was constructed, comprising a geared motor with a frequency inverter to simulate the windmill, a piston pump, and a conventional RO system. As a potential solution to mitigate abrupt pressure variations, a hydraulic pressure accumulator was utilized. As anticipated, high-pressure gradients were observed that exceeded the limits supported by the membranes during testing of the reference case (without a pressure accumulator). By employing the pressure accumulator, a reduction of 68.1% in pressure gradients was observed for the tested wind speeds, thereby enabling the direct coupling of windmills to RO systems in low wind speed conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The process of desalination through filtering membranes leads to the issue of generating a residue with a high concentration of salts, called concentrate. This residue is an environmental pollutant, especially when desalination is carried out far away from the sea (i.g., desalination in northeastern Brazil). In this context, the objective of the present research was to study the valorization of desalination concentrate through an aquaponic system. The feed water (brackish water) was desalinated, generating the concentrate, which was used for the operation of the experimental aquaponic pilot system in the cultivation of Litopenaeus vannamei (known as Pacific white shrimp) and New Zealand spinach (Tetragonia tetragonioides) in microbial biofloc. The initial average weight of the shrimp was 1.5 g and the stocking density used in the culture was 250 shrimp m−3. The experiment was carried out for 74 days, and the final weight was 14.57 g and survival was 18 %. The low survival may be due to the high concentration of nitrite in the culture water 11.75 mg/L, which can be toxic to shrimp, and also due to the ionic balance of the system that was not close to seawater. Therefore, it is recommended to start the experiment when the biofloco system is in the chemoautotrophic stage, with the nitrification process established, or work with higher salinity. The spinach experiment was carried out for 49 days, with an initial biomass of 29.38 g and a final biomass of 519.41 g. Iron deficit was observed in the spinach leaves, thus, adding iron into the system is recommended. The results obtained could encourage the use of technology that is simple to apply and brings benefits to the community. Thus, the valorization of the waste produced in the desalination of water by reverse osmosis membranes reduces its inherent impact on the deposition of concentrate in natural environments. [Display omitted] • Desalination of water through RO system. • Operation of an aquaponic system with RO concentrate. • First study of an aquaponic system with L. vannamei and New Zealand spinach using BFT and NFT. • The research studies possible valorization of the RO concentrate in northeastern Brazil. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Brazil, contrary to what many people believe, is a country that is suffering from water shortage. The inland regions of the country have experienced drought periods and must be prepared for this reality. Brackish groundwater from the Guarani Aquifer System treated by reverse osmosis (RO) could be used for the water supply, but the cost of the produced water must be competitive. We designed a RO facility for supplying water to a small city and made an economic assessment using different scenarios. The predicted cost of the water was in the range of 0.25–0.39 US$/m³ . [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Irrigation & Drainage is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This study was carried out in a greenhouse under the semi-arid conditions of Ibimirim City in Pernambuco State (northeast Brazil) to evaluate rocket yield under different salinity levels in the NFT hydroponics cultivation using saline underground water and the tailing from its desalination. Six levels of water salinity (CEa: 0.2; 1.2; 2.2; 3.2; 4.2; 5.2 dS m-1) were studied. Two water salinity sources used in the preparation of the nutritive solution were also evaluated: water artificially salinized with NaCl and brackish groundwater, obtained from a deep tubular well and mixed with its desalination tailing (reverse osmosis). Desalinized water was used to restore the evapotranspiration (ETc) losses. Differences between the salinity sources on rocket growth were not observed. On the other hand, the increase of water salinity produced a negative effect on rocket plants yield and quality. Chlorosis symptoms and burning of leaf edges were observed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Revista Caatinga is the property of Revista Caatinga and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Revista Brasileira de Engenharia Agricola e Ambiental - Agriambi is the property of Revista Brasileira de Engenharia Agricola e Ambiental and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Revista de Economia e Sociologia Rural is the property of Sociedade Brasileira de Economia e Sociologia Rural and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

The petrochemical industry uses high volumes of water in its production processes and generates effluents that have a great potential for reuse in production processes. The reuse of these effluents is, therefore, an alternative for the sustainable development of the sector. This study aimed at evaluating the application of ultrafiltration (UF) and reverse osmosis (RO) in the treatment of petrochemical effluents for the production of industrial reuse water, reducing environmental impacts caused by the disposal of effluents in the soil. The experiments were carried out with effluents named waste stabilization pond 1 (WSP-1), waste stabilization pond 8 (WSP-8) and an inorganic effluent (INO), which was used as feedwater in the pilot unit with a treatment capacity of 1 m³.h-- 1. The parameters chosen for evaluation in the treated effluents were calcium, magnesium, chloride, sulfate, electrical conductivity (EC), total organic carbon, color, chemical oxygen demand (COD), pH, total suspended solids and turbidity. Membrane permeate fluxes were determined to evaluate the performance of the pilot system. After treatment and characterization of each effluent, the results were compared to define the most suitable effluent to achieve the quality required for industrial reuse. The results showed that the proposed UF/RO treatment provided a stable flux for the WSP-8 effluent. Conversely, the other streams showed an accentuated decrease in flux, which indicates fouling processes of the UF and RO membranes. As for the efficiency of the treatment, the process removed compounds of interest such as COD above 90%, salts and EC above 92% for the three assessed effluents. Thus, considering all aspects evaluated in this study, WSP-8 was the most suitable to be used as feed in the pilot system with UF and RO. The permeate produced presented the necessary quality for reuse in the industries of the Southern Petrochemical Complex, presenting equivalent characteristics to those of clarified water. Thus, the reuse of treated petrochemical effluents may be an important alternative source of water resources in face of availability and scarcity restrictions in industries in southern Brazil. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Desalination is increasingly becoming an integral part of water management strategies of several countries worldwide. However, it causes environmental impacts that need to be further assessed. This includes the disposure of end-of-life reverse osmosis (RO) elements. Hence, this work proposes a methodology to estimate and forecast the disposure of these elements without fixing the membrane lifespan. To this, a time-step model was applied for the first and the ARIMA model was used for the latter. It was possible to estimate a generation of 900 t from 2016 to 2019 in Brazil and forecast a generation of 1800 t by 2024. In addition, to define RO industrial use in Brazil as supplied by 8-inch only elements have proved to be a good approximation (2% deviation). Furthermore, the disposure rate (in elements/m3·day) of EoL-RO elements in Brazil was found as double as countries such as Spain and Australia. This indicates that operation conditions should be improved and/or that membranes are being discarded before time. Such results are important to subsidize further environmental impact assessment regarding EoL-RO in Brazil and improve production management. Finally, the proposed methodology can be easily applied to other countries whose membranes are mostly imported, as the case of developing countries. • An estimation of reverse osmosis elements waste generation was performed using the time-step model. • The model can be extended to other countries without needing to define the membrane lifespan. • Around 900 t of RO elements waste has been generated in Brazil from 2016 to 2019. • Waste forecast using ARIMA predicted that 1800 t will be discarded by 2024. • The disposure rate in Brazil was found as double as other countries, which indicates a lower membrane lifespan. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Membrane technology developed by Japan's Toray Industries Inc has been selected for use in a sea-water reverse osmosis (SWRO) desalination facility for a producer of steel based in Brazil. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The necessity for landfill leachate treatment is a requisite to reduce the environmental impact related to municipal solid waste landfills and different aspects must be considered while deciding for an appropriate treatment process. For example, it was demonstrated that the landfill leachate stabilization in tropical regions is achieved right after its first year of operation, requiring technologies capable of treating leachates of a higher recalcitrant character if compared to those leachates from temperate regions and same landfill age. In view of its complexity and variability, stand-alone processes (either biological or physicochemical) are often ineffective in attaining the threshold values for its discharge in receiving bodies. Due to that fact, full-scale facilities have adopted integrated routes, harvesting the benefits of both biological and physicochemical processes. The implementation of membrane bioreactors followed by polishing membrane separation process (nanofiltration and reverse osmosis) seems to be a trend in leachate treatment by full-scale treatment plants. This technology is widely employed in China, European countries, and tropical countries as Brazil, generally with a treatment cost lower than the costs related to its disposal in domestic effluent collection systems. From the technologies already employed by full-scale facilities, four integrated routes were proposed for a sensitive analysis considering the treatment of a landfill leachate of different physicochemical characteristics. From all routes, those employing the membrane separation process as a polishing step had a better efficacy in attaining the threshold values for leachate disposal, being that an interesting alternative for leachate polishing by full-scale facilities. [Display omitted] • Leachate stabilization occurs significantly faster in tropical climate. • MBR combined with RO units is an interesting route for leachate treatment. • Advances in process control and membrane material allows for ease of implementation. • Polishing steps with membranes allow for reuse water generation. • Physical-chemical and biological process integration is highlighted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The importance of noroviruses (NoVs) in the epidemiology of waterborne diseases has increased globally in the last decades. The present study aimed to monitor genogroup I and II noroviruses in different treatment stages of four wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) in the metropolitan São Paulo. WWTPs consist of secondary (activated sludge) and tertiary treatments (coagulation, sand-anthracite filters, membrane bioreactor (MBR)/reverse osmosis (RO) and chlorination). Raw sewage (500mL) and treated effluents (1L) were concentrated by celite and reclaimed water (40L) by hollow-fiber ultrafiltration system. Quantitative (qPCR) and nested PCR with nucleotide sequencing were used for quantification and molecular characterization. NoVs were widely distributed in raw wastewater samples (83.3%-100% NoV GI and 91.6%-100% NoV GII) and viral loads varied from 3.8 to 6.66log 10 gcL -1 for NoV GI and 3.8 to 7.3log 10 gcL -1 for NoV GII. Mean virus removal efficiencies obtained for activated sludge processes ranged from 0.3 to 0.8 log 10 for NoV GI and 0.4 to 1.4 log 10 for NoV GII. NoVs were not detected in the reuse water produced by MBR/RO system, while sand-anthracite filters resulted in a NoV GI and GII decay of 1.1-1.6 log 10 and 0.7-1.6 log 10 , respectively. A variety of genotypes (GI.2, GI.3a, GI.3b, GI.5, GII.1, GII.4 Sydney 2012, GII.5, GII.6, GII.17) was observed, with a predominance of GI.2 and GII.17 in the different genogroups. These results corroborate with recent data about the entry and dissemination of the emerging genotype GII.P17-GII.17 Kawasaki 2014 in the country, and may indicate a change in the epidemiological patterns of norovirus strains circulation in this region. This is the first large-scale study to evaluate burden and genotypes of noroviruses in WWTPs in Brazil, providing a rapid diagnosis of viruses circulating in the population., (Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

This case study shows how reverse osmosis technology, developed by GE Water & Process Technologies, is helping a chemicals plant in Brazil reduce both natural gas consumption and effluent discharge. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

US-based membrane and filtration technology company Koch Membrane Systems Inc (KMS) has been selected by Aquapolo Ambiental Sa to provide a water reuse unit, comprising Puron membrane bioreactor (MBR) modules and MegaMagnum RO systems, for a new facility in São Paulo, Brazil. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]