Ionics Begins Work for the City of Minneapolis on Ultrafiltration System

Ionics, Incorporated has begun work on a $17 million contract from the City of Minneapolis to supply a 70 million gallon per day ultrafiltration (UF) system. The new membrane-based system will enable the City to comply with new surface water treatment regulations promulgated by the U.S. EPA. The Minneapolis Water Works serves over half a million people on a daily basis and draws all of its water from surface water sources.

The new UF facility, which is expected to be operational in 2004, will upgrade the existing conventional water treatment plant built nearly 90 years ago. The Columbia Heights water treatment facility will be the largest UF treatment plant in the United States and among the largest membrane filtration plants in the world.

Ultrafiltration is a membrane-based water treatment technology utilized for meeting the increasingly stringent regulations for ensuring drinking water quality. The new plant will utilize Norit UF membrane technology which provides for removal of waterborne microorganisms including giardia, Cryptosporidium and viruses.

According to Arthur L. Goldstein, Ionics' Chairman and CEO, "We are very pleased that after an extensive pilot program, the City of Minneapolis has chosen Ionics to build this major water treatment facility. We expect that this UF facility will serve as a benchmark for future surface water treatment projects as communities large and small consider options for meeting increasingly stringent regulatory requirements in order to provide safe, quality drinking water for their residents."

Source: Ionics, Inc.