Koch Membrane Systems, Inc. (KMS), a world class developer and manufacturer of innovative membranes and membrane filtration systems, has been selected to provide ultrafiltration equipment under a contract with the Mattapoisett River Valley Water District of Mattapoisett, Mass. The project is unique in that it will provide potable water to a joint water district, including the towns of Mattapoisett, Fairhaven, Marion and Rochester.
Supported in part by a state revolving fund loan, the joint project was developed as an economic solution to provide drinking water to the towns. "Working with Tata & Howard, the district concluded that a regional approach provides a cost-effective alternative for treatment of eight municipal water sources,” said Susan Hunnewell, project manager for Tata & Howard, the engineering firm that is heading the project. “The project promotes the sharing of water resources within the Mattapoisett River Valley by four towns and allows for the reactivation of wells that are currently offline.”
“The selected treatment process of ozone oxidation followed by ultrafiltration has been successfully implemented by Tata & Howard using Koch Membrane Systems ultrafiltration technology in the past,” said Hunnewell. The Mattapoisett plant is the most recent of several ultrafiltration systems supplied by KMS in Massachusetts. The first system, in the Town of Littleton, has been in operation for over eight years, and is still using the original set of membrane cartridges. Of this latest contract, Nick Powell, vice president of KMS municipal business, said “KMS ultrafiltration systems have once again proven themselves to be the best technical and economical solutions for the removal of iron and manganese in the production of drinking water.”
Four compact HF-56 membrane filtration units, each with 45, 10-in. cartridges, will be installed on site at the end of 2006 to begin operation in early 2007. The membrane filters and equipment will be supplied from eight different well water sources. The system will produce 6 mgd of filtered water.
The four-unit system consists of low-pressure, polymeric, PMPW hollow fiber membrane cartridges mounted on process manifolds, along with the necessary, controls, valves, instrumentation, backflush equipment and clean-in-place equipment. The robust PMPW membrane has a small pore size and will act as a barrier to pathogens. Because it will tolerate a wide pH range and is resistant to chlorine, the PMPW membrane is easy to clean.
Each unit is completely frame-mounted, SCADA-compatible and pre-wired, with field connections kept to a minimum. System operation is automated, requiring minimal operator attention.
Source: Koch Membrane Systems, Inc.
