TY - JOUR
T1 - Desalination by pulsed electrodialysis reversal: Approaching fully closed-loop water systems in wood pulp mills
AU - Gonzalez-Vogel, Alvaro
AU - Moltedo, Juan J.
AU - Rojas, Orlando J.
N1 - Funding Information:
The authors are grateful with Arauco Bioforest S.A. for giving the right to use the presented results.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 The Authors
PY - 2021/11/15
Y1 - 2021/11/15
N2 - A pulsed electrodialysis reversal (pEDR) process is proposed to desalinate spent water after particle removal, biological and chemical coagulation, which are commonly used as a sequence in Kraft pulp mills. pEDR affords closed-loop processing, reducing the need for freshwater intake while maintaining the quality of recirculating process streams. Compared with conventional electrodialysis, pEDR minimizes production losses (from 5 % to 0.6 %), extending the time for hydraulic reversal (from 15 min to at least 2 h). Simultaneously, the conductivity of the effluent is significantly reduced, from 2100 to 200 μS/cm, reaching a quality similar to the feed water. The operation cost (0.38 US$/m3) is factored in the techno-economic viability of the process water recirculation, which is also demonstrated for its scalability. Additionally, WinGEMS simulation highlights the benefits of installing a pEDR unit, positively impacting mill water under different recirculation rates. Overall, we show remarkable gains in water economy, operation (maintenance and fouling), and quality, which are critical factors in achieving resource sufficiency.
AB - A pulsed electrodialysis reversal (pEDR) process is proposed to desalinate spent water after particle removal, biological and chemical coagulation, which are commonly used as a sequence in Kraft pulp mills. pEDR affords closed-loop processing, reducing the need for freshwater intake while maintaining the quality of recirculating process streams. Compared with conventional electrodialysis, pEDR minimizes production losses (from 5 % to 0.6 %), extending the time for hydraulic reversal (from 15 min to at least 2 h). Simultaneously, the conductivity of the effluent is significantly reduced, from 2100 to 200 μS/cm, reaching a quality similar to the feed water. The operation cost (0.38 US$/m3) is factored in the techno-economic viability of the process water recirculation, which is also demonstrated for its scalability. Additionally, WinGEMS simulation highlights the benefits of installing a pEDR unit, positively impacting mill water under different recirculation rates. Overall, we show remarkable gains in water economy, operation (maintenance and fouling), and quality, which are critical factors in achieving resource sufficiency.
KW - Effluent recirculation
KW - Electrodialysis reversal
KW - Kraft process wastewater
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85112563353&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.jenvman.2021.113518
DO - 10.1016/j.jenvman.2021.113518
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85112563353
VL - 298
JO - Journal of Environmental Management
JF - Journal of Environmental Management
SN - 0301-4797
M1 - 113518
ER -