January’s top stories: Mitsubishi’s low-cost treatment, Abengoa joins desalination

Research contract signed to study potential use of solar power for desalination

Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company and Masdar Institute of Science and Technology will be taking part in a research along with GDF Suez and Suez Environnement which will study possible use of solar power for seawater desalination.

The research project is part of a contract signed in June 2014 by Degrémont, which is a subsidiary of Suez Environnement.

According to the contract, the French utility will construct a seawater desalination plant which will be potentially powered by 100% renewable energy, leaving no environmental impact.

Mitsubishi Electric develops low-cost water treatment technology

Japanese company Mitsubishi Electric developed new water treatment technology that claims to treat industrial wastewater and sewage at lower cost.

The technology uses hydroxyl (OH) radicals generated through an electric discharge created at a gas/liquid interface to remove persistent organic substances in wastewater.

Mitsubishi Electric’s new technology features a reactor that uses several inclined plate electrodes in humid oxygen over which the wastewater flows.

Thames Water faces multi-million pound bill from Network Rail for tunnel flooding

Network Rail in the UK has charged water utility Thames Water a ‘multi-million pound bill’ after a burst water main and multiple water pipe leaks, which the rail operator says disrupted the railway services and cancelled more than 1,000 trains.

The disruptions, which have been continuing from last Friday, has resulted in around 133 hours of combined delays for the running trains.

Network Rail route managing director Phil Verster said: "Passengers have suffered a lot this week as a result of Thames Water’s burst and leaking pipes.

 

Abengoa partners with Masdar for desalination research project in Abu Dhabi

Spanish technology firm Abengoa signed a partnership deal with the Masdar Institute and the Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company for a desalination research project.

The research project is aimed at optimisation of membrane distillation technology which will be used to treat reverse osmosis brines.

The outcome of the research is expected to boost water recovery and productivity of seawater reverse osmosis plants.

Veolia Water Technologies launches redesigned potable water treatment solution

Veolia Water Technologies modified the design of its water treatment solution OPASCEP PACK in compliance with World Health Organisation’s (WHO) recommendations.

The upgraded solution comprises of multiple skid-mounted systems which can turn surface water into potable water.

It combines advanced technologies including coagulation, flocculation, lamella clarification, pressure sand filtration and disinfection in a single skid.

Royal HaskoningDHV and Vitens team up to recover humic acid from water plants

Netherlands-based Royal HaskoningDHV signed a partnership agreement with Dutch water company Vitens for recovery of humic acid, an organic fertiliser.

Royal HaskoningDHV has come up with advanced technology that helps to recover the humic acid from drinking water, which is usually discharged by water treatment firms as waste during the blanching process.

When preserved in its pure form, humic acid can be used to improve soil quality and livestock farming.

 

EIB provides £230m loan to Dwr Cymru Welsh Water for infrastructure development

European Investment Bank (EIB) approved a £230m loan facility to water and wastewater service provider Dwr Cymru Welsh Water (DCWW).

The 15-year loan will help improve DCWW’s services by financing its extensive capital expenditure programme.

The loan will be partially used to fund DCWW’s £120m investment programme, which is likely to improve potable water quality after rebuilding, refurbishing or upgrading 12 water treatment works.

Bill Gates supports technology innovation that turns human waste to drinking water

Seattle-based engineering firm Janicki Bioenergy received support from the philanthropic Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation for its latest project, which turns human waste into drinking water.

Bill Gates, the billionaire activist, is backing the innovation that enables processing of potable water and energy from human waste.

Made possible through an ‘OmniProcessor’, the technology involves extraction of water from sewage piped or delivered to the facility.

GE’s water reuse technology saves 1.3 million gallons of water daily at Pennsylvanian power plant

General Electric (GE) said that the implementation of its advanced RePAK water reuse technology at Covanta Delaware Valley’s energy-from-waste facility in Chester, Pennsylvania, has saved almost 1.3 million gallons of local water each day.

Covanta installed the RePAK combination ultrafiltration (UF) and reverse osmosis (RO) system at the power plant as a tertiary package, in order to upgrade the facility.

The new system enabled the plant to reuse treated discharge water from a nearby municipal wastewater treatment plant for its cooling tower.