The Role of Aquifer Media in Improving the Quality of Seawater Feed to Desalination Plants

Sola, Fernando; Vallejos, Á.; López-Geta, Juan Antonio; Pulido−Bosch, A.

doi:10.1007/s11269-012-0243-6

Cited by 15 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 42 publications

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“…The quality of the produced water depends on the efficiency of the membranes, the pressure, and the degree of salinity. Sola et al [51] studied the quality of the feed water at a RO desalination plant, considering the physical, chemical, and microbiological composition of water samples taken from direct seawater Water 2019, 11, 2467 7 of 20 intake and others from drilled boreholes over the aquifer shoreline. It was concluded that due to infiltration through the aquifer media, the quality of brackish or saline water abstracted from coastal boreholes is considerably better than direct seawater intakes.…”

Section: Hydraulic Barriersmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…It was concluded that due to infiltration through the aquifer media, the quality of brackish or saline water abstracted from coastal boreholes is considerably better than direct seawater intakes. Low organic carbon and dissolved oxygen contents, low turbidity, and silt density index are other positive characteristics of the abstracted saline or brackish water, which play a role in the selection of these sources to feed RO desalination units over direct seawater intake [51,52]. According to Miller [53] and Stein et al [54], the majority the seawater desalination costs using RO re attributed to the high energy consumption.…”

Section: Hydraulic Barriersmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Management of Seawater Intrusion in Coastal Aquifers: A Review

Hussain

Abd-Elhamid

Javadi

et al. 2019

Water

141

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Seawater intrusion (SWI) is one of the most challenging and widespread environmental problems that threaten the quality and sustainability of fresh groundwater resources in coastal aquifers. The excessive pumping of groundwater, associated with the lack of natural recharge, has exacerbated the SWI problem in arid and semi-arid regions. Therefore, appropriate management strategies should be implemented in coastal aquifers to control the impacts of SWI problems, considering acceptable limits of economic and environmental costs. The management of coastal aquifers involves the identification of an acceptable ultimate landward extent of the saline water body and the calculation of the amount of seaward discharge of freshwater that is necessary to keep the saline–freshwater interface in a seacoast position. This paper presents a comprehensive review of available hydraulic and physical management strategies that can be used to reduce and control SWI in coastal aquifers. Advantages and disadvantages of the different approaches are presented and discussed.

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Section: Hydraulic Barriersmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Hydraulic Barriersmentioning

confidence: 99%

Management of Seawater Intrusion in Coastal Aquifers: A Review

Hussain

Abd-Elhamid

Javadi

et al. 2019

Water

141

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“…The main drawback of this abstraction method is that water quality is usually poor due to high concentrations of organic matter and dissolved oxygen, and has an elevated silt density index, which generally exceeds the values recommended by the manufacturers of the reverse osmosis membranes [91].…”

Section: Desalinated Watermentioning

confidence: 96%

“…The two abstraction methods most commonly used are open seawater intake and beach well systems [91].…”

Section: Desalinated Watermentioning

confidence: 99%

Integral Management of Irrigation Water in Intensive Horticultural Systems of Almería

et al. 2017

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Abstract:The development of intensive horticulture in Almería, with a huge increase in greenhouse surface area, is related to three essential factors: climatic characteristics, groundwater use and mulching sandy soil. The purpose of the present paper is to draw a picture of the integral management of water irrigation in the intensive horticultural systems in the region, by identifying the most significant water resource contributions and alternative water resources. Results indicate that the use of groundwater for the irrigation of horticultural crops in the greenhouses presents a high degree of overexploitation of the aquifers, but due to the continuous search for alternative water resources, such as desalinated and reclaimed water, as well as in-depth knowledge of the integral management of water irrigation through automated fertigation and localized irrigation systems, the current status of the water resources could be sustainable. Moreover, being conscious of the pollution generated by agricultural leachates, the horticultural system of Almería is implementing complementary sustainable systems such as recirculation, cascade cropping systems and phytodepuration for the reuse of the leachate. Considering all these factors, it can be concluded that the intensive horticultural system is on the right path towards respecting the environment and being sustainable in terms of water use.

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“…12 However, a comprehensive research that tests its advantages for desalination from various aspects is needed for determining the applicability of this water type. Desalination of SGW is expected to present several advantages over using seawater that include (1) Natural filtration of the groundwater through the porous sediment while pumped, thus reducing the need for feedwater pretreatment and saving plant area and costs; 13,14 (2) Temperature variations of groundwater are narrow (∼24 °C), residing in the range of the desalination temperature; 15 (3) Pumping of saline groundwater for cooling systems (air conditioning systems) and seawater swimming pools in hotels is a common practice; water from existing wells can be used as feedwater for desalination; (4) Pumping saline groundwater below the FSI pushes the FSI toward the sea and therefore could result in the additional advantage of restraining seawater intrusion into coastal aquifers; 16,17 and (5) Fouling on RO membranes is expected to be lower with SGW than with coastal seawater used as feed due to lower values of several parameters pertinent to RO desalination, namely total organic carbon (TOC), dissolved oxygen (DO), turbidity and silt density index (SDI). 15 Fouling and biofouling are major obstacles in RO desalination.…”

Section: ■ Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Saline Groundwater from Coastal Aquifers As a Source for Desalination

Stein

Russak

Sivan

et al. 2016

Environ. Sci. Technol.

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Reverse osmosis (RO) seawater desalination is currently a widespread means of closing the gap between supply and demand for potable water in arid regions. Currently, one of the main setbacks of RO operation is fouling, which hinders membrane performance and induces pressure loss, thereby reducing system efficiency. An alternative water source is saline groundwater with salinity close to seawater, pumped from beach wells in coastal aquifers which penetrate beneath the freshwater-seawater interface. In this research, we studied the potential use of saline groundwater of the coastal aquifer as feedwater for desalination in comparison to seawater using fieldwork and laboratory approaches. The chemistry, microbiology and physical properties of saline groundwater were characterized and compared with seawater. Additionally, reverse osmosis desalination experiments in a cross-flow system were performed, evaluating the permeate flux, salt rejection and fouling propensities of the different water types. Our results indicated that saline groundwater was significantly favored over seawater as a feed source in terms of chemical composition, microorganism content, silt density, and fouling potential, and exhibited better desalination performance with less flux decline. Saline groundwater may be a better water source for desalination by RO due to lower fouling potential, and reduced pretreatment costs.

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The Role of Aquifer Media in Improving the Quality of Seawater Feed to Desalination Plants

Cited by 15 publications

References 42 publications

Management of Seawater Intrusion in Coastal Aquifers: A Review

Management of Seawater Intrusion in Coastal Aquifers: A Review

Integral Management of Irrigation Water in Intensive Horticultural Systems of Almería

Saline Groundwater from Coastal Aquifers As a Source for Desalination

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