book abstract icdemos 2014

8/10/2019 Book Abstract ICDEMOS 2014

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International Conference on

DEsalination, Environment and

Marine Outfall Systems

13-16 April 2014

BOOK OF ABSTRACTS

Muscat, Sultanate of Oman


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Photographs Courtesy: Paulo Domenichini, Italy and H.H, Al-Barwani, Oman


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International Conference on

DEsalination, Environment and

Marine Outfall Systems

13-16 April 2014

BOOK OF ABSTRACTS

Muscat, Sultanate of Oman


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Table of Contents

Foreword 1

Keynote Speakers 2

Brine Disposal from Inland Desalination Plants in Oman: Problems and Opportunities

Mushtaque Ahmed 3

Modelling of Outfalls: Status Report and Outlook

Tobias Bleninger5

Nanotechnology for the Treatment of Saline Water and Produced Water

Joydeep Dutta6

Challenges in Applications of Renewable Energy Technologies for Desalination

Mattheus Goosen7

Advances in Wastewater Treatment Technology Using Reverse Osmosis Membranes

Mohamed Hamoda8

Desalination Process Advancement by Hybrid and New Material Beyond the SeaHERO R&D Project

In S. Kim9

Swirl Valve for Brine Outfalls of SWRO Desalination Plants

Adrian Law10

Reducing Carbon Footprint of Desalination

Neil Palmer11

Methods of Brine Disposal from Seawater Desalination

Philip Roberts12

Desalination from an Integrated Water Resources Management PerspectiveFarhad Yazdandoost

13

Oral Presentations 14

Feasibility of using Desalination for Irrigation in the Souss Massa Region in the South of Morocco

Hirich Abdelaziz, Choukr-Allah Redouane, Rami Abdellatif and El-Otmani Mohamed15

Use of Ceramic Membrane Technology for Sustainable Management of Oil Production Water

Mansour Al-Haddabi, Hari Vuthaluru, Mushtaque Ahmed and Hussein Znad16

Achieving the Zero-Liquid-Discharge Target Using the Integrated Membrane System for Seawater Desalination

Sulaiman Al Obaidani, Mohammed Al-Abri and Nabeel Al-Rawahi17

Environmental Impacts of Seawater Desalination on Marine Life in the Coastal Area of Oman

Abdelkader T. Ahmed, Mohamed H. Elsanabary and Brahim Askri18

Small-Scale Reverse Osmosis Desalination Plants Induced Brine Disposal Practices in the United Arab Emirates

Nurul Akhand, Mohamed AlMulla, Yousif Hedar and Basel AlAraj19

Harmful Algal blooms in Oman Waters and Their Effect on Desalination Plants

Hamed Mohammed Al Gheilani20

Minimizing the Impact of Red Tide Environmental Events on Safety Critical Equipment of a Reverse Osmosis De-

salination Plant

A.F. Al-Hinai , B.M. Alkali and M. El Sharif.

21

Prospects of Desalination for Irrigation Water in the Sultanate of Oman

Salem Ali Al-Jabri and Mushtaque Ahmed22

Presence of THMs in Desalinated Water in Muscat

Aliaa Al-Kalbani, Zainab Ambu-Saidi, Sara Al-Kiyumi and Salwa Al-Rawahi23


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Thermal Performance of a Single Slope Solar Water Still with Enhanced Solar Heating System for Omani Climate

Abdullah M. Al-Shabibi and M. Tahat24

Strategies for Addressing Sustainability Risks of Seawater Desalination Plants in the Arabian Gulf

Aliyu Salisu Barau25

Hydrodynamic Modelling: Application of the Delft3D-FLOW in Santos Bay, Sao Paulo State, Brazil

Silene Cristina Baptistelli26

Prediction of the Environmental Impact of Large Scale SeaWater Outfalls

M.C.M. Bruijs and H.J.G. Polman27

Near Field Dilution of a Dense Jet Impinging on a Solid Boundary

G.C. Christodoulou, I.K. Nikiforakis, T.D. Diamantis and A.I. Stamou28

The viability of Renewable energy and Energy storage as the Power Source for Municipal Scale Reverse Osmosis

Desalination

Clifford Dansoh

29

Mathematical Model study of the Effluent Disposal from a Desalination Plant in the Marine Environment at Tuticorin

D. R. Danish, B. V. Mudgal, G. Dhinesh and M. V. Ramanamurthy30

Functional Appraisal of Marine Outfall for Domestic Waste Disposal Through Tracer Technique

Shivani Dhage, Ritesh Vijay and Prakash Kelkar31

Overview of Different Approaches Simulating the Long Term Response to Climate Change and Coastal Effluents in

the Arabian Gulf

A. Elhakeem and W. Elshorbagy

32

Data Assimilation of Remote Sensing Images in a Portable Operational Forecasting Blooms System: Study case

Algae Blooms in the North Sea

G.Y. El Serafy

33

Brackish water in Some Coastal Wilayat in Oman: Analysis and Treatment Using Dehydrated Carbons

El-Said I. El-Shafey, Amal S. J. Al-Hadi and Salma M. Z. Al-Kindy

34

Impact of the Coastal Intake Environment on the Operating Conditions of Thermal Desalination Plants: A Case Study

in United Arab Emirates

W. E. Elshorbagy and A. H. Basioni

35

Intake Variation Effect on Water Quality for SWRO

Nour Fawal, Baghdad Ouddane and Jalal Halwani36

Geometrical Characteristics of Inclined Negatively Buoyant Jets: A Numerical Approach

H. Kheirkhah Gildeh, A. Mohammadian, I. Nistor and H. Qiblawey37

Treatment of Mixed Bed Ion Exchange Resins Regeneration Wastewater by Reverse Osmosis (RO) Method and

Determination of Operation ConditionsKarim Ghasemipanah and Abuzar, Rasti

38

Desalination Integration with Renewable Energy for Climate Change Abatement in MENA Region

Eman Hasan39

Impact of Marine Outfall Systems on Environment: Indian Scenario

N. Jayaraju* and G. Sreenivasulu40

Ultrafiltration of Seawater Impacted by Algal Organic Matter

Muhammad Tariq Khan, Jean Philippe Croue, Veronica G. Molina and Nasir Moosa41

Monitoring of Phytoplankton Species and Associated Bacterial Populations in the Coastal Water of United Arab

Emirates

M. A. Khan, K. G. A. Qalandri, A. Sankaran, L. H. Adnani and U. AlAlami

42

Integrated using of Desalination Brine Effluent and Flue Gas for Growing of Cyanobacteria Spirulina

Abdolmajid Lababpour43


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Combining Autonomous Underwater Vehicle Missions with Hydroacoustic Current meters and Hydrodynamic Flow

Visualizations for the Evaluation of a Submerged offshore SWRO Concentrate Discharge

R. van der Merwe, T. Bleninger, D. Acevedo-Feliz, S. Lattemann and G. Amy

44

Hydrodynamic Modelling of Large-scale Cooling Water Outfalls with a Dynamically Coupled near field and far field

Modelling System

Robin Morelissen, Roland Vlijm and Intae Hwang

45

Formation of Emerging Disinfection Byproducts by Chlorination/Chloramination of Seawater Impacted by AlgalOrganic Matter

M. Nihemaiti, J. Le Roux and J.P. Croue

46

Impacts of desalination effluents on macrobenthic assemblages in Bahrain,

Arabian Gulf

Humood Naser

47

BrIHne-Jet-Spreading: A New Model to Simulate the Near Field Region of Brine Jet Discharges

P. Palomar, J.L. Lara, L. Tarrade, and I.J. Losada48

Numerical modeling of a Coaxial Buoyant Surface Discharge

AbolGhasem Pilechi, Abdolmajid Mohammadian, Colin D. Rennie and Hazim Qiblawey49

Seawater Intakes for Desalination Plants: Design and Construction

Eloy Pita50

Cost effective Fouling control in (cooling) Water intake Systems with Environmental and Operational Benefits

H.J.G. Polman and M.C.M. Bruijs51

Environmental Quality Standards for Brine Discharge from Desalination Plants

Anton Purnama52

CFD Techniques for Mixing and Dispersion of Desalination and other Marine Discharges

David Robinson, Matthew Piggott, Gerard Gorman and Matthew Wood53

Photocatalytic Degradation of Divalent Metals under Sunlight Irradiation using Nanoparticle TiO2 Modified ConcreteMaterials (Recycled Glass Cullet)

M.N. Rashed

54

Investigations into the Effects of Field Spacer Filament Spacings on Fouling Properties of Reverse Osmosis (RO)

Membrane Surfaces using Computational Fluid Dynamic Techniques

Asim Saeed, Rupa Vuthaluru and Hari B. Vuthaluru

55

Installation of Shore Approaches and Sealines with Trenchless Methods: Technologies and Case Studies

Peter Schmaeh56

Power Plants in Northern Germany: Project Examples for Optimizing Intakes and Outfalls

Oliver Stoschek

57

Hydrodynamic and Thermal Dispersion Modeling of the Effluent in a Coastal Channel

Ahmad Sana58

Mirfa IWPP: Plume Dispersion and Recirculation Modelling in a Complex Hydrodynamic Environment Using Sce-

nario Based Adaptive Modelling

Fahd Shehhi, Fadi Makarem, Eiad Al Hawat, Robin Morelissen and Wilbert Verbruggen

59

The Effect of Fouling on Performance and Design Aspects of Multiple Effects Desalination Systems

F. Tahir, M. Atif and M.A. Antar60

Modelling of Dense Brine Discharges in Oman: Recirculation and Environmental Aspects: A Case Study

Wilbert Verbruggen, Robin Morelissen, Carlos Martn Freixa and Naif Al-Abri61

Web-based Rapid-assessment Tools for Designing Intake and Outfall Systems

Roland Vlijm*, Robin Morelissen and Wilbert Verbruggen62

List of Conference Committees 63


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Foreword

At present, the combined production capacity of all seawater desalination plants worldwide is 36 million cubic meters per day. It

is expected that this capacity will double in the next decade. 61% of the water is produced by thermal processes, mainly in the gulf

region, while 34% is produced by reverse osmosis (RO), which is the first choice in many countries that start to use desalination.

Worldwide, RO desalination capacity for both sea and brackish water represents 60% of the total desalination capacity. Besides

materials, higher salinity and temperature, all desalination plants use chemicals. Due to their large volume of brine discharges

through many types of outfall systems into the sea, from simple surface discharge through an open-channel to modern submerged

multiport outfall systems, desalination plants were included in the list of major sources of land-based marine pollution in the gulf by

the United Nations Environment Programme. Other main environmental concerns are the intakes, which may cause impingement

and entrainment of marine organisms, and energy use, causing air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.

The need for resource-saving, low-impact green desalination technologies is evident as the use of desalination accelerates

in many parts of the world. The concept of best available techniques would be required at the identification of state of the art

technologies, processes, methods of operation, policies and programmes which indicate the practical suitability for preventing or

reducing pollution of the atmosphere, sea and land as well as the quantities of waste to reducing the impact on the environment as

a whole. The design and siting of submarine intakes and outfalls are complex tasks that rely on many disciplines.

Therefore, knowledge about the current desalination, marine outfall systems and issues related to environment is important for

the conservation of natural resources, improved technologies and practices to yield better management. An important aim of this

conference is to bring together scientists, professionals and regulators to communicate and exchange knowledge on environmen-

tal issues and management options associated with the desalination industry. Also, to develop and provide a platform to discuss

future research for environmental management in the desalination industry and marine intake and outfall systems and their de-

signs.

We hope the participants of this international conference will learn from the presentations and for young Omani and Arab region

environmental scientists this will be a valuable learning experience.

Dr. Mahad Baawain, Director, CESAR

Chair, ICDEMOS, Organizing Committee


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KEYNOTE SPEAKERS


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3

Brine Disposal from Inland Desalination Plants in Oman: Problems and Opportunities

Mushtaque Ahmed

College of Agricultural and Marine Sciences, Sultan Qaboos University, Oman

Email: [email protected]

Desalination plants are widely used in inland areas of many countries including Oman to supply water for domestic purposes. Inthe interior parts of Oman, there are large numbers of desalination plants, which are owned by the Ministry of Electricity & Water,

Petroleum Development Oman (PDO), Ministry of Health, Police and Ministry of Defense. One common aspect to all types of de-

salination plants is the production of brine. The amount of brine as a percentage of the feed water varies depending on the choice

of method, initial salinity of feed water, and factors affecting the choice of disposal method. It has been reported that RO plants,

in general, produced 25% of the total feed water flow as reject brine. The reject brine, also known as concentrate, reject water, or

wastewater, from these plants cannot be economically discharged to the ocean, as is done with most coastal desalination plants.

In such instances, evaporation ponds may be useful. In other cases, alternatives such as waste minimization, discharge to surface

water, discharge to wastewater treatment plants, deep well injection, land application, and wastewater evaporators may be ap-

propriate.

Evaporation ponds have been used over the centuries to remove water from saline solution. Evaporation ponds are relatively

easy to construct, while requiring low maintenance and little operator attention compared to mechanical systems. And in many

instances evaporation ponds are frequently the least costly means of disposal, especially in areas with high evaporation rates

and low land costs. Disadvantages includes the need for large tracts of land when the evaporation rate is low or the disposal rate

is high, the need for impervious liners of clay or synthetic membranes such as PVC or Hypalon, and the potential of contaminating

underlying potable water aquifers through seepage from poorly-constructed evaporation ponds. Proper sizing of an evaporation

pond depends on accurate calculation of the annual evaporation rate. Higher evaporation rates will require smaller-sized ponds.

Pond size includes two components: surface area and depth. Pond depths ranging from 25 to 45 cm are optimal for maximizing the

rate of evaporation. It has been recommended that no salt should be removed from the pond for the first year or two of operation

so that a hardpan is permitted to develop at the base of the pond. This hardpan can only develop if the pond completely dries out

during the hottest periods of the year. Salt should be removed during the dry months. If salts are left in the pond for an extended

period of time, the storage volume is reduced and spillover can take place.

Increasing the evaporation rate would result in reduced pond size leading to savings in construction costs. Evaporation rates can

be increased by raising the water temperature, exposing more water surface area by spraying into the atmosphere, increasing the

vapor pressure difference between the surface and atmosphere, reducing surface tension or the bond between water molecules,

increasing the exposed surface area, increasing the wind velocity and ground air layer turbulence, increasing the surface rough-

ness, and stirring the pond. Increasing the water temperature using a suitable dye can enhance the evaporation rate. Addition of

Naphthol Green dye increases the evaporation rate by 13%.

The newer plants in Oman have well designed lined evaporation ponds whereas the older ones have unlined disposal pits. Fromfield inspections, it appears that the lined evaporation ponds and disposal pits are not very effective. A lined evaporation pond pre-

vents leakage resulting in increased concentration of salts and other chemicals in comparison to the wastewater that is dumped in

the pond. Water samples collected from some evaporation ponds in Oman showed little or no increase in concentrations of salts.

It was also observed during field visits that some of the recently constructed evaporation ponds had leaks that were clearly visible.

No salt build up was noticed and the amount of standing water in the ponds and the disposal pits was small. These are possible

indications of leakage from the ponds and the pits. Further in-depth investigations through water balance studies and monitoring

of groundwater under the evaporation ponds and disposal pits should be able to detect any significant leakage from such ponds

and pits.

Very little information is available on the cost of disposal from the plants. Analysis with limited cost data makes it clear that unit

cost of construction is reduced as the pond size is increased. Although there are other factors involved e.g. remoteness of the plant

location, distance from nearby towns, availability of local construction materials and labor etc. A survey of some plants in Oman

shows that capacities varied from 50 m3/d to a maximum of 1000 m3/day. The salinity level of reject brine varied from 9.8 to 61.2

dS/m (1 dS/m equals 640 parts per million concentration level). Heavy metals (Mn, Cu, Zn and Cr) were found at trace levels in the


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brines. Various types of chemicals including chlorine, sulphuric acid, sodium meta bisulphite, lime powder, citric acid, etc. are used

in the RO plants in Oman. Other significant findings include:

In Oman evaporation ponds, disposal to unlined bores and disposal to dry wadi beds are commonly used for disposal of

reject brine from inland plants.

During field visits, it was observed that very little monitoring and reporting of disposal wastes and systems are done.

In most of the plants visited, cleaning and other treatment wastes are mixed with reject brine and disposed of with reject

brine.

Under certain conditions, brine from desalination plants can have useful applications. Salts have been produced from saline waters

for centuries. Nowadays, solar evaporation of seawater accounts for more than 30% of the worlds production of sodium chloride

(NaCl). Bromine is entirely produced from seawater and brines. Sodium sulphate, potassium salt, lithium carbonate, magnesium

compounds, and magnesium metals are also produced from seawater and brines. Some studies have focused on assessing the

feasibility of preparing fertilizers from scale-forming chemicals, after treating seawater with anhydrous ammonia and phosphoric

acid. A laboratory study demonstrated the feasibility of recovering leonite (K2SO

4.Mg SO

4.4H

2O) and magnesium-chloride rich solu-

tions from the salt-field bitterns of seawater. A desktop pre-feasibility study, using data from PDO operated plants in Bahja, Rima,

Nimr and Marmul, confirms the technical feasibility of treating reject brines in simple processing routes, using technology devel-

oped in Australia. This technology is an integrated process for sequential extraction of dissolved elements from inorganic saline

waters in the form of valuable chemical products in crystalline, slurry and liquid forms. The process involves multiple evaporation

and/or cooling, supplemented by mineral and chemical processing. An analysis indicates that various types of salts including gyp-

sum, sodium chloride, magnesium hydroxide, calcium chloride, calcium carbonate, and sodium sulphate can be produced from the

reject brine of PDO desalination plants. A number of areas still need to be addressed before routine production of minerals from

the brine reject of desalination plants occurs. Some of these include: the cost of recovering minerals, the marketing costs of the

produced minerals, the presence of heavy metals and other hazardous products in desalination plant reject brine (complicating the

recovery process), and the negative perception of customers and users with regards to the products recovered from wastewater.

Another possible use of relatively low salinity brine is for irrigation. Irrigation with saline water to grow salt-tolerant (halophytic)

plants is not a new concept. Numerous plant species can be used for this purpose especially in arid regions where fresh water

resources are under tremendous stress. Many halophytes have already been identified as forage crops, edible fruit trees, and oil

producers for human consumption. Apart from conserving water resources, the use of saline water for growing plants is very criti-cal to solving water shortage problems.

Global evidence and experiences demonstrate that waters of much higher salinities than those customarily classified as unsuit-

able for irrigation can in fact be used effectively for the production of selected crops under the right conditions. Brine shrimp may

be particularly well suited to evaporation basin cultivation, as they are hardy, easy to grow, thrive in hyposaline conditions, and

are relatively easily marketed. Brine shrimp is used extensively as aquarium fish food. It grows in a wide range of water salinities

extending from 10,000 mg/l to saturation levels. Research shows that no brine shrimp predators or food competitors survive in wa-

ters with salinity levels in excess of 100,000 mg/l, resulting in a monoculture under natural conditions. More concentrated brines

(>200,000 mg/l) can be used for the production of Beta-Carotene from Dunaliella salina. Another possible use of brine is in the solar

pond technology, which has been progressing significantly over the years, with 60 installations installed around the world. The

use of reject brine in solar ponds for electricity generation (or low-grade industrial heat, for enhancing salt crystallization) holds a

promising future, particularly if it is integrated into a desalination plant - evaporation basin salt harvesting - solar pond system.

There is a need to conduct research on the possible beneficial uses of brine. Research should focus on existing conditions in the

gulf and the Middle East regions and both environmental and cost considerations should be kept in mind. Beneficial use of reject

brine should be considered as an integral part of the disposal system. It has also been observed that specific regulations regard-

ing disposal brine from inland desalination plants are lacking in many of the countries in the gulf and the Middle East regions.

The governments in these regions should formulate necessary rules and regulations on this issue. Desalination industry should

lobby concerned governmental bodies on this issue. It is also recommended that disposal systems should be monitored regularly.

There is also need for training of plant operators. Inland desalination plant operators should receive training for safe disposal of

cleaning and treatment wastes along with reject brine. The numbers of desalination plants for producing drinking water around the

world including Oman have witnessed unparalleled growth since the late 70s. This growth is likely to continue as water shortages

continue to develop. Unfortunately, in the past environmental implications associated with the discharge of brine from desalination

plants have not received adequate consideration. The search for economically viable and indeed profitable means of concentrat-

ing saline water has lead to significant research in saline aquaculture, use of salinity-gradient solar-ponds for power production,

and recovery of a range of salts with the ultimate goal of zero discharge.


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5

Modelling of Outfalls: Status Report and Outlook

Tobias Bleninger

Federal University of Paran (UFPR), Brazil


In order to design or assess marine outfall systems and to reduce the associated impacts of pollutant discharges it is necessary toaccurately determine the dispersion and transport processes. For cooling water and desalination plant discharges further studies

are required regarding recirculation processes. Analysis can be done for individual discharges or for a whole coastal zone con-

sidering the interplay of several discharges. Modelling solutions require the consideration of discharge induced and environmental

flows. There is a wide variety of flow classes and involved scales, mainly depending on the density differences between the efflu-

ent and the receiving waters, the effluent flow rate and the ambient velocity. It is important to be able to model the characteristics

of the outfall plume in detail at various mixing stages. This is particularly the case in weak dynamic systems (i.e. low ambient flow

velocities), such as calm coastal waters, within estuaries or bays. Those cases are even more critical for discharges of large vol-

umes, such as thermal discharges, where the discharge induced flows may considerably influence the coastal circulation, whereas

this effect is usually of minor important for waste water discharges with smaller volume flows.

The processes dominating the plume dynamics occur on significantly different spatial and temporal scales and are typically char-

acterized by three zones defined along the plume trajectory: 1) Initial, active mixing zone, the Near field, 2) Intermediate zone (or

Mid field), and 3) Passive mixing zone, Far field. The near field is a region where the outflow characteristics (i.e. fluxes, geometry,

and orientation of outflow) dominate the plume behaviour. The far field region is where the ambient flow conditions dominate the

behaviour of the plume. The intermediate zone is the transition region from the near field to far field processes. Due to the large

differences in scales and processes involved, different types of models are typically utilized for the simulation of near field and

far field processes. Existing models that can theoretically cover this entire range of temporal and spatial scales in one integral

computation (unsteady, baroclinic, non-hydrostatic models) are very computational expensive and are not yet usable for most

practical engineering applications.

In an early stage of a project fast, but rough estimates are allowing to screen different options and solutions, whereas final designs

often require a coupled approach of different model systems. Major limitations are however often related to missing field data for

proper definitions of boundary conditions. The number of models and modeling systems is increasing significantly, and the proper

model choice becomes a difficult undertaking. Since models become more and more user friendly, their misusage also bears major

problems during outfalls compliance assessments. On the other hand several state of the art modeling systems are nowadays

open-source and coupled to comprehensive data-processing tools with easy or even automatic access on global bathymetrical

charts, tides, winds or circulation models. And most models nowadays are extensively validated. Thus, it is not only a question

on choosing the right model for the desired objective, but also on choosing the right modeling strategy and interpretation, as the

handling of the huge data amounts becomes an important task.

This article reviews and summarizes existing modeling strategies for outfall studies, ranging from complete 3D non-hydrostaticapplications to steady jet integral models or even the conventional dilution equations. Advantages and disadvantages of each ap-

proach will be discussed, and future strategies presented. The objective is to demonstrate capabilities of current softwares for the

engineering design practice, as well as an outlook to tendencies for modelling approaches.


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Nanotechnology for the Treatment of Saline Water and Produced Water

Joydeep Dutta

Water Research Center, Sultan Qaboos University, Oman


Environmental pollution and industrialization on a global scale have drawn attention to the vital need for developing new hygieni-cally friendly purification technologies. Existing wastewater treatment technologies demand high capital investment and operation

& maintenance costs and require large area for the treatment plants. Cost-effective treatment of pollutants requires the transfor-

mation of hazardous substances into benign forms and the subsequent development of effective risk management strategies from

harmful effects of pollutants that are highly toxic, persistent, and difficult to treat. Application of nanotechnology that results in

improved water treatment options might include removal of the finest contaminants from water (< 300 nm) and smart materials

or reactive surface coatings with engineered specificity to a certain pollutant that destroy, transform or immobilize compounds.

Nanomaterials have been gaining increasing interest in the area of environmental remediation mainly due to its enhanced surface

and also other specific changes in their physical, chemical and biological properties that develop due to size effects. Heterogene-

ous photocatalytic systems via metal oxide semiconductors like TiO2and ZnO, are capable to operate effectively and efficiently

for treatment of water which will be discussed.


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Challenges in Applications of Renewable Energy Technologies for Desalination

Mattheus Goosen

Office of Research and Graduate Studies, Alfaisal University, Saudi Arabia


Latest developments and challenges in applications of renewable energy technologies for water desalination are critically reviewedwith an emphasis on environmental concerns and sustainable development. After giving a synopsis of wind, wave, geothermal and

solar renewable energy technologies for fresh water production, hybrid systems are assessed. Then scale-up and economic fac-

tors are considered. This is followed with a segment on regulatory factors, environmental concerns and globalization, and a final

section on selecting the most suitable renewable energy technology for conventional and emerging desalination processes.


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Advances in Wastewater Treatment Technology Using Reverse Osmosis Membranes

Mohamed Hamoda

Department of Civil Engineering, Kuwait University, Kuwait


This paper presents wastewater treatment schemes and focusses on recent advances in the use of membrane processes such asreverse osmosis (RO) to produce effluents suitable for water reuse. Such processes have been marketed recently for wastewater

reclamation as a means of sustainable water management worldwide especially in the arid and semi-arid regions. Membrane

technology has become a technically and economically feasible option for advanced wastewater treatment.

Reverse osmosis process has been applied for many years in desalination of brackish and sea waters and was adopted recently in

wastewater treatment. Membrane technologies are receiving special recognition as alternatives to conventional wastewater treat-

ment and as a means of polishing treated wastewater effluent for reuse applications. There has been a rapid growth in the use of

RO in the reclamation of wastewater. Relative to other technologies, the main drivers for this include the low energy consumption

of RO and the high rate of contaminant removal. Also, the reliability of RO plants has greatly improved, giving developers confi-

dence in the supply of water from this technology. These factors have been a key to the acceptance of this technology. Advances in

membrane technology continue to allow system designers more options for cost savings. These advances include higher rejection

membranes, higher permeable membranes, and higher surface area elements. Membrane processes have been used in the sec-

ondary or advanced treatment stages of wastewater. In secondary biological treatment, the Membrane Biological Reactor (MBR)

is an activated sludge process that utilizes a physical barrier, a plate-type membrane, to separate the wastewater solids from

the liquid. Quaternary treatment using ultra filtration and reverse osmosis membranes provide effluent of drinking water quality

which is suitable for all uses. Such advanced treatment systems is cost effective especially in arid and semi-arid countries where

desalination of seawater is practiced since the unit volume of tertiary / quaternary treated wastewater effluents are produced at

approximately one third of the cost of the unit volume of desalinated potable water. However, balancing environmental impacts and

benefits of wastewater reuse is required.

In Kuwait, where natural fresh water resources are scarce, the Sulaibiya Wastewater Treatment and Reclamation Plant (WWT&RP)

was established with a design capacity of 425,000 m3/d to be the worlds largest membrane-based water reclamation facility which

uses UF and RO for water reclamation. Performance evaluation of the UF/RO treatment stage has shown that this system produces

water that exceeds reuse quality requirements. It also showed high stability and reliability in coping with variations in wastewater

characteristics, water temperature and to about 15% increase in inflow over its design capacity. The system achieved up to 99%

removal of pollutants along the treatment stages by removing traces of residual pollutants. Also, RO lowered the total dissolved

solids of plant effluent considerably. Data obtained from this plant as well as plants operated in Qatar are presented.


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9

Desalination Process Advancement by Hybrid and New Material Beyond the SeaHERO R&D Project

In S. Kim

Center for Seawater Desalination Plant (CSDP), Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology (GIST), Gwangju, Korea


With a fund of US $165 million for 6 years, the SeaHERO (Seawater Engineering Architecture High Efficiency Reverse Osmosis)research and development (R&D) program was launched in 2007 not only to accomplish 3L (Low energy, Large scale and Low

fouling) technical objectives but to provide technical criteria for the development of global-top-grade SWRO (Seawater reverse os-

mosis) desalination plant. As a result of SeaHERO project, significant improvements were achieved on the basis of 3L objectives.

For the development of design and construction technology, a SWRO plant Test-Bed of 10 MIGD (45,000 m3/d) including the world-

largest unit-train capacity of 8 MIGD was constructed by Doosan heavy industry. The Test-Bed contains RO modules of 16 inches

in diameter, which are developed and provided by Woongjin Chemical. In addition, more efficient fouling index, multiple membrane

array system (MMAS), was developed and is under process of standardizing in membrane water treatment area. Through these

research results, the project has achieved remarkable reduction in energy consumption.

With successful completion of the SeaHERO project, nationally-supported Global Convergence Technology Center for Seawater

Desalination and Reuse is followed up for continuous world-level R&D leading. From the in-depth analysis of outcomes from Sea-

HERO project, it is found that SWRO systems have still shown their unique limitations such as brine discharge, which is of a major

concern in terms of marine environment protection, and high energy consumption rate. Thus, it is inevitable to create RO hybrid

systems by adapting desalination technologies such as forward osmosis (FO), membrane distillation (MD), and pressure retarded

osmosis (PRO) processes. In this sense, two large R&D projects for hybrid desalination systems are launched: FO-RO hybrid sys-

tem and MD-PRO hybrid system. In this presentation, not only the activity of desalination R&D activity in Korea but two key subjects

are going to be discussed, hybrid process and futuristic membrane with new materials such as aquaporin, carbon-based materials

(graphene/CNT) and etc. A recent findings using quorum sensing and bio-surfactants are also reported.


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10

Swirl Valve for Brine Outfalls of SWRO Desalination Plants

Adrian Law

Nanyang Technological University, Singapore


The talk will present the development of a swirl valve for the brine outfall of Seawater Reverse Osmosis (SWRO) desalinationplants in coastal waters. The objective of the swirl valve is to increase the near field mixing of the brine plume, and to lower its

terminal rise height. The mixing characteristics of the brine discharge with inclination degree between 30 and 60 degrees and

full submergence are first presented. Although the mixing with 60 degree discharge has been identified previously as optimal, its

terminal rise of the brine plume is relatively high which drives the research needs for the quantification of 30 and 45 degrees (that

are becoming more common today). The mixing characteristics of brine discharges with surface contact scenarios are then pre-

sented, whereby part of the brine plume may make contact with the water surface during low tides. The research needs arise due

to the installation of brine outfalls in shallow coastal waters, which the full submergence of brine plume may not be achievable

at all time. Dynamic interactions between the brine plume and water surface can therefore occur that constraints the mixing and

entrainment. The use of the swirl valve is then presented to effect faster mixing near the discharge port and to lower the terminal

height of the brine plume. Experimental results using stereoscopic laser image techniques will be shown that relates the increase

in plume mixing to the swirl intensity.


17/70

11

Reducing Carbon Footprint of Desalination

Neil Palmer

Chief Executive Officer, National Centre of Excellence in Desalination Australia

Perth, Australia


Commentators in the mass media often misrepresent desalination as expensive and energy guzzling. Compared to what? Rain-

water is much more expensive when you take in to account the cost of buying and installing tanks, and running household hot

water services guzzle much more energy. Notwithstanding this, researchers across the world are investigating ways of reducing

desalination energy intensity. The National Centre of Excellence in Desalination Australia (NCEDA) was established in 2009 and

was granted $20m in research funding over 5 years from the Australian Governments Water for the Future initiative. The Agreement

contained a number of Funding Objectives, one of which was: researching ways of efficiently and affordably reducing the carbon

footprint of desalination facilities and technologies.

The NCEDA has established 50 projects across a wide range of topics guided by the Australian Desalination Research Roadmap

published in 2010. A number of these projects have focused on separating salt from water using renewable or waste heat energy

sources. The Tjuntjuntjara project, led by Western Australias Murdoch University, comprises solar powered desalination of hyper-

saline groundwater to augment the current water supply to an indigenous community in the Great Victoria Desert from a limited

groundwater resource. A German built memSYS vacuum assisted membrane distillation pilot plant operating at 30% recovery and

delivering 500 l/d has been established at the community. It is powered with heat and electricity from a USA built CoGenra concen-

trating solar panel system.

A novel boosted Alfa Laval multi effect distillation plant has been built and tested for use at an alumina refinery south of Perth (BHP

Billitons Worsley Alumina). The refinery has limited access to fresh water, a tailings pond with too much water and a process which

generates waste heat. The boosted MED system developed by the University of Western Australia produces up to 40% more water

than a conventional MED system. The University of SA has successfully demonstrated use of solar powered capacitive deioniza-

tion desalinating brackish water in remote areas of Australia. CDI operation is free of membranes and has been found to be robust

and simple to operate and maintain. Huge volumes of hot water are available deep under Perth. University of WA is investigating

the use of geothermal energy for brackish water desalination. This includes an economic, technical and market analysis taking

into account water volume, quality and plant infrastructure for application of known technology where geothermal energy can be

coupled with water production.

The Victorian Desalination Plant, Australias largest at 450 ml/d, has a huge impact on Victorias water production. It is of sufficient

scale that had the plant been available in 2003 when the impacts of the Millennium drought were starting to have effect, Melbourne

could have maintained reservoir storage levels and completely avoided any water restrictions. When operating, the entire energy

consumption is offset by purchase of renewable wind energy from commercial sources. Sundrop Farms is a new company in South

Australia that has developed a commercially successful greenhouse in semi-desert near Port Augusta which uses solar poweredseawater desalination for all water used in growing tomatoes and capsicums. The Company is constructing a new 20 hectare

greenhouse and is looking to expand into other areas of Australia and overseas. As an indication of the popularity of renewable

energy powered water desalination, an NCEDA project being undertaken by NCEDAs partner University of WA has teamed with

Queensland solar panel inventor Trevor Powell and has won The Australian newspaper backyard inventor award in November

2013 for a solar powered multi effect distillation plant. While not necessarily cheaper than conventional powered desalination sys-

tems, research effort into use of renewable resources is rapidly increasing our understanding of optimization of existing technolo-

gies and development of new ones, and water efficiency (such as use of hydroponics) reduces the impact of higher water charges

on total cost of food production. This is very encouraging in the worldwide quest for a sustainable and secure future.


18/7012

Methods of Brine Disposal from Seawater Desalination

Philip Roberts

Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, United States


The main environmental impact of brine discharges resulting from seawater desalination is salinity, which must be reduced to safelevels to protect marine organisms. This can be accomplished in various ways. A common one is by co-disposal with power plant

cooling water or domestic wastewater, which provides some dilution prior to discharge. Another is by means of a diffuser wherein

the brine is ejected at high velocity from inclined jets that effect rapid initial mixing and dilution. This is the preferred method for dis-

posal from many plants around the word, including several in Australia. In this talk we review recent research on mixing of dense

jet brine diffusers and the work of the expert panel convened to update the California Ocean Plan to account for brine discharges.

Discharge of brine through outfalls equipped with diffusers can result in rapid dilution and reduction of excess salinity to safe lev-

els. Typically, this is accomplished by discharging from a nozzle inclined upwards as a turbulent dense jet. The dynamics of these

jets are quite complex, involving buoyancy-modified entrainment, transition to horizontal flow, and turbulent collapse. Although

many studies of single inclined jets into stationary jets have been performed, there is much less work on the effects of currents or

merging in the case of multiport diffusers.

We have done extensive experiments on the dynamics of dense jets typical of brine discharges under a variety of conditions. The

experiments involve the use of sophisticated three-dimensional laser-induced fluorescence (3DLIF) that allows high-resolution

measurements of turbulence and mixing. In this talk, we will review our experimental work on dense jets, in particular recent ex-

periments on multiport diffusers that reveals complex interactions and boundary effects. The implications of these results for the

design of single and multiport diffusers and implications for mathematical modeling will be discussed.


19/7013

Desalination from an Integrated Water Resources Management Perspective

Farhad Yazdandoost

K. N. Toosi University of Technology, Tehran, Iran


With more than half of the worlds population living close to the oceans and a high percentage of the worlds mega cities locatednear their shores, seawater desalination is an attractive option for coastal water supply systems. Water scarcity in arid and semi

arid regions has lately driven decision makers and planners to investigate the viability of long transfers of desalinated sea water

to water scarce locations. Arid and semi-arid zones are defined as areas where the rainfall patterns are inherently erratic and

where, generally, precipitation is below potential evapotranspiration. The hydrological regime in these areas is extreme and highly

variable and globally, these areas face the greatest challenges to deliver and manage freshwater resources. Problems are further

exacerbated by population growth, increasing domestic water use, expansion of agriculture, pollution and the threat of climate

change. These areas would often embrace the notion of water transfers from other catchments as an added water security element.

However sustainable development considerations would remain as a source of concern under such circumstances. Limited access

to water resources associated with climatic conditions of arid and semi-arid regions have often been the source of competitions

and conflicts amongst stakeholders. Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) is seen worldwide as appropriate means

of conflict resolution. IWRM is the response to the growing pressure on water resources systems as a result of growing popula-

tion and socio-economic developments. Water resources management has undergone a drastic change world-wide, moving from

a mainly supply-oriented, engineering biased approach towards a demand-oriented, multi-sectoral approach, often labeled Inte-

grated Water Resources Management. IWRM should not be seen as a model that has to be enforced upon a given system rather it

is much more a process. According to GWP (2000), IWRM is a process which promotes the co-ordinated development and manage-

ment of water, land and related resources, in order to maximize the resultant economic and social welfare in an equitable manner

without compromising the sustainability of vital ecosystems.

The concept of IWRM provides the platform for moving away from water master planning, which focuses on water availability

and development, towards comprehensive water policy planning which addresses the interaction between different sub-sectors,

seeks to establish priorities, considers institutional requirements, and deals with the building of capacity. It may therefore prove

prudent to consider desalination impacts from an IWRM perspective thereby addressing economic, social, environmental and leg-

islative aspects in an integrated approach. Major considerations associated with desalination are those related to the environment

and the economy with respect to energy consumption. The increasing competitiveness of desalination may be related to consider-

able improvements in the technical advances thereby alleviating the problem to certain extents as far as the above considerations

are concerned. However challenges remain in the face of the greater water resources management system where the output from

desalination is one of a number of inputs affecting the system in an interactive way. Many criteria and objectives may come into

consideration at decision making level which would in turn necessitate the use of Decision Support Systems (DSS). The DSS ap-

proach, in the framework of utilization of Multi Criteria Analysis (MCA) tools to assess ranking of potential development scenarios,

would become essential as part of the comprehensive decision making process. The approach may be further enhanced to lead

to adaption of Best Management Practices (BMPs) for desalination in the greater context of integrated water resources manage-ment.


20/70

ORAL PRESENTATIONS


21/7015

Feasibility of using Desalination for Irrigation in the Souss Massa Region in the South of Morocco

Hirich Abdelaziz1, Choukr-Allah Redouane1, Rami Abdellatif2and El-Otmani Mohamed1

1Agronomic and Veterinary Medicine Hassan II Institute, Agadir, Morocco2University Ibn Zohr, Faculty of Science, Agadir, Morocco


The region of Souss Massa in the south of Morocco is considered the most productive in terms of horticultural products especially

destined to exportation. The part of the region in exportation of fruit and vegetable is about 90% at national level. Green house

cropping system is the most dominated with more than 15 000 ha of crops are conducted under green houses. However this region

suffers from a serious problem of water scarcity, the annual rainfall doesnt exceed 200 mm, and the water deficit is more than 260

Mm3. In addition to this agriculture in this region consumes about 90% of water resources. Over-pumping of groundwater is among

the practices aggravating the situation by lowering the water table and consequently increasing pumping costs and groundwater

salinisation due to sea water intrusion especially in the coastal areas. Using desalination of sea water for irrigation of rentable

crops as tomato and berries and other vegetables crops could be a judicious solution to continue producing horticultural products

and saving water.

Pumping cost in Souss Massa region is about 0.3 US$, and the average desalination cost is equal to 0.5 US$ with a little change

depending to desalination technology. A study has been conducted surveying about 847 farmers representing 12770 ha of crop-

ping area in order to evaluate the acceptance of those farmers to be part of a desalination project for irrigation. 92% of surveyed

farmers accepted to adhere to this project with a water demand equal to 32 Mm3, 61% of them accepted to participate in the project

investment. 42% of the farmers agreed to pay 0.59 to 0.83 US$ for 1 m 3of desalinated water. 15 and 4% accepted to pay 0.95 and

1.18 US$ respectively for 1 m3of desalinated water.

This survey indicates that there is a great potential of using desalination for irrigation of rentable crops in the Souss Massa region.

Farmers are aware about the water scarcity problem and they accept to use desalinated water for irrigation to keep producing.

Furthermore the progress in the desalination technology will make it less costly in the future and the water price will be lower.


22/7016

Use of Ceramic Membrane Technology for Sustainable Management of Oil Production Water

Mansour Al-Haddabi1, Hari Vuthaluru1, Mushtaque Ahmed2and Hussein Znad1

1School of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering, Curtin University, Perth, Australia2 College of Agricultural and Marine Sciences, Sultan Qaboos University, Oman


The huge quantities of water produced a long with oil makes it one of the main challenges in oil and gas industry. In the past the

oily produced water was considered as a tiresome by-product and it represent a significant liability and cost to the oil and gas

production. Recently this attitude has changed and the oily produced water is now seen more as a resource than a by-product.

By 2025, 2.8 billion people (from 48 countries) will be living in water-scare and water-stressed countries. Sultanate of Oman is

considered as a semi-arid country where the average annual rainfall is about 100 mm. Petroleum Development Oman (PDO) which

is an oil company produces around 700,000 m3/day of water associated with hydrocarbon production. Currently under half of this

amount is rejected back into the producing reservoirs as water flood for reservoir management. The production of excessive

quantities of water is the reason behind to abandon oil and gas wells, leaving huge quantities of hydrocarbons behind. Upgrad-

ing of low quality water (i.e. oily produced water) for greening the desert or growing biofuels is becoming a strategic enabler for

the sustainable development of remote fields. Although opportunities exist for beneficial use of oily produced water, there may be

situations where treatment may not be economically feasible. In addition to volume, water quality is the other key determinant of

suitable management options. Due to the poor quality of oily produced water (because oily produced water contains a complex

mixture of organic and inorganic materials similar to those found in crude oil and natural gas), treatment might introduces potential

economic, technology and environmental challenges. Another constraint for the management of oily produced water is the regula-

tory framework which might cause restrictions to management options imposed by legislations. Economic constraint imposed by

the costs associated with management options can influence the feasibility of particular management techniques. The application

of ceramic membrane have shown great potential for the oil in water separation and purification due to their superior mechanical,

thermal, chemical stability and ease of generation after fouling. Very promising results were achieved by many researchers when

using ceramic membranes for oily water treatment. In some studies the removal of oil, COD and TOC reach up to 99%, 96% and

94% respectively.


23/70

17

Achieving the Zero-Liquid-Discharge Target Using the Integrated Membrane System for Seawater Desalination

Sulaiman Al Obaidani1, Mohammed Al-Abri2and Nabeel Al-Rawahi1

1Department Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, College of Engineering, Sultan Qaboos University, Oman2Department of Petroleum and Chemical Engineering, College of Engineering, Sultan Qaboos University, Oman


Membrane desalination technology has emerged in recent years as the most viable solution to water shortage. However, despite

the enormous improvement in membrane desalination technology, some critical developments are still necessary in order to

accomplish possible improvements in the process efficiency (increase recovery), operational stability (reduce fouling and scal-

ing problems), environmental impact (reduce brine disposal), water quality (remove harmful substances) and costs. In particular,

cost effective and environmentally sensitive concentrate management is today recognized as a significant obstacle to extensive

implementation of desalination technologies. As a result of the significant impact of desalination plants on the environment, the

requirements for concentrate management tight up: brine disposal minimization and zero liquid discharge (ZLD) are the demanding

targets for several applications. In this concept, conventional pressure-driven membranes such as MF, NF and RO were integrated

with the innovative units of membrane contactors such as Membrane Distillation/Crystallization (MD/MC). The integration of differ-

ent membrane units represents an interesting way for achieving the ZLD goal due to the possibility of overcoming the limits of the

single units and, thus, to improve the performance of the overall operation.

The present research study is focusing on the evaluation of the integrated membrane system which merges the membrane contac-

tor technology with the conventional pressure-driven membrane operations for seawater desalination. Sensitivity studies were

performed for several configurations of the integrated system to obtain the most sensitive parameter in the total water cost and the

optimal design of the system.

The results revealed that the pressure-driven membrane operations were very sensitive to the feed concentration and the cost of

electricity consumption. On the other hand, MD processes were not sensitive to the variation on the feed concentration or the elec-

tricity costs. The most sensitive parameter in the total water cost of the MD plant was the cost of steam which contributed to values

as high as high as 11.4% in case of MD without heat recovery system. The best tolerance to the variation of these parameters was

obtained when using the integrated membrane system of pressure-driven membranes and MC processes.


24/7018

Environmental Impacts of Seawater Desalination on Marine Life in the Coastal Area of Oman

Abdelkader T. Ahmed1, Mohamed H. Elsanabary2and Brahim Askri1

1 Caledonian College of Engineering, Oman2Civil Engineering Dept, Port Said University, Egypt

Email: [email protected]; [email protected]

A gap between supply and demand for fresh water is grown up in many countries. Desalination of seawater is recently practiced by

many coastline countries such as Gulf counties as a solution for water shortages. Although, using desalination has many benefits,

however, some arguments raised against building desalination plants due to their environmental impacts to the surrounding area,

especially to marine life via discharging the high concentrated brine into the ocean. The negative impacts of the brine discharge

are due to the high level of salinity, total alkalinity and alteration to the temperature. These impacts could be considerable in terms

of the influence on the marine organisms. Reductions in either water quality or quantity have serious negative impacts on the bio-

diversity. Thus, yielding fresh water from desalination of seawater must be done in a way that saves the environment. In this study,

a 3D modeling investigation was implemented on a case study of a desalination unit in Oman to find out the exact alterations in

the environment due to using this unit and recommendations for limited or eliminate these impacts. Results showed a significant

change in the salinity and temperature of the local area surrounding the discharge point. This new media under seawater affected

the development of species, survival of larva and reproductive qualities.


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19

Small-Scale Reverse Osmosis Desalination Plants Induced Brine Disposal Practices in the United Arab Emirates

Nurul Akhand1, Mohamed AlMulla2, Yousif Hedar1and Basel AlAraj1

1International Center for Biosaline Agriculture, Dubai, United Arab Emirates2 Ministry of Environment and Water, Dubai, United Arab Emirates


Brackish groundwater is the primary water source for agricultural development in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). About 400 farms

out of 35,200 in the UAE use small-scale reverse osmosis (RO) desalination plants to desalinize brackish groundwater for farm

production systems. The production systems include vegetables (in green houses and open fields), forages, date palm and fruit

trees. Twelve plants in inland areas and three plants in coastal areas were studied to evaluate the performance of membrane

technology, irrigation management and brine disposal practices. Pretreated brackish groundwater, salinity varying from 4 to 33 dS

m-1, was used as feed water. Higher groundwater salinity was observed in coastal areas due to sea-water intrusion. The capacity

of ROs varied from 70 to 800 m3d-1. The salt rejection values of ROs varied from 60 to 99 percent; and the recovery percent varied

from 30 to 90. Such a wide range of performance values is due to variation in (i) feed water salinity, (ii) pressure applied, and (iii)

membrane characteristics. Surface drippers were used for irrigating vegetables in both green houses and fields. Field irrigation

techniques include micro-sprayers (for forages), furrow/basin (for vegetables/forages) and hose pipe (for date palm). Chemical

analysis of brine showed trace existence of heavy metals but high concentrations of NO3-N. The current methods of brine disposal

include (i) surface disposal (to excavated/non-excavated pits or mountain terrain or steep edge of sand dunes), (ii) well injection

or dug well, (iii) pipeline to sea beach, (iv) irrigation of salt-tolerant plants or blending brine with feed water for irrigating date palm,

(v) use in cooling pads of green houses, and (vi) wadi beds. Among the disposal methods, surface disposal and dug well near the

plants are critical as feed water can be further polluted by brine and chemicals used in RO plants. The study also recommended

some appropriate brine disposal practices to safeguard environment particularly protecting further pollution of non-renewable

groundwater reserve in UAE. In fact, site specific assessment is a prerequisite to come up with a suitable disposal practice. The

recommended brine disposal practices include (i) evaporation ponds with better control of leakage and appropriate disposal of high

concentrate, (ii) biosaline agriculture, (iii) brine reduction, etc. Community based evaporation ponds with aquaculture can be more

justifiable for small-scale RO plants. Similarly, higher concentration of NO3-N in brine could an additional advantage for growing

biosaline agriculture.


26/7020

Harmful Algal Blooms in Oman Waters and Their Effect on Desalination Plants

Hamed Mohammed Al Gheilani

Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, Muscat, Oman


Red tide, one of the harmful algal blooms (HABs) is a natural ecological phenomenon and often this event is accompanied bysevere impacts on coastal resources, local economies, and public health. The occurrence of red tides has become more frequent

in Omani waters in recent years. Some of them caused fish kill, damaged fishery resources and mariculture, threatened the ma-

rine environment and the osmosis membranes of desalination plants. However, a number of them have been harmless. The most

common dinoflagellate Noctilucascintillansisassociated with the red tide events in Omani waters. Toxic species like Kareniasel-

liformis, Prorocentrumarabianum, and Trichodesmiumerythraeum also have been reported recently. Although red tides in Oman

have been considered a consequence of upwelling in the summer season (May to September), recent phytoplankton outbreaks in

Oman are not restricted to summer. Frequent algal blooms have been reported during winter (December to March). HABs may have

contributed to hypoxia and/or other negative ecological impacts. The effect of HABs on desalination plants were increased in last

three years, by blooms of Cochlodinium, noctiluca species, and blooms of jellyfish. Most of these blooms were affected Al Batinah

and Muscat coast. These effect including millions of Omani Rialsand several shutdown of desalination plants during these years.


27/70

21

Minimizing the Impact of Red Tide Environmental Events on Safety Critical Equipment of a Reverse Osmosis Desalination Plant

A.F. Al-Hinai, B.M. Alkali and M. El Sharif.

School of Engineering and Built Environment, Glasgow Caledonian University, United Kingdom


Seawater desalination is vital for most of the Middle East countries where there is an increased demand for desalinated water andat the same time severe shortage of fresh ground water. This shortage is as a result of the increase in on-going number of infra-

structure construction and development projects. The frequent occurrences of red tide events in Arab Gulf countries had alerted

lots of researchers and many organizations have started looking for solutions and alternative opportunities that could minimize the

severe impacts of the sea environmental events such as red tide and tropical cyclones on desalination and petrochemical plants.

This paper considers scaling and fouling as serious failure modes contributing to the deterioration of RO desalination plant overall

efficiency. We observe an increase in the frequency of these failure modes during red tide events and as a consequence leading

to a significant numbers of breakdowns and operational interruptions. This study focuses on conducting a reliability analysis of a

reverse osmosis desalination plant. A 5 years historical data for the plant unplanned maintenance and repairs actions have been

analyzed to have a better insight of the failure patterns in order to come up with an adequate maintenance strategy. A comprehen-

sive failure mode and effect analysis is conducted on the plant critical equipment to further identify other failure modes and their

impacts on the plants overall efficiency. The framework of a classical competing risk model and conditional independent multiple

competing risk models are proposed. A simulation example using the failure data collected is proposed and simulated results of

the models cost curve show optimal cost effective preventive maintenance schedules for the plant critical equipments.


28/7022

Prospects of Desalination for Irrigation Water in the Sultanate of Oman

Salem Ali Al-Jabri and Mushtaque Ahmed



The most limiting factor for the agricultural sector in the Sultanate of Oman is the scarcity of water in terms of quantity and qual-ity. Salinization of both soils and groundwater systems along the coastal strip of Al Batinah has placed a substantial burden on

the farmers regarding crop selection and, therefore, farm profitability. Consequently, many farmers had no choice but to abandon

their farm activities and seek change of land status. Finding a source of water of good quality is probably the only viable choice for

sustaining the agricultural sector in the country. Desalination of brackish and sea waters might be an attractive option to sustain

salt-affected lands in the Sultanate. The advancement in desalination technologies had reduced energy and running cost require-

ments. We present in this work the international experience on desalination for irrigation water; the opportunities and challenges

of the use of this technology for sustaining agriculture in arid environments; and the outcome of a survey that explores the extent of

the use of desalination for providing irrigation water in the Batinah coast. Results showed the main two challenges for adopting this

technology for agriculture are the initial cost of desalination units and reject water in terms of means of disposal. Current practices

of disposal are not environmentally feasible and are associated with several detrimental effects, such as soil and aquifer contami-

nation with brines. Use of desalination technology for irrigation is still cost-ineffective. The availability of energy in the Sultanate in

conjunction with certain economic measures may make desalination a practical option to sustaining the sector of agriculture in the

country. However, there is a need for more applied research efforts to minimize the detrimental impact of disposal of reject water

on environment, long-term impaction of desalinated water on agricultural soils, and cost/benefit analysis of the technology.


29/70

23

Presence of THMs in Desalinated Water in Muscat

Aliaa Al-Kalbani, Zainab Ambu-Saidi, Sara Al-Kiyumi and Salwa Al-Rawahi



Disinfection is of unquestionable importance in the supply of safe drinking water. Chlorination is the major disinfection process fordrinking water. However, the reaction between the disinfection and the organic matter (OM) could form disinfection by-products

like trihalomethanes (THMs), haloacetic acids (HAA) and others. The study was done in order to check the presence of chlorination

by-products in drinking water system for Muscat. This study presented the monitoring results of Muscat with collaboration with

Public Authority of Electricity and Water (PAEW) in the period of June 9, 2013 to August 1, 2013. 17 drinking water reservoirs were

selected to assess the presence of the chlorination by-products (THM). The chlorination by-products were detected by using the

Gas Chromatography Mass spectrometry instrument. The concentration of the THMs did not exceed 0.3g/l (ppb). Also, Chloroform,

Bromodichloromethane (BDCM) and Dibromochloromethane (DBCM) concentrations did not exceed 1.6g/l while the Bromoform

reached 28g/l. Therefore, the results showed that the Bromoform concentration is the most dominant THM species observed in

all the samples. The Bromoform concentration and the THMs concentrations did not exceed the maximum value of the Omani

standard for drinking water (1 mg/l). The drinking water quality in Muscat is considered as high water quality according to the THMs

standards. Thus, at present, there is no health concerns associated with the presence of THMs in the drinking water. However,

continuous monitoring is required because contamination could occur at any time which could enhance the formation of the by-

products when the suitable conditions are present.


30/7024

Thermal Performance of a Single Slope Solar Water Still with Enhanced Solar Heating System for Omani Climate

Abdullah M. Al-Shabibi and M. Tahat

College of Engineering, Sultan Qaboos University, Oman


Oman is located in the southeastern quarter of the Arabian Peninsula and, according to official estimates, covers a total landarea of approximately 300,000 square kilometers. The land area is composed of varying topographic features: valleys and desert

account for 82 % of the land mass; mountain ranges, 15%; and the coastal plain, 3 %. The climatic zone of sultanate of Oman is

dry tropical characterized by extreme heat in the summer around June and coolness in the winter around January. The sultanate

receives a high degree of solar radiation through the year. Oman has limited amount of fresh water resources and therefore it is

important for Omani to use solar energy to desalinate sea water to solve the critical shortages of fresh water in the country.

This research work deals with the experimental investigations of conventional water still in Oman and modified to include solar

energy heating unit, to increase or preheat saline water before entering the solar still in order to enhance its hourly or daily yield

of pure water. A single slope, single effect conventional solar still with basin area of (1mx1m) was constructed, experimentally

tested under different Omani weather conditions, and then using solar water heating system to heat the water before entering the

conventional solar still basin. Different basin geometries were also investigated and the yield pure water was recorded. Different

quantities of water in the solar still basin were tested to find the effect of water quantity on the hourly yield. The result of the thermal

performance of the conventional solar still when its used with the solar energy heating system is outperform the thermal perform-

ance of a conventional solar still.


31/70

25

Strategies for Addressing Sustainability Risks of Seawater Desalination Plants in the Arabian Gulf

Aliyu Salisu Barau

Research Fellow, Earth System Governance Project, IPO, Lund University, Sweden


The Arabian Gulfs hyper-arid climate makes it an excessively water-deficient region. Ironically, the Gulf has one of the highestper capita daily water consumption rates in the world. Presently, seawater desalination seems to be the most reliable source of

clean water in the Gulf. However, multiple brine discharges from desalination plants endanger marine organisms. Similarly, high

energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions raise sustainability concerns. By and large, lack of integrated regional gov-

ernance framework hampers realising sustainable desalination industry. This paper seeks to unravel complexities in sustainability

dimensions of the Gulfs desalination projects. It also identifies pathways for overcoming risks of fragmented governance of the

desalination industry. The study applied complexity theory, the DPSIR model, and the Earth System Governance paradigm to prop

its theoretical and methodological underpinnings. The paper identified 29 factors (natural, institutional, technological, policy and

demographic) that underscore dynamics of the Gulf desalination industry. The recommendations made for sustainable pathways

were based on principles of the Earth System Governance and interdisciplinary team building. This study stressed that sustainable

future for the desalination industry in the Gulf region would depend on building a unified, and comprehensive desalinated water

governance framework.


32/7026

Hydrodynamic Modelling: Application of the Delft3D-FLOW in Santos Bay, Sao Paulo State, Brazil

Silene Cristina Baptistelli

Companhia de Saneamento Bsico do Estado de So Paulo, SABESP, Brasil

Email: [email protected]; [email protected]

This work aims to evaluate the hydrodynamic behavior of Santos Bay through mathematical modeling using the three-dimensionalhydrodynamic model Delft3D.The study region is situated on the coastal area, on the south coast of So Paulo State. The State

of So Paulo is located in the southeastern region of the Brazilian Atlantic coast and is the most populous and developed State

in Brazil. The Delft3D hydrodynamic model was developed by WL-Delft Hydraulics, with a set of programs capable of simulating

flows in surface water bodies. For modeling implementation, field measurements data were compiled, analyzed and consisted,

and then were used to star the model Delft3D in the process of initialization, calibration, validation and evaluation of the modeling

results. The results of the simulations demonstrated that the approach was appropriate for study region. Also, it was verified that

the forcing that determines the hydrodynamic in Santos Bay is the tide, and near the imaginary line connecting Ponta de Itaipu and

Ponta Grossa, there is a strong influence of coastal circulation which dominates the NE and SW direction, thus parallel to Praia

Grande. In conclusion, this study contributed to obtain a better knowledge about hydrodynamic mathematic modeling and about

the studied area.


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Prediction of the Environmental Impact of Large Scale SeaWater Outfalls

M.C.M. Bruijs and H.J.G. Polman

DNV GL Energy Advisory, The Netherlands


Power plants, desalination and other industrial facilities apply large quantities of sea water for their processes. These industriesare obliged to provide insight in the environmental effects on the water bodies on which the discharge takes place in order minimize

negative impact on aquatic organisms. The general approach requires evaluation of these effects by industrial releases of waste

heat, brine, chlorination by-products. For many coastal water bodies, environmental quality standards have been determined. To

assess the impact of environmental releases, it is necessary to estimate the extent to which the pollutant disperses in the aquatic

environment.

Chlorine is worldwide still the most applied method to prevent fouling in a cooling water system. However, chlorination of (sea)

water results in the formation of compounds such as chloroform, bromoform and trihalomethanes. It is beneficial to get more insight

in the fate and effects of these compounds in the outfall area before allowing these discharges seen in the light of the consents. For

desalination, the discharge of brine may impair the (local) environment by increasing the local salinity to an extent at which organ-

isms are affected. Also, the discharge of waste heat will impact sessile organisms and may impact the migration and abundance

of fish.

For the environmental impact assessment process, prediction of thermal and chemical discharge and enables evaluation of poten-

tial environmental effects in the receiving water bodies. By doing so, the environmental impact and subsequent risk assessment

is evaluated as function of time and space, even when an installation is still under development. 3D hydrodynamic modelling is a

helpful and cost effective tool to predict the discharge of waste heat, brine and chlorination by-products.


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Near Field Dilution of a Dense Jet Impinging on a Solid Boundary

G.C. Christodoulou, I.K. Nikiforakis, T.D. Diamantis and A.I. Stamou

School of Civil Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, Greece


Experimental measurements of concentrations were performed for vertical dense jets discharged downwards to a horizontal ora sloping bottom, aiming at (a) determining the dilution at the impingement point on a solid bed and assess the influence of the

boundary, and (b) evaluating the local dilution in the near field, namely the additional dilution achieved within the density current

which forms in the vicinity of the impingement point. It is found that the presence of the solid boundary affects the axial dilution of

the approaching jet up to a distance of hD which is well correlated to the source height and the length scale LM. The dilution at the

impingement point on the boundary is reduced appreciably compared to that of a boundary-free jet at the same location. The addi-

tional dilution within the density current on a sloping bottom is well correlated to the dimensionless distance from the impingement

point. Dimensionless empirical equations are proposed for the dilution at the impingement point and in the density current near the

bed, in terms of geometrical parameters and the densimetric Froude number.


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The Viability of Renewable energy and Energy storage as the Power Source for Municipal Scale Reverse Osmosis Desalination

Clifford Dansoh

Mott MacDonald Limited, East Sussex, United Kingdom


The use of renewable energy to power reverse osmosis desalination plants to provide potable water for around 50,000 peoplein Newhaven, in South East England, and in Massawa in Eritrea, was investigated. The following energy sources, in a variety of

combinations were specifically assessed:

Wind Power

Wave Power

Solar Power

Tidal Current Power

Hydrogen production, storage and use in Fuel Cell

The following types of reverse osmosis plants were studied:

No Brine Stream Recovery (BSR) reverse osmosis plant

Pelton Wheel BSR reverse osmosis plant

Pressure Exchanger BSR reverse osmosis plant

Modelling was conducted to derive the amount of water that each reverse osmosis plant would deliver from various combinations

and amounts of renewable power input, at varying feedwater temperatures. Scenarios that were not able to deliver enough water

to meet the users needs were scaled-up so that they could.

The cost of the scaled-up scenarios that were able to meet the users water demands were compared with the costs associated

with the equivalent conventionally-powered scenario over a 25-year life. Specifically, the following were considered:

A coal-fired plant with carbon capture and storage (CCS) at Newhaven and

A diesel generator at Massawa.

This comparison was made with and without the external costs associated with conventional energy production and use. A com-

parison of the most financially-attractive renewable energy option and the equivalent conventionally-powered scenario at Mas-

sawa was undertaken, based on Net Present Value (NPV) methodology.


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Mathematical Model Study of the Effluent Disposal from a Desalination Plant in the Marine Environment at Tuticorin

D.R. Danish1, B.V. Mudgal2, G. Dhinesh3and M.V. Ramanamurthy3

1Institute for Ocean Management, Anna University, CEG Campus, Chennai, India2Centre for Water Resources, Anna University, CEG Campus, Chennai, India

3National Institute for Ocean Management, NIOT Campus, Chennai, India


Consequent to rapid urbanization and industrialization, desalination of sea water is considered as a potential source of water

along coastal areas. The greatest challenge in putting up a desalination plant along the coastal areas is the safe disposal of brine

discharge and its dispersion in seawater, as it can have a profound impact on marine environmental. The Tuticorin coast in Tamil

Nadu, south India, is well known for its major port. It is also under growing pressure of industrialization and urbanization. The coast

has many important ecological features as well. Hence, this study has been carried out to ensure better disposal and dispersion of

the effluent from the proposed desalination plant at Tuticorin. The fate of the brine discharge is predicted using a numerical model

from the outfall of the desalination plant by considering the local bathymetry and assessing the hydrodynamic parameters such as

waves, tides and currents of the area as well as wind and the other local environmental parameters.


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Functional Appraisal of Marine Outfall for Domestic Waste Disposal Through Tracer Technique

Shivani Dhage1, Ritesh Vijay2and Prakash Kelkar3

1National Environmental Engineering Research Institute, Mumbai Zonal Centre, Mumbai, India2National Environmental Engineering Research Institute, Nehru Marg, Nagpur, India

3 Rajiv Gandhi Science and Technology Commission, Government of Maharashtra, Nagpur, India


Many coastal cities release liquid waste into marine water bodies through point and non-point discharges. Marine outfalls with

multi-port diffusers are one of the modern systems adopted by mega cities along the coast for disposal of large volume of domestic

wastewaters. Once the marine outfall is operational, it is cumbersome to find its functional and operational behavior in coastal

region. Evaluation of extent of dilution achieved is complicated due to many reasons like, variation in direction and buoyancy

of upward flow, density, currents, tidal effects and also the submergence of the physical components of the diffuser. All these

limitations create difficulty in establishing fulfillment of the rationale behind outfall installation because accurate information on

compliance of the coastal water standards is not readily computable. Hydrodynamic simulation through mathematical models and

experimental application of tracers are the commonly adopted techniques for finding effectiveness of outfall for mixing behavior,

dilution and dispersion pattern of waste plume released through diffusers. Simulation through mathematical models provides ex-

pected dilution and dispersion pattern of the waste plume but these models need precise calibration for hydrodynamic and water

quality parameters. A tracer investigation is a valuable tool to obtain factual information for the dispersion of wastewater. Natural,

fluorescent and radio tracers are used during the studies conducted for the city of Mumbai, India. The paper presents the compari-

son of the natural and fluorescent dye tracers to find out functional behavior and the travel path of pollutant concentration through

distribution of the tracers in longitudinal and transverse direction from existing ocean outfall at Mumbai.


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Overview of Different Approaches Simulating the Long Term Response to Climate Change and Coastal Effluents in the Arabian

Gulf

A. Elhakeem1and W. Elshorbagy2

1Water Resources Graduate Program, UAE University, United Arab Emirates2Civil Environmental Engineering Dept., UAE University, United Arab Emirates


Evaluating the long-term variability of the seawaters salinity and temperature among other ambient conditions due to climate

changes a limiting economical and operational factor in planning the design of new and expansion of existing desalination plants.

This need is amplified in the Arabian Gulf due to the natural arid climate and anthropogenic stresses related to urban growth, en-

ergy exploration and ongoing major developments. Due to the drastic lack of long term monitoring data the hydrodynamic response

of the Arabian Gulf due to the climate change and coastal effluents is not fully defined. Moreover the assessment studies conduct-

ed using either field sampling or numerical modelling are mostly qualitative and of local fashi

book abstract icdemos 2014

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