Seawater using pure water high pressure

Memhra.nes. Liquid separation via membranes, ie, reverse osmosis (qv), is used in production of pure water from seawater. The chief limit to broader use of reverse osmosis is the high pressure required as the concentration of reject rises. 

Reverse osmosis can be used to purify water, because the liquid passing through the semipermeable membrane is pure solvent. A water purifier that uses reverse osmosis requires semipermeable membranes that do not rapture under the high pressures required for reverse osmosis. Recall that seawater has an osmotic pressure of nearly 28 atm and that red blood cells rupture at 7 atm. Nevertheless, membranes have been developed that make it feasible to purify water using this technique. Reverse osmosis currently supplies pure drinking water to individual households as well as entire municipalities. 

The Disc Tube system is a patented, ex situ process for the treatment of aqueous solutions ranging from seawater to leachate. The system uses high-pressure reverse osmosis through a semipermeable membrane to separate pure water from contaminated liquids. 

On the other hand, pressure is applied in reverse osmosis to drive the solvent (water) out of the high-concentration side into the low-concentration side this facilitates de-watering insoluble species for their removal. This process produces high-quality water and concentrated refuse. It separates and removes dissolved solids, organics, pyrogens, colloidal matter, viruses, and bacteria from water in the particle range 10 4—10—2 pm. Reverse osmosis can remove up to 95%-99% of the total dissolved solids (TDS) and 99% of all bacteria. It is used for the ob-tention of drinking water from seawater and for the production of ultra pure water in various industries. 

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