Membrane Bioreactor/Ultra Low Energy Reverse Osmosis Membrane Process for Forward Operating Base Wastewater Reuse
ER-2238
Objective
Forward Operating Bases (FOBs) require 25-60 gallons of potable water per soldier per day for essentials including drinking, hygiene, and food preparation, and they produce 35-50 gallons of wastewater daily per soldier. Wastewater treatment methods in FOBs include burn-out latrines, chemical latrines, sewerage lagoons, removal to off-site facilities by contractors, and rarely, a conventional wastewater treatment plant. Currently, a 600 soldier FOB requires 22 trucks per day to supply the base with fuel and water and to remove wastewater and solid waste, creating significant security risk to convoy personnel and negative environmental impact.
In this project, GE Global Research will develop an innovative, easily deployable membrane bioreactor (MBR) and ultra-low energy (ULE) reverse osmosis (RO) system for on-site wastewater treatment. GE's system will produce high-quality water for potable and non-potable reuse, thereby minimizing the need to transport water and wastewater to and from the FOBs.
Technical Approach
GE Global Research will develop an advanced ULE RO membrane, incorporating engineered nanomaterials to demonstrate a two- to three-fold permeance enhancement, while maintaining the 99.5% or higher salt rejection characteristic of current commercial RO membranes. This ULE RO membrane will reduce electrical consumption by 35% to 47% for the RO process. A deployable MBR/ULE RO system will be developed by leveraging the small footprint of the MBR unit and the high permeance of GE Global Research's ULE RO membrane.
Benefits
The major benefits of the MBR/ULE RO wastewater treatment system to the DoD and specifically its FOBs will be:
- Greatly reduced potable water demand from off-base sources
- Greatly reduced need to transport wastewater away from the bases
- 80% less water traffic on roads (transport of potable water and wastewater)
- 50% less overall traffic on roads (transport of potable water, wastewater, and solid waste)
- Cost savings and improved base environment, security, soldier health, and stewardship of foreign lands
Benefits to the scientific community include the advancement of RO membrane technology with the development of GE Global Research's ULE RO membrane.
Points of Contact
Document Types
- Fact Sheet - Brief project summary with links to related documents and points of contact.
- Final Report - Comprehensive report for every completed SERDP and ESTCP project that contains all technical results.
- Cost & Performance Report - Overview of ESTCP demonstration activities, results, and conclusions, standardized to facilitate implementation decisions.
- Technical Report - Additional interim reports, laboratory reports, demonstration reports, and technology survey reports.
- Guidance - Instructional information on technical topics such as protocols and user’s guides.
- Workshop Report - Summary of workshop discussion and findings.
- Multimedia - On demand videos, animations, and webcasts highlighting featured initiatives or technologies.
- Model/Software - Computer programs and applications available for download.
- Database - Digitally organized collection of data available to search and access.