ABSTRACT
Desalting plant concentrate characteristics may be predicted with reasonable accuracy in the absence of actual test data. With the recent rapid growth of desalting applications and the current backlog of planned work, the whole subject of desalting concentrate disposal has assumed a most significant role. Nanofiltration is routinely evaluated as a viable alternative to "conventional" water treatment technology, and major plants whose total capacity approaches 60 mgd either are in design or under construction. Since the concentrate generated by these plants will be significantly different from that generated by reverse osmosis (RO), characterization will require a different approach. Although seawater RO is as yet uncommon in the United States, the 1988 to 1992 California drought has generated an upswing of interest in that state. The electrodialysis reversal process is somewhat different from RO in that the permeate quality can be tailored to a specific requirement by adjustment of stack power.
