May 16 2005
Aquious - PCI Membranes, a division of ITT Industries, has recently specified and installed specially developed Durapipe ABS pipework and an extensive array of Durapipe fittings for it’s new range of Fyne Package Membrane Plants.
The new range of prefabricated plants has recently been launched by Aquious – PCI Membranes, based on the well-established Fyne process for providing drinking water to rural communities; and Durapipe ABS was selected to meet all piping requirements because of the product’s Drinking Water Inspectorate (DWI) Approval.
The Fyne process was developed to provide high quality drinking water from difficult raw water sources, such as those that are highly variable in quality and/or contain organic colour and pathogens such as cryptosporidium. The simple, single stage process is based on tubular nanofiltration (NF) membranes, manufactured by Aquious – PCI Membranes, which are robust, easy to clean (without chemicals) and only require simple screening to 2mm as pre-treatment.
The membranes are each supported by Durapipe ABS 12mm internal diameter pipes, 72 of which are mounted into a 200mm diameter, 3810mm long pressure vessel (known as the “C10” module). The required numbers of modules are then stacked to provide the necessary treatment capacity, with pumps, tanks and Durapipe valves all being sized accordingly.
The Fyne Package Membrane Plant range enhances the benefits of the Fyne process and consists of standard process designs, which vary in capacity from 3m3/day to over 450m3/day. Bespoke plants can also be offered to suit specific circumstances such as unusual raw water conditions or applications requiring larger capacities. The Package Membrane Plants are installed into prefabricated buildings/enclosures and tested prior to shipping, such that upon delivery they simply require positioning onto a foundation and connecting to site services.
This approach not only significantly reduces plant costs, but also minimises the time required for design, on-site construction and commissioning, reducing an average 16 week period on-site to just four weeks.
Durapipe ABS boasts a range of performance benefits that helps to reduce the overall life cycle costs of the entire system. An important factor in the choice of Durapipe ABS was also its lack of corrosion and the innate cleanliness of the product range, thus safeguarding the membrane plants’ product water quality.
Additional benefits include the fact that Durapipe ABS involves a solvent welded joint procedure and is not reliant on any special tools, helping to cut installation labour costs. Being lightweight, it is easy and safe to handle on site and the ABS material also offers excellent resistance to extreme temperatures.