AWWA MTC69674

The primary objective for this research is to ensure that this ocean floor system will produce a sustainable quantity of water with a consistent water quality, along with providing information to optimize the design for a full-scale facility. This project is divided into two scales of testing, pilot and demonstration. The pilot-scale testing used 8-inch columns; the results were presented elsewhere (Allen, 2008), and will not be discussed here. The demonstration-scale testing is being conducted at a near-shore facility, with two 5 feet deep pits (intake gallery with a dimension of 60 ft by 50 ft, and discharge gallery with a dimension of 50 ft by 40 ft). The goals of the demonstration-scale testing are as follows: to determine the maximum intake filtration and discharge rate that can be sustained over a long-term period (up to 6 months); and, to evaluate the seasonal water quality impacts on the quantity and quality of water produced from the intake system and determine if further treatment is needed (i.e. microfiltration). The influent water qualities of the two sites are different and are presented in the paper. The raw data are presented with microfiltration (MF) effluent quality from the prototype plant, which serves as benchmark results for comparison of the feed to the desalting membranes. Although the ranges differ between the raw water qualities at the two locations, the average values are similar. Includes 4 references, table, figures.