559-10 - Reverse Osmosis
Learning objectives
- State the main purpose of reverse osmosis technology
- Discuss the scientific principles of osmosis and osmotic pressure
- State the purpose of high pressure pumps in a reverse osmosis system
- Identify the main components of a spiral wound reverse osmosis membrane
- Describe the construction of spiral wound membranes and discuss how they separate permeate and concentrate from feedwater
- Describe the construction and purpose of a reverse osmosis vessel
- Discuss the flow of saline water through a reverse osmosis system from intake to collection
- Discuss the purpose of energy recovery systems used in a reverse osmosis desalination system
- Describe the purpose of reverse osmosis pre- and post-treatment applications
- Calculate permeate recovery percentage and describe factors that can affect this percentage
Course overview
Desalination is the process of separating freshwater from the dissolved salts and minerals in a saline water source, such as seaweed or brackish water. Both membrane and desalination technologies exist. Reverse osmosis (RO) is a commonly employed membrane technology used in industrial desalination facilities. The most advanced RO membranes use the following, in a compact and efficient design:
- Thin film composite construction
- Membrane spacers
- Crossflow processing
Other processes and devices, such as pretreatment, post-treatment, and energy recovery systems are used with the RO system to complete the separation of freshwater from seawater.
The Reverse Osmosis training course discusses the scientific principles on which RO technology is based. It explains the primary function of an RO desalination system. This online training course identifies the key components of a typical RO system, with an emphasis on membrane technology. It also highlights the importance of permeate recovery percentage. This course covers:
- RO technology fundamentals
- RO membrane technology
- RO membrane basics
- RO systems
- RO operations
Reverse Osmosis is part of the Water Treatment training series.
The individuals involved in the development and promotion of this course do not receive any compensation or financial benefits outside of their regular employment for their work on this course.
