Abstract:
This thesis presents a comprehensive study on the production of demineralized water for
high-pressure boilers, focusing on a comparative analysis of two predominant processes:
In the purification process, two common methods include reverse osmosis, and ion
exchange. A steam boiler operating at high pressures requires water of very high quality
because hardness could lead to fouling and corrosion, so a good demineralization system
is called for here. The research questions are geared towards determining performance
of RO and IX processes in terms of cost, operational efficiency of the system and
effectiveness in producing water that meets required quality needed for high pressure
boiler applications.
The way of treatment of the research materials is to study general principles of operation,
system configurations, and maintenance requirements for RO and IX processes. It
involved performance analysis of activities such as ion removal efficiency, cost of
operating the system, energy, and need for negative environmental impact. Random
experiments together with pilot-scale testings as well as industrial tests were used to
provide comparative information.
Thus, comparing both methods, it is evident that RO is indeed effective in achieving higher
purity water as necessary for usage in high pressure boilers as compared to the IX
process. From these observations, the RO process depicts the following advantages of
higher cost efficiency than the IX process due to the following factors: In addition, RO
systems are found to have lower operational as well as maintenance costs, and still result
in minimal impact to the community.
Therefore, this thesis concludes that Reverse Osmosis in the production of demineralized
water right for the high-pressure boiler industries as compared to the cost and
sustainability of the method. The information derived from this research can be of great
use to engineers and policymakers who have to make the right choice in the use of water
treatment systems that best suit high-pressure boilers.
