In this project a new process combination for the swimming pool water treatment is investigated and optimized. The project consists of two phases. In the Phase I, (2012–2014) a new process combination of ultrafiltration (UF) and nanofiltration (NF) in a variable side stream for an entire public swimming pool was realized. The result of Phase I showed that it’s feasible to develop an economical treatment process for the removal of disinfection by-products, which has economic and ecological advantages compared to the processes currently in use. The aim of the project Phase II is to optimize the process so that on one hand the health and satisfaction of pool visitors increases and on the other hand the efficiency of the treatment system can be further improved.
At the beginning different operating parameters for the NF plant, which was constructed in Phase I, will be optimized. The parameters primarily include operating time, transmembrane pressure difference, yield and dosage of antiscalant and bisulfite before NF. The impact on the pool water quality, the water and energy consumption as well as the development of membrane fouling and rejection will be intensively studied. The feasibility of a load-oriented operation (viable due to a NF variable side stream) and the consequent potential savings in energy and water consumption will be taken into account. The plant will be operated for approximately one year, in order to analyze the influence of the variation of the load input on the treatment performance. During this period of time, while ensuring a good pool water quality the microbiological water quality and relevant physico-chemical parameters will be checked regularly. Sufficient data should be therefore available for the estimation of water, energy and chemical consumption. A comparison between the optimized operations of the UF-NF process and the operating condition without the new process combination (Phase I) should facilitate a final assessment of the application potential of the investigated technology in the swimming pool water treatment.
