RO Water Treatment Plant for Island Community
South Stradbroke Island, Australia
RO Water Treatment Plant for Island Community
South Stradbroke Island, Australia
Client
Couran Point Services Pty Ltd
Plant Capacity
140m³/hr
Technology
Reverse Osmosis
Water Source
Bore Water
Quality Issue
High Contaminant Levels in Bore Water
Customer Need
Addressing High Contaminant Levels in Island Bore Water
Couran Point, a residential community on South Stradbroke Island near the northern Gold Coast, previously faced water quality challenges. The bore water, its main source, contained high levels of conductivity, total dissolved solids (TDS), hardness, iron, turbidity, and true colour.
The existing water treatment plant, a basic clarifier operated manually, couldn’t adequately address the elevated TDS and Hardness. With no remote monitoring or data logging, this plant posed challenges. Couran Point Services sought a cost-effective solution to ensure safe drinking water for the community.
What We Did
Design and Built a Containerised RO Water Treatment Plant
FILTEC innovated a compact water treatment plant, built within a 20-foot shipping container for easy sea transport to the island. The plant features a versatile RO water treatment system, alongside media filters (Turbidex and Calcite), UV disinfection, and hypochlorite dosing units. This solution minimizes on-site labor and installation expenses, with most equipment pre-installed and tested prior to commissioning.
Installed Supporting Pre-Treatment and Disinfection Processes
The chosen RO water treatment system, Suez ProFlex LT8-6, offers reliability and flexibility for varying water demands. Turbidex, a solid removal during pre-treatment, intercepts and removes particles before they reach the RO membrane, protecting it from potential clogging or damage due to solid impurities.
Following this, Calcite adjusts the pH post-reverse osmosis treatment, optimizing water quality. For disinfection, the Viqua Pro50 UV system disrupts bacteria’s ability to reproduce with UV light. Hypochlorite is consistently added for disinfection during production and storage to maintain a residual disinfectant level. This multi-barrier approach ensures effective water treatment, delivering consistently safe drinking water to the island community.
Provided Efficient Remote Monitoring and Space Optimisation
The water treatment plant is managed by a centralized Master Control Panel with an HMI screen, accessible remotely for both the customer and FILTEC. FILTEC personnel can monitor the system and provide on-site assistance as needed, checking alarm history.
A significant challenge was fitting all equipment within a standard 20 feet shipping container and establishing intricate pipe routes in the limited space. Utilising 3D drawings in AutoCAD, FILTEC accurately sized and placed the equipment. This approach facilitated a detailed 3D representation for mechanical installers, streamlining construction and reducing time.
The Result
Streamlined Plant Operations and Improved Water Quality
The containerised RO water treatment plant efficiently produces 6 KL/hour of water, meeting Australian Drinking Water Guidelines for an Island community. FILTEC’s off-site installation streamlined the process, reducing time and cost.
The new plant operates seamlessly, enabling the customer to attend to other on-site tasks, while the user-friendly remote monitoring system proved effective post-commissioning. The new system notably improves water quality, eliminating scale and residue issues in residences while ensuring chlorine residual for consumer safety in the distribution network.
