MIEX Nitrate Removal System Launched At ACE07

Denver, CO — MIEX® and MAGNAPAK® Systems are now available for nitrate removal from drinking water supplies. Technologies to remove nitrate are being sought after as rising demand and scarce water supplies are forcing many utilities to consider water sources previously ignored due to the presence of nitrate. In areas of intense agricultural activity, existing ground water supplies that were previously in compliance with the EPA's nitrate limit of 10 mg/L (as N) are now also finding the need to treat these water supplies as nitrate levels approach the limit. As nitrate is classified as an acute toxin, any exceedance of the EPA limit is considered a violation, so even where systems only have nitrate levels at or above 10 mg/L for a short period each year, treatment must be installed to allow the water source to continue to be used.

Traditionally, the only feasible treatment options available for removing nitrate from drinking water supplies have been ion exchange and reverse osmosis. Both of these options generate a significant amount of waste that can be difficult to dispose of. Nitrate is an anion and thus can be removed by ion exchange using the MIEX® Resin. Customers familiar with the very low waste volumes produced by the MIEX® ion exchange process had suggested that if this advantage could also be applied to nitrate removal applications, it would offer a significant advantage over the alternative treatment options. In the past year, tests have been carried out to optimize the MIEX® resin properties and process design for nitrate removal and a MIEX® nitrate removal process has now been developed that provides several significant benefits over traditional nitrate removal technologies. A summary of the benefits of using the MIEX® Process for nitrate removal are as follows:

• Lowest waste volumes of any nitrate removal technology (see Table 1).
• No risk of chromatographic peaking.
• Can tolerate low free chlorine residuals to prevent bacterial growth without the risk of NDMA formation.
• Co-removal of other anions of concern such as TOC and arsenic.

Treatability tests have been conducted on water sources with a wide range of characteristics to determine appropriate system design parameters. If you have a nitrate removal application, contact us for a comparison of the MIEX® Process versus other treatment options you are considering.

Table 1: Waste Volumes for Nitrate Removal Technologies

Treatment System	Waste Volume
	gal/MG	%Throughput
MIEX® Process	1,000-2,000	0.1-0.2
Packed Bed Ion Exchange	5,000-20,000	0.5-2
Reverse Osmosis	100,000-200,000	10-20

Visit Orica Watercare Booth # 1851 to learn more about our Nitrate Removal Systems!

SOURCE: Orica Watercare