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Integrated DAF–UF–RO Desalination Pilot Train

The complete triple-barrier seawater pilot — coagulation, dissolved air flotation, ultrafiltration, cartridge guard and reverse osmosis — engineered into one containerised train that takes raw intake water through to drinking-quality permeate. It is the single most convincing thing you can put in front of a financier, a regulator or an EPC tender: a working desalination plant in miniature, on your seawater, producing your numbers.

3-Barrier
DAF + UF + RO
10–50
m³/hr feed
<3
SDI₃ to RO
40ft HC
single envelope

A Whole Desalination Plant, in Miniature

Each barrier removes what the next cannot tolerate. DAF floats off algae, TEP and oil during a bloom. Ultrafiltration delivers a guaranteed SDI₃ and a sharp particle cut to the membranes. Reverse osmosis then proves permeate quality, flux and fouling rate on water that has actually been pre-treated the way the full plant will treat it. Running the three together — on live seawater, with every stream instrumented — is the only way to see how the barriers interact across a full season, and the only data an RO membrane warranty should ever be written against.

DAF–UF–RO — 40ft Layout

Hover and click each barrier to explore it

Intake & Feed
Intake & Feed

Strainer, VFD feed pump and inlet flow meter set the train throughput on live seawater.

  • Auto strainer
  • VFD feed pump
  • Inlet mag flow
  • Online turbidity
StrainerVFDMag FlowTurbidity
Coag / Floc
Coagulation & Flocculation

FeCl₃/PACl dosing, rapid mix and tapered flocculation prepare the water for flotation.

  • Flow-paced dosing
  • Rapid mix
  • Tapered floc, VFD
  • Cal columns
FeCl3/PAClRapid MixTaperedVFD
Barrier 1 — DAF
Barrier 1 — DAF

High-rate flotation floats algae, TEP and oil to a skimmed surface layer. The bloom-resilient first barrier.

  • 8–40 m/hr loading
  • Micro-bubble cloud
  • Surface skimmer
  • >95% algae removal
8–40 m/hrMicro-BubbleSkimmerSS316
Saturator
Saturator & Recycle

4–6 bar air saturation on an 8–15% recycle generates the micro-bubble cloud.

  • 4–6 bar
  • 8–15% recycle
  • Oil-free compressor
  • Pressure logged
4–6 barRecycleCompressorLogged
Barrier 2 — UF
Barrier 2 — Ultrafiltration

Hollow-fibre UF takes DAF-clarified water to a guaranteed SDI₃ with automatic backwash and CEB.

  • 0.02–0.04 µm
  • Auto backwash + CEB
  • Flux & TMP logged
  • SDI₃ < 3
Hollow FibreAuto BWTMP LogSDI₃
Cartridge Guard
Cartridge Guard

5 µm guard with ΔP logging — the final safety net before the membranes.

  • 5 µm
  • ΔP logged
  • Quick change
  • RO protection
5 µmΔPGuardQuick
Barrier 3 — RO
Barrier 3 — Reverse Osmosis

SWRO array proves permeate TDS, normalised flux and fouling rate on the pre-treated water.

  • High-pressure pump
  • SWRO vessel(s)
  • Permeate & reject sampling
  • Normalised flux logging
SWROHP PumpNorm FluxSampling
Energy Recoveryoptional
Energy Recovery (optional)

Optional ERD on the reject stream demonstrates specific-energy figures representative of the full plant.

  • Reject ERD
  • SEC measurement
  • kWh/m³ logged
  • Bolt-on
ERDSECkWh/m³Optional
SCADA / Data
Control & Historian

One PLC/HMI runs all three barriers and logs every stream — flows, pressures, turbidity, SDI₃, TMP, flux, TDS — with remote access.

  • Unified PLC/HMI
  • Full historian
  • Remote VPN
  • Trends & alarms
PLC/HMIHistorianRemoteAlarms
Lab Bench
On-Board Lab

Per-barrier sampling, jar test, turbidimeter, SDI₃ and conductivity for on-site analysis.

  • Per-stage taps
  • Jar test
  • SDI₃ / turbidity
  • Conductivity / TDS
SamplingJarSDI₃TDS
MCC / Power
Power & MCC

Marine-grade MCC, VFDs, single power inlet and generator interface for off-grid intakes.

  • Single inlet
  • VFDs
  • IP55
  • Gen-ready
Single InletVFDIP55Gen

What Each Stage Proves

Barrier 1 — DAF

Establishes the coagulant dose, recycle ratio and surface loading that hold float quality through a bloom — and the clarified turbidity handed to UF.

DAF Equipment

Barrier 2 — UF

Proves the SDI₃, sustainable flux, TMP rise and backwash/CEB strategy that deliver RO-grade feed without premature membrane replacement.

UF Pre-treatment

Barrier 3 — RO

Confirms permeate TDS, normalised flux decline and specific energy — the figures that underwrite the membrane warranty and the business case.

RO Protection

What the Train Measures

StreamLogged parametersDecision it informs
Raw intakeTurbidity, temperature, conductivity, algae count, oilDesign basis & seasonal envelope
Post-DAFTurbidity, residual coagulant, float qualityCoagulant dose & DAF loading limit
Post-UFSDI₃, turbidity, flux, TMP, backwash frequencyUF flux & CEB strategy
RO permeateTDS, conductivity, normalised flux, boron (opt.)Product quality & membrane selection
RO rejectPressure, recovery, specific energyRecovery & energy design

Prove the Whole Plant Before You Build It

The DAF–UF–RO pilot is the strongest evidence you can hand a board, a lender or a regulator. Tell us the intake and the decision you need to make, and we will build the train that makes it.

Industries We Serve

Our expertise spans multiple industries with sector-specific water treatment solutions.

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