Apparatus and method for backwashing filter membrane modules

• US 9,757,694 B2
• Filed: 08/25/2009
• Issued: 09/12/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 08/26/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: inge watertechnologies AG (BASF SE)
• Original Assignee: inge watertechnologies AG (BASF SE)
• Inventors: Berg, Peter, Winkler, Roland
• Primary Examiner(s): Ramdhanie, Bobby
• Assistant Examiner(s): Anderson, Denise R
• Application Number:
  US12/547,012
• Publication Number:
  US 20100051544A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,940 Days
• Field of Search: 210636, 21032169
• CPC Class Codes: B01D 2317/04 Elements in parallel
• CPC Class Codes: B01D 2317/06 Use of membrane modules of the same kind
• CPC Class Codes: B01D 2321/04 Backflushing
• CPC Class Codes: B01D 61/22 Controlling or regulating
• CPC Class Codes: B01D 65/02 Membrane cleaning or sterilisation ; Membrane regeneration
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 1/008 Control or steering systems not provided for elsewhere in subclass C02F
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 1/44 by dialysis, osmosis or reverse osmosis general membrane separation processes B01D61/00, membrane modules B01D63/00, electrodialysis C02F1/4693, combination of membrane modules and bioreactors C02F3/1268
• CPC Class Codes: C02F 2303/16 Regeneration of sorbents, filters

Abstract

An apparatus and a method for backwashing filter membrane modules arranged in parallel in the form of a plurality of module rows within a module rack and supplyable with raw water through supply/drain ports at each end face via respectively associated supply/drain lines, and each including a drain port on a wall side for the filtrate, to which a filtrate collection line is connected for draining the filtrate, wherein valve means are provided to control at least one filtration and backwashing mode, wherein, in the backwashing mode, a supply-side control valve of the first supply/drain lines carrying raw water of a module row is closed, but an associated drain-side control valve of the other supply/drain line of one module row serving to drain backwashing water is open, whereas the remaining supply-side control valves in the supply line carrying raw water of the remaining module rows are open, to ensure backwashing of the one module row of the module rack by the filtrate simultaneously produced by the other module rows.

Claims

1. An apparatus for backwashing filter membrane modules, the filter membrane modules being arranged in parallel and separated into a plurality of module rows within a module rack, each filter membrane being supplyable with raw water through a respective port at an end face thereof via respectively associated lines, and each filter membrane module including a drain port on a wall side for filtrate, to which a filtrate collection line is connected for draining the filtrate, wherein valve means are provided to control at least one filtration and backwashing mode,

wherein, in the backwashing mode, a supply-side control valve of one module row connected to a first line of the lines carrying raw water is closed, but an associated drain-side control valve of the one module row connected to an other line of the lines serving to drain backwashing water is open, whereas supply-side control valves of other module rows of the plurality of module rows in the first line are open, to ensure backwashing of the one module row by the filtrate simultaneously produced by the other module rows by pressing the filtrate drained in a collected manner via respective drain ports of the other module rows and collected in the filtrate collection line backwards through the one module row.

2. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, the supply and drain-side control valve inserted per module row into the lines carrying raw water and the filtrate collection line are configured as electro-magnetically operated two-way/two-position directional valves for the electronic control of the filtration and backwashing modes.

3. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, the line carrying raw water of a first port of the ports of the filter membrane modules is connectable with one of a central supply for raw water or a central drain for polluted backwashing water by means of a switchover valve means.

4. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, the line carrying raw water of a second port of the ports of the filter membrane modules is connectable with one of a central supply for raw water or a central drain for polluted backwashing water by means of a switchover valve means.

5. The apparatus according to claim 4, further comprising a switchover valve means configured as an electro-magnetically operated four-way/two-position directional valve.

6. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, the filtrate collection line is equipped with a central filtrate valve at its end.

7. The apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a switchover valve means, a central filtrate valve, and control valves inserted into the lines and the filtrate collection line are switchable in a coordinated manner by a central electronic control unit in accordance with at least one filtration and backwashing mode.

8. The apparatus according to claim 1, wherein each port operates in one of a supply and drain mode, each line operates in one of a supply and drain mode.