Difference between revisions of "MemEOL"
From Desal Wiki
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</div> | </div> | ||
<div class="recommendation material_recycling alert alert-success" role="alert" alt="Material recycling." style="display: none;"><h4>Material recycling</h4></div> | <div class="recommendation material_recycling alert alert-success" role="alert" alt="Material recycling." style="display: none;"><h4>Material recycling</h4></div> | ||
| + | <div class="recommendation material_recycling" style="display: none;"> | ||
| + | <table class="table table-bordered table-striped table-responsive"> | ||
| + | <tbody><tr> | ||
| + | <td>Compatible with plastic components</td> | ||
| + | <td>Yes</td> | ||
| + | </tr><tr> | ||
| + | <td>Compatible with fibreglass components</td> | ||
| + | <td>Possible but limited</td> | ||
| + | </tr><tr> | ||
| + | <td>Available in Australia</td> | ||
| + | <td>Yes</td> | ||
| + | </tr><tr> | ||
| + | <td>Available globally</td> | ||
| + | <td>Yes</td> | ||
| + | </tr><tr> | ||
| + | <td>Manual disassembly required</td> | ||
| + | <td>Yes</td> | ||
| + | </tr></tbody> | ||
| + | </table> | ||
| + | </div> | ||
| + | <div class="recommendation material_recycling" style="display: none;"> | ||
| + | </body></html> | ||
| + | Recycling of the polymeric membrane components using standard methods has been shown to be one of the most environmentally favourable end-of-life options, with an extremely positive public perception<ref name="lawler-2014-E" />. | ||
| + | |||
| + | The primary recycling method for end-of-life plastic components is mechanical recycling<ref name="a-vard" />, which involves the components being shredded into plastic flakes, which are melted and reformed via melt-extrusion, to produce uniformly-sized pellets which can be used as a raw material for new products<ref name="brulliard" />. This process requires the module to be disassembled and sorted prior to the plastic washing and grinding stages. Due to the requirements of mechanical recycling, only the ABS components, including the tube and end caps, and the spacers are suitable for this method, with all other components being sent to landfill or other end-of-life application<ref name="goodship" />. | ||
| + | |||
| + | In Australia, the overall plastic recycling rate was 20.1% (in 2011), with the majority of plastics being mechanically reprocessed into durable (non-packaging) products<ref name="pacia" />. There are a wide range of companies and programs available for this standard type of plastic recycling currently available in Australia, including [http://www.sita.com.au SITA] and [http://www.aprecycling.com AP Recycling]. | ||
| + | |||
| + | As manual disassembly is required for mechanical recycling, there is also an opportunity to directly reuse some of the membrane components, saving on the cost of processing. These opportunities include, the use of ground plastic components as an aggregate for use in concrete<ref name="saikia" />; the use of membrane sheets and spaces as geotextiles, which are used to separate and retain soils or gravel in landscaping or construction application<ref name="ould" />; and their use in wood plastic composites, which are produced by mixing recycled plastics with ground wood particles to produce decking, roof tiles, cladding, landscaping timbers etc<ref name="kazemi" />. | ||
| + | |||
| + | ===References=== | ||
| + | <references> | ||
| + | <ref name="lawler-2014-E">Lawler, W.; Alvarez-Gaitan, J.; Leslie, G.; Le-Clech, P. "Assessment of End-of-Life Opportunities for Reverse Osmosis Membranes." The University of New South Wales (2015).</ref> | ||
| + | <ref name="a-vard">A’Vard, D.; O’Farrell, K. National Recycling Survey Final Report; Plastics and Chemicals Industries Association: Carlton, VIC (2013)</ref> | ||
| + | <ref name="brulliard">Brulliard, C.; Cain, R.; Do, D.; Dornom, T.; Lim, B.; Olesson, E.; Young, S. "The Australian recycling sector." Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities (2012). Available at www.environment.gov.au</ref> | ||
| + | <ref name="goodship">Goodship, V. "Introduction to Plastic Recycling". Smithers Rapra Technology Limited: Shawbury UK (2007)</ref> | ||
| + | <ref name="pacia">PACIA. "Plastic recycling in Australia remains strong" (2012)</ref> | ||
| + | <ref name="saikia">Saikia, N.; de Brito, J. Construction and Building Materials (2012), 34, 385-401.</ref> | ||
| + | <ref name="ould">Ould Mohamedou, E.; Penate Suarez, D. B.; Vince, F.; Jaouen, P.; Pontie, M. Desalination (2010), 253, 62–70.</ref> | ||
| + | <ref name="kazemi">Kazemi Najafi, S. Waste management; New York (2013)</ref> | ||
| + | </references> | ||
| + | <html><head></head><body> | ||
| + | </div> | ||
<div class="recommendation conversion_to_uf alert alert-success" role="alert" alt="Chemical conversion to an ultrafiltration membrane and then reuse." style="display: none;"><h4>Chemical conversion to an ultrafiltration membrane and then reuse</h4></div> | <div class="recommendation conversion_to_uf alert alert-success" role="alert" alt="Chemical conversion to an ultrafiltration membrane and then reuse." style="display: none;"><h4>Chemical conversion to an ultrafiltration membrane and then reuse</h4></div> | ||
<div class="recommendation reuse_as_ro alert alert-success" role="alert" alt="Direct membrane reuse." style="display: none;"><h4>Direct membrane reuse</h4></div> | <div class="recommendation reuse_as_ro alert alert-success" role="alert" alt="Direct membrane reuse." style="display: none;"><h4>Direct membrane reuse</h4></div> | ||
| Line 850: | Line 893: | ||
</div> | </div> | ||
<div class="alternative material_recycling alert alert-success" role="alert" alt="Material recycling." style="display: none;"><h4>Material recycling</h4></div> | <div class="alternative material_recycling alert alert-success" role="alert" alt="Material recycling." style="display: none;"><h4>Material recycling</h4></div> | ||
| + | <div class="alternative material_recycling" style="display: none;"> | ||
| + | <table class="table table-bordered table-striped table-responsive"> | ||
| + | <tbody><tr> | ||
| + | <td>Compatible with plastic components</td> | ||
| + | <td>Yes</td> | ||
| + | </tr><tr> | ||
| + | <td>Compatible with fibreglass components</td> | ||
| + | <td>Possible but limited</td> | ||
| + | </tr><tr> | ||
| + | <td>Available in Australia</td> | ||
| + | <td>Yes</td> | ||
| + | </tr><tr> | ||
| + | <td>Available globally</td> | ||
| + | <td>Yes</td> | ||
| + | </tr><tr> | ||
| + | <td>Manual disassembly required</td> | ||
| + | <td>Yes</td> | ||
| + | </tr></tbody> | ||
| + | </table> | ||
| + | </div> | ||
| + | <div class="alternative material_recycling" style="display: none;"> | ||
| + | </body></html> | ||
| + | Recycling of the polymeric membrane components using standard methods has been shown to be one of the most environmentally favourable end-of-life options, with an extremely positive public perception<ref name="lawler-2014-E" />. | ||
| + | |||
| + | The primary recycling method for end-of-life plastic components is mechanical recycling<ref name="a-vard" />, which involves the components being shredded into plastic flakes, which are melted and reformed via melt-extrusion, to produce uniformly-sized pellets which can be used as a raw material for new products<ref name="brulliard" />. This process requires the module to be disassembled and sorted prior to the plastic washing and grinding stages. Due to the requirements of mechanical recycling, only the ABS components, including the tube and end caps, and the spacers are suitable for this method, with all other components being sent to landfill or other end-of-life application<ref name="goodship" />. | ||
| + | |||
| + | In Australia, the overall plastic recycling rate was 20.1% (in 2011), with the majority of plastics being mechanically reprocessed into durable (non-packaging) products<ref name="pacia" />. There are a wide range of companies and programs available for this standard type of plastic recycling currently available in Australia, including [http://www.sita.com.au SITA] and [http://www.aprecycling.com AP Recycling]. | ||
| + | |||
| + | As manual disassembly is required for mechanical recycling, there is also an opportunity to directly reuse some of the membrane components, saving on the cost of processing. These opportunities include, the use of ground plastic components as an aggregate for use in concrete<ref name="saikia" />; the use of membrane sheets and spaces as geotextiles, which are used to separate and retain soils or gravel in landscaping or construction application<ref name="ould" />; and their use in wood plastic composites, which are produced by mixing recycled plastics with ground wood particles to produce decking, roof tiles, cladding, landscaping timbers etc<ref name="kazemi" />. | ||
| + | |||
| + | ===References=== | ||
| + | <references> | ||
| + | <ref name="lawler-2014-E">Lawler, W.; Alvarez-Gaitan, J.; Leslie, G.; Le-Clech, P. "Assessment of End-of-Life Opportunities for Reverse Osmosis Membranes." The University of New South Wales (2015).</ref> | ||
| + | <ref name="a-vard">A’Vard, D.; O’Farrell, K. National Recycling Survey Final Report; Plastics and Chemicals Industries Association: Carlton, VIC (2013)</ref> | ||
| + | <ref name="brulliard">Brulliard, C.; Cain, R.; Do, D.; Dornom, T.; Lim, B.; Olesson, E.; Young, S. "The Australian recycling sector." Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities (2012). Available at www.environment.gov.au</ref> | ||
| + | <ref name="goodship">Goodship, V. "Introduction to Plastic Recycling". Smithers Rapra Technology Limited: Shawbury UK (2007)</ref> | ||
| + | <ref name="pacia">PACIA. "Plastic recycling in Australia remains strong" (2012)</ref> | ||
| + | <ref name="saikia">Saikia, N.; de Brito, J. Construction and Building Materials (2012), 34, 385-401.</ref> | ||
| + | <ref name="ould">Ould Mohamedou, E.; Penate Suarez, D. B.; Vince, F.; Jaouen, P.; Pontie, M. Desalination (2010), 253, 62–70.</ref> | ||
| + | <ref name="kazemi">Kazemi Najafi, S. Waste management; New York (2013)</ref> | ||
| + | </references> | ||
| + | <html><head></head><body> | ||
| + | </div> | ||
<div class="alternative conversion_to_uf alert alert-success" role="alert" alt="Chemical conversion to an ultrafiltration membrane and then reuse." style="display: none;"><h4>Chemical conversion to an ultrafiltration membrane and then reuse</h4></div> | <div class="alternative conversion_to_uf alert alert-success" role="alert" alt="Chemical conversion to an ultrafiltration membrane and then reuse." style="display: none;"><h4>Chemical conversion to an ultrafiltration membrane and then reuse</h4></div> | ||
<div class="alternative reuse_as_ro alert alert-success" role="alert" alt="Direct membrane reuse." style="display: none;"><h4>Direct membrane reuse</h4></div> | <div class="alternative reuse_as_ro alert alert-success" role="alert" alt="Direct membrane reuse." style="display: none;"><h4>Direct membrane reuse</h4></div> | ||
Revision as of 07:48, 13 January 2015
This membrane end-of-life (MemEOL) tool is aimed at promoting better practices in the desalination industry by helping users identify and select the optimum end-of-life option for their used reverse osmosis (RO) membranes. This dynamic and interactive educational tool uses inputs on membrane condition and the relative importance of a number of key criteria to provide recommendation and further information about available end-of-life options.
As user feedback is obtained, and more available end-of-life options are identified and characterised, this tool will become a powerful source of information for membrane users. Ultimately, this tool will include a membrane reuse database, which will allow users to find and contact groups with surplus membrane supplies, thus promoting and simplifying direct membrane reuse. This tool has a significant focus on the Australian desalination industry, but the primary information is highly applicable to countries around the world. Additionally, as the data sources for this tool are not case specific, it should only be considered an educational tool aimed at providing preliminary recommendations to users.