Experimental Study on the Influence of Flexible Control on Key Parameters in Reverse Osmosis Desalination

Abstract

Variable-frequency drive (VFD) has been widely used in reverse osmosis desalination. Our purpose is to study how the VFD and pressure regulating valve affect the key parameters of reverse osmosis desalination and their action principle through experiments. Firstly, the power frequency is controlled by VFD, and the operating pressure is controlled by pressure regulating valve (needle valve) in the experiment. The feed water passes through the multimedia filter, precision filter and permeable membrane channel in turn, and permeate water and brine enter the fresh water tank and the brine tank respectively. Secondly, through experiments on seawater and brackish water respectively, the water flow rate, product water quality, energy consumption and recovery rate under different operating pressures are obtained when the power frequency is 25, 30, 35, 40, 45, and 50 respectively. Finally, combined with the working principle and mathematical model of VFD and high-pressure pump motor, the reason for the experimental results caused by the operation change is explained theoretically. The experimental results verify that for a certain recovery rate, the specific energy consumption required for water production decreases with decreasing power frequency. This provides desalination energy savings but at the expense of permeate production speed.