THE USE OF MICELLAR-ENHANCED ULTRAFILTRATION FOR THE RECOVERY AND CONCENTRATION OF TRICHLOROETHYLENE FROM GROUNDWATER

ECONOMICAL METHODS OF REMOVING AND RECOVERING DISSOLVED ORGANICS FROM AQUEOUS PROCESS STREAMS ARE NECESSARY FOR US INDUSTRIAL COMPETITIVENESS. ALSO, FIRMS SPECIALIZING IN HAZARDOUS WASTE DISPOSAL AND POLLUTION CONTROL WILL BE A MAJOR AREA OF INDUSTRIAL GROWTH IN THE US. MICELLAR-ENHANCED UNTRAFILTRATION (MEUF) IS A NOVEL PROCESS WHICH CAN REMOVE DISSOLVED ORGANIC SOLVENTS FROM WATER. IN MEUF, A NONIONIC SURFACTANT, WHICH FORMS AGGREGATES CALLED MICELLES, IS ADDED TO THE PROCESS STREAM. ORGANIC SPECIES ASSOCIATE WITH THE MICELLES BY A PHENOMENON CALLED SOLUBILIZATION. THE SOLUTION IS THEN TREATED IN AN ULTRAFILTRATION DEVICE WITH MEMBRANE PORE SIZES SMALL ENOUGH TO BLOCK THE PASSAGE OF MICELLES AND THE SOLUBILIZED ORGANIC SOLVENT. THE RESULT IS AN EXTREMELY PURE PERMEATE, AND A VERY CONCENTRATED, LOW-VOLUME RETENTATE. THIS PROPOSAL SPECIFICALLY ADDRESSES REMOVAL OF TRICHLOROETHYLENE (TCE) FROM POLLUTED GROUNDWATER. IN THIS CASE, THE RETENTATE WILL BE STEAM STRIPPED. THE STRIPPER OVERHEADS CONTAINING THE TCE WILL BE CONDENSED AND THE TCE-FREE STRIPPER BOTTOMS (A CONCENTRATED SURFACTANT SOLUTION) WILL BE RECYCLED TO THE MEUF UNITS. MEUF MAY BE STAGED TO ACHIEVE GREATER REDUCTION IN THE RETENTATE VOLUME WHICH MUST BE STEAM STRIPPED, WHILE STILL ATTAINING 99+ % REMOVAL OF TCE FROM POLLUTED GROUNDWATER.