Research problem being addressed and background:
To effectively manage, develop, and protect water and related resources, Reclamation offices must have advanced water treatment methods which can stretch our available resources or make use of our impaired supplies. In recent years, these advanced water treatment costs have become competitive with costs for developing conventional supplies. However, additional research is needed to help make these desalination and water purification technologies affordable for Reclamation to use.
To address these and other technology, cost, and application issues, the AWTR program provides engineering assistance and research support for Reclamation's Regional and Area Offices, and related projects and programs. This research helps ensure improved technologies are incorporated into Reclamation's operation and changing regulations are being met. The principal thrust of the program is to incorporate more cost-effective, technologically efficient, and feasible means and methods to more effectively provide integrated water management.
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To study and apply advanced water treatment technologies applicable to Reclamation's current and future projects involved with small and Native American communities, water reuse, treatment of rural waters, treatment of irrigation return flows, and developing new sources of water. These studies are directed at reducing costs and minimizing environmental impacts from salt removal, developing commercially attractive technologies, improving surface and ground water quality, facilitating cost-effective conversion of previously unusable water resources to usable water supplies, and using low-grade heat technologies for the control of salinity.
The technologies developed by this program apply to current and future Reclamation projects for water supply augmentation, water quality improvement, and water quality protection. The program objectives are accomplished through the award of meritoriously reviewed, in-house research projects with partners inside of Reclamation, and related research programs outside of Reclamation.
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Overall Outcome or Conclusions:
In FY00, Reclamation appropriated about $640,000 to the AWTR program, from the $1.3 million available for both the Desalination and Water Purification Research and Development (DWPR) Program [see WW.99.32 (A)] and the AWTR program
The program objective is accomplished through the administration of several tasks, each with its own principal research thrust, including membrane process development, wastewater recycling, chemical water treatment, innovative concepts, mobile water treatment plant, and technology transfer. All tasks received funding in FY00 except chemical water treatment (in which no projects were approved for funding). Following is a list of the project funded by task and the amount of the research awarded:
TASK A - MEMBRANE PROCESS DEVELOPMENT
- Standards for Membrane System Integrity Monitoring, $52,100, M. Chapman Wilbert
- Experimental Design Consulting, $3,000, M. Chapman Wilbert
- RO Treatment of CAP Water for Tucson: A Preappraisal Evaluation, $41,000, C. Moody
- Hydrodynamic Removal of Deposit from Membranes, $24,400, F. Leitz (This project was postponed to provide funds to complete ongoing work at the end of the fiscal year.)
TASK B - WASTEWATER RECYCLING
- Membrane Removal of Endocrine Disruptors, $32,000, K. Linton and K. Kelly (This project was canceled because the principal investigator left Reclamation and the remaining project funds were redirected to other projects.)
TASK C - CHEMICAL WATER TREATMENT
- No projects were awarded.
TASK D - INNOVATIVE CONCEPTS
- Treatment Studies on Dissolved Gases, $50,000, M. Lichtwardt and A. Murphy
- Chlorine Resistant PA Membrane Study, $80,000, A. Murphy
- Major Advances in CA Membranes, $65,000, A. Murphy
- Electrokinetic Analysis of Membrane Surface Energy, $32,500, M. Chapman Wilbert
TASK E - MOBILE WATER TREATMENT PILOT PLANT
- Burrton Groundwater Remediation Study, $150,000, S. Irvine
- MTP Repairs/Renovations, $47,000, B. Boegli
- Southern Arizona Water Management Study (SARWMS): Treatment of CAP Water, A Preappraisal Evaluation, $20,000, C. Moody
- Electrodialysis for the MTP, $3,100, M. Lichtwardt and K. Linton
TASK F - TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER
- Membrane Database, $22,000, M. Chapman Wilbert Research results from these projects are just being compiled and will be available in about January 2001.
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Partners who participated in the project:
In-house projects are accomplished with Reclamation partners (Yuma Area Office (YAO), Phoenix Area Office, etc.), other Federal government agencies, or by researchers in the Technical Service Center in Denver.
The AWTR program partners with Reclamation offices (Yuma Area Office (YAO), Phoenix Area Office (PXAO), etc.) andother Federal government agencies. Each project has at least one partner, but many have multiple partners across the sectors.
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Publications and/or Other Deliverables which have been provided during this fiscal year:
Martella, S.M., 2000, AWTR Program Meeting Notes, Reclamation, Denver Colorado
Notes from Program Meetings on 2/00, 6/00, and 11/00.
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