demEAUmed: successful application of eight innovative technologies

		Gianluigi Buttiglieri, scientific manager of demEAUmed project, explains that a broad variety of technologies were tested during demEAUmed demonstration stage. They were successfully integrated and the synergies among them as well as their feasibility as combined treatments were evaluated.
Gianluigi Buttiglieri

Results obtained for the primary treatment technologies in the greywater line (i.e. SmartAir MBR, vertECO, SPEF) were above expectations in output water quality and continuous operation robustness, also for the micropollutants. The integration of Plimmer technology provided a high cost-effective alternative for further treating greywater streams which potential reuse would require low conductivity values. As a whole the greywater treatment line was able to remove 95%, 97%, 89% and 71% of conductivity, suspended solids, organic content (COD) and Nitrogen (TN) respectively and, additionally, several pharmaceutical active and endocrine disrupting compounds.

Swimming pool water treatment line, conformed by UVOX technology, accomplished a full validation for treating swimming pool water, bringing UVOX closer to being a marketable solution with competitive costs, low maintenance and improved performance when compared to current existing solutions.

Wastewater line treatment approach for Hotel Samba facilities was designed so as to establish three possible trains of technologies, conformed by two common units (i.e. ECEF, SmartAir MBR) and three possible tertiary units based on radically different treatment approaches. ECEF and SmartAir MBR successfully complied with these requirements in a very stable and accurate way, maintaining very low maintenance requirements. The three tertiary treatment alternatives considered (electro-ozonation, 172nm UV and Plimmer) successfully ran their tests, obtaining major outcomes regarding their capabilities of providing diverse water qualities for reuse, accomplishing some very promising results to that extent. As a whole the wastewater treatment line was able to remove 87%, 99%, 98% and 94% of conductivity, suspended solids, organic content (COD) and Nitrogen (TN) respectively and, also, several pharmaceutical active and endocrine disrupting compounds.

The technology treated a significant part of the hotel water cycle. It was calculated that, in a real scenario, at least 30% of hotel wastewater can be safely reused. If we extrapolate these results at the level of Lloret del Mar city, it could save about 3000 m3 of fresh water a day, the equivalent to the average water consumption of 5000 tourists.