MWH’S WATER TREATMENT

PRINCIPLES AND DESIGN

3rd Edition

by Crittenden, Trussell, Hand, Howe, and Tchobanoglous

HOMEWORK SOLUTION MANUAL

FOR

Chapter 16
Ion Exchange

Note: If any errors are noted in this solution manual or in the textbook, please notify
Kerry Howe at [email protected]
PROBLEM 16-1
Problem Statement - A SAC exchanger is employed to remove calcium hardness from
water. The capacity of the resin is 2.0 meq/mL in the sodium form. If calcium
concentrations in the influent and effluent are 44 and 0.44 mg/L, determine the
maximum volume of water that can be treated per cycle given the following:
Cations meq/L Anions meq/L
2+
Ca 2.2 HCO3– 2.9
Mg2+ 1.0 Cl– 3.1
Na+ 3.0 SO42– 0.2
Total 6.2 Total 6.2

Solution
1. Estimate the maximum useful capacity of calcium on the SAC resin in the sodium
form using Eq. 16-22. This calculation assumes that only calcium is present in the
water and that the other ions do not impact the calcium capacity.
a. Obtain the separation factor for calcium over sodium from Table 16-7.
2+
αij =αNa
Ca
+ =1.9 / 1 =1.9

The separation factor for sodium over calcium is:

+ 2+
αij =αNa
Ca2 +
=1 αij =1 αNa
Ca
+ =1 1.9 =0.53

b. Calculate the maximum useful capacity of the resin for calcium using Eq. 16-
22.
CCa2 + qT
qCa2 + = +
CCa2 + + CNa+ αNa
Ca2 +

=
( 2.2 meq Ca 2+
/ L H2O ) ( 2.0 eq / L re sin )(1000 meq eq )
( 2.0 meq Ca 2+
/ L H2O ) + ( 3.0 meq Na + / L H2O ) ( 0.53 )
= 880 meq Ca2+ L re sin
2. Calculate the volume of water that can be treated per volume of resin per cycle.
The volume of water that can be treated per volume of resin per cycle is calculated
by dividing the calcium capacity by the influent calcium concentration.

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MWH’s Water Treatment: Principles and Design, 3rd ed. Version 1
Chapter 16 - Ion Exchange
 qCa2 + 880 meq Ca2+ L re sin
=V = = 400 L H2O L re sin
CCa2 + 2.2 meq Ca + L H2O

PROBLEM 16-2

Problem Statement - Consider the removal of perchlorate from well water using a SBA
exchange resin. The following table lists the major anions contained in the well
water. Assuming perchlorate is completely removed from solution; calculate the
maximum volume of water that can be treated per liter of resin assuming
equilibrium conditions. Assume total resin capacity of the SBA is 1.4 eq/L.
Parameter Unit Value
Alkalinity mg/L as CaCo3 200
Perchlorate mg/L 200
Nitrate mg/L 9.0
Sulfate mg/L 55
pH Unitless 8.0

Solution
1. Convert the concentrations of perchlorate and chloride from mg/L to meq/L.
200 mg ClO−4 L
−
=
meq ClO L = 2.0
99.45 mg ClO−4 meq
4

15 mg Cl− L
meq ClO−4 L
= = 0.42
35.45 mg Cl− meq
2. Estimate the maximum useful capacity of calcium on the SBA resin in the chloride
form using Eq. 16-22. This calculation assumes that only perchlorate is present in
the water and that the other ions do not impact the perchlorate capacity.
a. Obtain the separation factor for perchlorate over chloride from Table 16-7.
−
αij =α ClO
Cl−
4
=150 / 1 =150

The separation factor for chloride over perchlorate is:

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MWH’s Water Treatment: Principles and Design, 3rd ed. Version 1
Chapter 16 - Ion Exchange
 − −
αij =α Cl
ClO−
=1 αij =1 α Cl
ClO−
=1 150 =0.007
4 4

b. Calculate the maximum useful capacity of the resin for perchlorate using Eq.
16-22.
CClO− qT
qClO− = 4
−
4
CClO− + CCl− α Cl
ClO−
4 4

=
( 2.0 meq ClO −
4 / LH2O ) (1.4 eq / L re sin )(1000 meq eq )
( 2.0 meq ClO −
4 / LH2O ) + ( 0.42 meq Cl− / L H2O ) ( 0.007 )
= 1398 meq ClO−4 L re sin
3. Calculate the volume of water that can be treated per volume of resin per cycle.
The volume of water that can be treated per volume of resin per cycle is calculated
by dividing the calcium capacity by the influent calcium concentration.
qClO− 1398 meq ClO− L re sin
=V = 4
−
4
= 700 L H2O L re sin
CClO− 2.0 meqClO4 L H2O
4

PROBLEM 16-3

Problem Statement - A small public water system is considering removing calcium

from its water using ion exchange. The average daily flow rate is about 2 ML/d and
the influent calcium concentration is 200 mg/L as CaCO3. If a SAC exchange resin
in the sodium form is to be used, estimate the minimum daily volume of resin that
would be required assuming that calcium is completely removed and is the only
cation exchanging on the resin. Assume the total resin capacity of the SAC resin is
2.0 eq/L in the chloride form.
Solution
Because calcium is assumed to be the only cation in the water, the maximum amount of
calcium treated is the total capacity of the resin and the maximum volume of water
treated per resin cycle would be:
qCa2 + ( 2.0
eq Lre sin )(1000 meq eq )
=V = = 500 L H2O L re sin
CCa2 + ( 200 mg CaCO3 L water ) (meq 50mg)
The volume of resin would then be:
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MWH’s Water Treatment: Principles and Design, 3rd ed. Version 1
Chapter 16 - Ion Exchange
 2 ML/d(106 L/ML)
=Vresin = 4000 L resin / d
500 L H2O L re sin

PROBLEM 16-4

Problem Statement - Describe the differences between SAC exchanger resins and
SBA exchanger resins.
Solution
Strong base anion exchangers remove anions whereas strong base cation exchangers
remove cations. Strong acid cation exchangers have functional groups on the polymer
chain that provide a negative charge (RSO3-). Strong base anion exchangers usually
have quaternary amine functional groups on the polymer chain that provide a positive
charge [R(CH3)3N+ or R(CH3)2(CH3CH2OH)N+].

PROBLEM 16-5

Problem Statement - Explain the differences between Type I and Type II exchanger
resins.
Solution
The main difference between Type I and Type II resins is the ethanol group in the Type
II quaternary amine. The ethanol group reduces the resin’s affinity for hydroxide ions. In
addition, Type I resins have a slightly greater chemical stability, while Type II resins
have a slightly greater regeneration efficiency and capacity.

PROBLEM 16-6

Problem Statement - Describe and explain the operational advantages of using

cocurrent regeneration versus countercurrent regeneration.
Solution
In the past, co-current regeneration was typically chosen when leakage of unwanted
ion(s) was not critical and when the exchange in the regeneration step was favorable.
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MWH’s Water Treatment: Principles and Design, 3rd ed. Version 1
Chapter 16 - Ion Exchange
However, recent studies have shown that co-current regeneration can reduce leakage
of unwanted ions more effectively than counter-current operation. For example, studies
on nitrate and arsenic removal by ion exchange showed less leakage of these ions with
co-current as compared to counter current exchange, because the mass of the ions that
have been removed is located near the outlet of the resin bed. Consequently, flushing
these ions back through the column with counter current process produced more
leakage.

PROBLEM 16-7

Problem Statement - A small public water system is considering removing barium from
its well water using ion exchange. The average daily flow rate is about 1.5 ML/d
(400,000 gpd) and the influent barium concentration is 11.3 mg/L. If a SBC
exchange resin is to be used, estimate the minimum daily volume of resin that
would be required assuming that barium is completely removed and is the only
cation exchanging on the resin.
Solution
1. Calculate the daily mass of barium to be removed assuming complete removal.
meq Ba
2+
as CaCO 3  11.3 mg Ba 2 +   2 meq Ba 2 +   50 meq CaCO3   1.5 x 106 L water 
=   
d  L   56 mg Ba 2 +   28 meq Ba 2 +   d 

= 1.081× 106

2. Calculate the daily volume of resin required.

From Table 16-2, a typical SAC cation exchange capacity is 1.8 – 2.0 meq as
CaCO3 per mL of resin, so a value of 1.9 can be used to calculate the daily volume
of resin required.
L re sin
d
 1.081 × 10 6 meq Ba 2 + as CaCO3  
=
 d

mL re sin
(
 1L
  1.9 meq as CaCO3  1000 mL
569)

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MWH’s Water Treatment: Principles and Design, 3rd ed. Version 1
Chapter 16 - Ion Exchange
PROBLEM 16-8

Instructors Note: This problem is similar to Example 16-3.

Problem Statement - A SBA exchanger resin is used to remove nitrate ions from well
water that contains high chloride concentration. Usually bicarbonate and sulfate are
present in the water (assume they are negligible). The total resin capacity is 1.5 eq/L.
Calculate the maximum volume of water that can be treated per liter of resin. The water
has the following composition:
Cations meq/L Anions meq/L
Ca2+ 1.4 SO42– 0.0
Mg2+ 0.8 Cl– 3.0
Na+ 2.6 NO3– 1.8
Total 4.8 Total 4.8

Solution
1. Estimate the maximum useful capacity of nitrate calcium on the SBA resin in the
chloride form using Eq. 16-22.
This calculation assumes that only nitrate is present in the water and other ions do
not impact the nitrate capacity.
a. Obtain the separation factor for nitrate over chloride from Table 16-7:
−
αij =αNO
Cl−
3
=3.2

The separation factor for chloride over nitrate is:

− −
αij =αNO
Cl
− =1 αij =1 αNO
Cl
− =1 3.2 =0.3125
3 3

b. Calculate the maximum useful capacity of the resin for nitrate using Eq. 16-
22:
CNO− qT
qNO− = 3
−
3
CNO− + CCl− αNO
Cl
−
3 3

=
(1.8 meq NO −
3 / LH2O ) (1.5 eq / L re sin )(1000 meq eq )
(1.8 meq NO −
3 / LH2O ) + ( 3.0 meqCl− / L H2O ) ( 0.3125 )
= 986 meq NO3− L re sin

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MWH’s Water Treatment: Principles and Design, 3rd ed. Version 1
Chapter 16 - Ion Exchange
 2. Calculate the volume of water that can be treated per volume of resin per cycle.
The volume of water that can be treated per volume of resin per cycle is calculated
by dividing the nitrate capacity by the influent nitrate concentration:
qNO− 986 meq NO− L re sin
=V = 3 3
= 548 L H2O L re sin
CNO− 1.8 meqNO3− L H2O
3

PROBLEM 16-9

Problem Statement - A small municipal water supply treats a maximum daily flow of
5.0 ML/d, maximum weekly flow of 25 ML/wk, and a maximum nitrate
concentration of 18 mg/L. The plant treats 5 ML of water and operates only 7 h per
day and 5 days per week and there is sufficient storage capacity for the weekend
demand. The treatment objective for the ion exchange process is 0.6 mg/L NO3–N
and will be blended with untreated water at 18 mg/L NO3–N to produce a final
product water of 8 mg/L or less NO3–N. With a standard of 10 mg/L as NO3–N,
determine the flow rate of the ion exchanger and blending rate.
Solution
1. Calculate the quantity of water that passes through the ion exchanger:
The quantity of water that passes through the ion exchanger can be calculated by
performing a mass balance on the ion exchanger and combining it with a flow
balance. The following terms are defined for the balances:
Q1 = treated flow

Q2 = untreated flow

= =
Q3 finished blended flow 5.0 ML / d

=C1 effluent nitrate=

concentration 0.6 mg L as NO3 − N

=C2 influent nitrate=

concentration 18 mg L as NO3 − N

C3 =
finished blended water nitrate concentration 8 mg / L as NO3 − N
a. Write the mass balance:
C1Q1 + C2Q2 =
C3 Q 3

(0.6 mg/L)Q1 + (18 mg/L)Q2 =

(8 mg/L)(5 ML/d)

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MWH’s Water Treatment: Principles and Design, 3rd ed. Version 1
Chapter 16 - Ion Exchange
 b. Write the flow balance:
Q1 + Q
= 2 5 ML/d and =
Q 2 5 ML/d − Q1
2. Substitute the flow balance for Q2 into the mass balance and solve for Q1.
(0.6 mg/L)Q1 + (18 mg/L)(5 ML/d − Q1 ) =
(8 mg/L)(5 ML/d)

(0.6 − 18 mg/L)Q
=1 (8 mg/L)(5 ML/d) − (18 mg/L)(5 ML/d)

(8 mg/L)(5 ML/d) − (18 mg/L)(5 ML/d )

Q1 = 2.87 ML/d
(0.6 − 18 mg/L)
Calculate the flow to the exchanger operating only 7 hours per day. The
exchanger has to produce 2.87 ML while operating for 7 hours. The operating rate
is then:
2.87 ML
=Q1 = (24 h / d) 9.84 ML d
7h
3. Calculate the blending ratio.
2.87 ML / d
=
Blending Ratio = 0.57
5 ML d

PROBLEM 16-10

Instructors Note: The sulfate concentration is much higher than nitrate and is more
preferred over nitrate (9.1>> 3.2), thus the equilibrium capacity of nitrate is low. This
problem is similar to Example 16-4.

Problem Statement - A groundwater contains the following anion concentrations ex-

changer (NO3–N = 18 mg/L, SO42– = 50 mg/L, Cl– = 35 mg/L and HCO3– = 85
mg/L). Assuming nitrate is removed completely from solution; calculate the
equilibrium exchange capacity for each ion, and the maximum volume of water that
can be treated per liter of resin, assuming equilibrium conditions. Assume total
resin capacity of the SBA is equal to 1.4 eq/L.
Solution
1. Construct a table of the anions and convert the concentrations from mg/L to meq/L.

Concentration, Equivalent weight Concentration

mg/L
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MWH’s Water Treatment: Principles and Design, 3rd ed. Version 1
Chapter 16 - Ion Exchange
 Anions mg/meq meq/L
SO24− 50 48 1.04

HCO3− 85 61 1.39

Cl− 35 35.5 0.99

NO3 − N 18 14 1.29

Total 4.71

2. Applying Eq. 16-28 with the use of the separation factors provided in Table 16-7,
the summation term in the denominator can be calculated.

( ) ( 9.1) 1.04 meq   meq   meq   meq 

N
meq
∑ αkpCk
=
k =1 L  + ( 0.27 )  1.39
 L  + (1.0 )  0.99
 L  + ( 3.2 ) =

1.29
L 
14.96
L

3. Calculate qi for each ion.

 eq   meq 
 1.4 L  ( 9.1)  1.04 L 
qSO2 − =    0.886 eq
4 meq L
14.96
L
 eq   meq 
 1.4 L  ( 0.27 )  1.39 L 
qHCO− =    0.035 eq
3 meq L
14.96
L
 eq   meq 
 1.4 L  (1.0 )  0.99 L 
qCl =    0.093 eq
meq L
14.96
L
 eq   meq 
 1.4 L  ( 3.2 )  1.29 L 
=qNO −N =    0.386 eq
3 meq L
14.96
L
eq
Check : 0.886 + 0.035 + 0.093 + 0.386 =
1.4 total capacity
L
4. Substitute the separation factors in Eq. 16-24 and determine the equilibrium
capacity of the resin for chloride

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MWH’s Water Treatment: Principles and Design, 3rd ed. Version 1
Chapter 16 - Ion Exchange
 qCl− =qT − qNO − − qSO 2 − =(1.4 − 0.386 − 0.886)eq/L =0.128 eq/L
3 4

5. Calculate the maximum quantity of water that can be treated per cycle before
nitrate breakthrough occurs.
Maximum 
  qNO3− ( 0.386 eq L re sin ) 299 L water
volume=  = =
treated  CNO3− ( 0.00129 eq L water ) L re sin
 

PROBLEM 16-11

Problem Statement - Given the information in Problems 16-8 and 16-9, design a 5-
ML/d ion exchanger for nitrate removal. Determine the number of columns required
assuming 4-m diameter columns and a minimum bed depth of 0.762 m and the
regenerant requirements including salt used, brine production, total volume of brine
storage tank, and regeneration cycle time for the ion exchanger. Based on pilot
studies, it was found that adequate regeneration can obtained with a salt dose of
320 kg/m3 resin, a salt concentration of 14 percent, and the specific weight of the
salt is 2.165. The capacity of the brine storage tank must be sufficient to handle ten
resin regenerations. The water temperature is 10º C. Assume the working capacity
for the SBA resin is the same as the maximum volume treated determined in
Problem 16-8.
Solution
1. Determine the bed volume (BV) required.
The product of the maximum volume treated (Problem 16-8 step 2) and the flow
rate (Problem 16-9 step 2) to the ion exchanger yields BV.
9.84 × 106 L water m3
=BV = × 18.0 m3
548 L water L re sin 1000L
2. Check the loading rate to see if it is within the allowable values as shown in Table
16-2.
Service 
  Q ( 9.84 × 106 L d) ( d 24 h ) (m3 1000L=
) 22.8 BV
flow =  = 3
rate  BV 18.0 m h
 
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MWH’s Water Treatment: Principles and Design, 3rd ed. Version 1
Chapter 16 - Ion Exchange
 From Table 16-2 the service flow rate range for ion exchangers is 8 – 40 BV/h.
The calculated service flow is within the typical operating range for SBA resins.
3. Determine the bed dimensions. Using a minimum bed depth of 0.762 m, the total
bed area required can be calculated as:
Total
 
bed  = BV × L = 18 m / 0.762 m = 23.6 m
3 2

area 
 
4. Calculate the number of columns.
For a circular column, the number of columns that need to be used is calculated
as:
Number of 
  23.6 m2
4-m=columns  = 1.88
required   π ( 4 m )2 
   4 

Use 2 columns.
5. Calculate the minimum total column height.
From Table 16-2, the typical backwash rate is 4.9 – 7.4 m/h. Using a backwash
rate of 6.0 m/h and Figure 16-15, the percent bed expansion is 65 percent. The
minimum total column height required is:
Minimum 
 
column=  0.762 m (1+ 0.65) ≈ 1.3m
height 
 
6. Calculate the quantity of salt required, given the salt dose in the problem
statement.
kg NaCl
Salt requirement,kg =320 3
× 18.0 m3 resin =5760 kg
m resin
The salt requirement is 5,760 kg per cycle.
7. Calculate the total weight of brine per cycle.
For a salt concentration of 14 percent, the total weight of brine per cycle can be
calculated as:
( wt.of salt ) (100 )
Salt conc.,% =
total wt.of brine

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MWH’s Water Treatment: Principles and Design, 3rd ed. Version 1
Chapter 16 - Ion Exchange
 total wt. 
  ( 5760kg) (100 )
=
of  = 41,100 kg
brine,kg (14 )
 
8. Calculate the total volume of brine.
Weight of =
water (41,100 − 5,760)kg cycle

= 35,340 kg

 Volume 
  wt. of water 35,340 kg
=
of  = = 3
35.4 m3
 water  density of water 999.7 kg m
 
5760 kg NaCl
=
Volume of salt = 2.66 m3
(1000 kg NaCl m × 2.165 )
3

Total volume of brine = 35.4 + 2.66 = 38.1 m3

9. Calculate the volume of brine tank.
The brine storage tank volume required is ten times the total volume of the brine
for one cycle.
=
Volume of brine tank 10 cycles ) ( 38.1 m3 cycle )
(= 381 m3
10. Calculate the regeneration time.
The regeneration time is equal to the volume of brine per cycle divided by the
regeneration flow rate. From Table 16-2 the regeneration rate for an SBA is 0.067
BV/min.
Qregen =
18 m3 BV × 0.067BV min =
1.206 m3 min

38.1 m3
=t regen = 31.6 min
1.206 m3 min

PROBLEM 16-12

Problem Statement - Perchlorate at a concentration of 100 µg/L was discovered

recently in a groundwater that is being considered for use as a drinking water
source. Because the action level for perchlorate is 4 µg/L, the regulatory agency is
requiring remediation of the groundwater. The municipality is proposing to pump
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MWH’s Water Treatment: Principles and Design, 3rd ed. Version 1
Chapter 16 - Ion Exchange
 and treat about 0.158 m3/s (2500 gpm) using ion exchange process. To obtain
information on the treatment of the water that can be used for the design of a full-
scale treatment plant, pilot plant ion exchange studies have been performed. Using
the information given below on the water quality and the pilot plant study
parameters, design an ion exchange system including a regeneration facility to
treat the groundwater to the above regulatory requirement. Determine the following
full-scale design criteria: plant size (number of columns, column dimensions)
maximum service loading rate, single-column service time, single-column
regeneration and rinse volume requirements and regeneration time, head loss
requirements, and spent-brine disposal. Assume the inlet distributor and resin
support underdrain require 1.0 m and 0.5 m of column height, respectively.

Water quality parameters:

Parameter Unit Value
Alkalinity mg/L as CaCO3 150
Hardness mg/L 140
pH Unitless 7.8
Nitrate mg/L as N 4.0
Sulfate mg/L 50
Perchlorate µg/L 85
TOC mg/L 1.5
Temperature ºC 10

Summary of the pilot plant operational parameters:

Parameter SI Units Value
Operational mode — Countercurrent
EBCT min 1.5
Column diameter m 0.0509
Resin depth m 0.862
Service flow rate BV/h 30
3
Flow rate per column m /h 0.0681

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MWH’s Water Treatment: Principles and Design, 3rd ed. Version 1
Chapter 16 - Ion Exchange
 Backwash rate m/h 6.0
Column resin volume m3 0.00176
Regenerant type — NaCl
Regenerant strength % 10
mg/L 100,000
Salt loading rate kg/m3 480
Regeneration and rinse
flow rate m3/h 0.0363
Regeneration volume BV 10
Rinse volume BV 6
Initial BV to breakthrougha BV 550
a
Full regeneration and no leakage occurred for 31 cycles.
Solution
1. Determine the number of columns that need to be used.
The number of columns can be calculated from the total volume of resin required:
Total required
=
Q ( 0.158 m3 s )
  = = 19.0 m3
re sin volume  SFR ( 30 BV h )(1 h 3600 s )
Total required Re sin volume 19 m3
 =  = = 22.0 m2
surface area  Re sin depth 0.862 m
Given the standard column diameters of 1,2,3,4 and 5 meters, a column diameter
of 4 m provides a column area of 12.6 m2. If a column diameter of 4 m is selected
the number of columns needed is approximately 2. Consequently, with one
column in the standby mode a total of 3 columns are required.
2. Estimate the sidewall depth.
a. Estimate the resin depth, height for inlet distributor, and height for resin
support.
The resin bed depth for pilot testing = 0.862 m ≈ 1.0 m
Height allowance for inlet distributor = 1.0 m.
Height for resin support underdrain = 0.5 m.
b. Estimate the bed expansion during backwashing.

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MWH’s Water Treatment: Principles and Design, 3rd ed. Version 1
Chapter 16 - Ion Exchange
 Bed expansion height during backwashing can be determined from Figure 16-
15 given the water temperature of 10oC and superficial backwash velocity of
6.0 m/h. A value of approximately 65 percent is determined from Fig. 16-15.
The height required to accommodate the expanded bed during backwash is:
Expanded bed height =0.65 × 1.0 m =0.65 m
c. Estimate the sidewall depth.
The total sidewall height is the sum of the depths calculated in steps 2a and b.
Depth = (1.0 + 1.0 + 0.5 + 0.65)
= 3.15 m
3. Check the pressure drop.
During ion exchange, the pressure drop should not exceed 172 kPa. For a SFR of
[(0.158 m3/s x 3600 s/h) / (2 x 12.6)] 22.6 and water temperature of 10oC, a
pressure drop of about 0.47 kg/cm2/m is obtained from Fig. 16-14. Consequently,
the pressure drop is:
 kg   1 kPa 
Pr essure drop =0.47  (1.0 m )  2 
46 kPa
 cm m 
2
 0.010197 kg cm 
Because 46 kPa << 172 kPa the pressure drop is allowable.
4. Calculate the overall cycle time.
The overall cycle time is calculated by dividing the BV per loading cycle by the
SFR. The BV per loading cycle was determined from pilot studies to be 550 per
cycle and the SFR is 22.6.
Bed volumes
Time Loading cycle 550 BV
= = ≈ 24 h
Loading cycle SFR 22.6 BV h
Staggering the columns at different start times, each column will be regenerated
every 24 hours and the blended effluent will not exceed 4 µg/L perchlorate
concentration.
5. Determine the regeneration requirements.
a. Calculate the salt concentration.
The salt concentration can be calculated from the specific gravity of the salt
and the salt strength as:

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MWH’s Water Treatment: Principles and Design, 3rd ed. Version 1
Chapter 16 - Ion Exchange
  0.1 kg NaCl  1070 kg soln  kg
=
10 % salt solution =   107
 1 kg soln  L soln  L soln
b. Calculate the regeneration volume.
Regeneration volume can be calculated by dividing the salt requirements per
volume of resin by the salt solution concentration:
Re quired regeneration 480 kg NaCl / m3 re sin
= = 4.5
volume per bed volume 107 kg NaCl / L soln
c. Calculate the salt quantity.
The annual salt quantity can be calculated by multiplying the number of
regenerations in a year by the quantity of salt used per regeneration. The
number of regenerations can first be calculated by dividing the number of
hours in a year by the loading cycle time per column:
Number of regenerations ( 365 d yr )( 24 hr d)
= = 365
for each column per year ( 24 h regen )
The quantity of salt per regeneration per column is equal to the resin volume
in each column times the salt loading rate:
Salt quantity
 12.6 m3 re sin   480 kg NaCl 
=per column =  6,048 kg NaCl
 regen  m3 re sin 
regeneration
The annual salt consumption requirement per column is:
Annual salt quantity  365 regens   6,048 kg NaCl 
=  
required per column  yr  regen 
kg NaCl
= 2.21× 106
yr
d. Calculate the volume of spent regeneration solution per column regeneration.
Spent regeneration  12.6 m3 re sin  m3
= = ( 4.5 BV ) 56.7
solution per column  BV  column

e. Calculate the total annual volume of spent regeneration solution per column.

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MWH’s Water Treatment: Principles and Design, 3rd ed. Version 1
Chapter 16 - Ion Exchange
 Total annual
spent regeneration  56.7 m3   365 columns  m3
= =  20,696
solution per  column   yr 
 yr
column
6. Calculate the rinse water requirements.
The rinse water requirements can be calculated based on the pilot plant data. The
volume of rinse water per column is the product of the volume of the bed occupied
by the resin and the number of BVs required for rinse:
Re gen
 12.6 m3  m3
=
volume per =  ( 4.5 BV ) 56.7
 BV  column
column
The annual rinse volume per column is:
Annual rinse
 56.7 m3   365 columns  m3
=
volume per =  20,696
 column   yr 
 yr
column
7. Calculate the cycle time for the salt regeneration.
The cycle time for the salt regeneration is calculated by multiplying the EBCT times
the number of BVs of regeneration solution per column. The EBCT is calculated
as:
1  1  60 min 
=
EBCT =    =  2.65 min
SFR  22.6 BV h   h 
The regeneration time per column is:
Re gen
BV  min 
time per = EBCT × =  2.65  ( 4.5 BV ) = 12 min
regen  BV 
column
Similarly, the cycle time for the rinse step is:
Rinse
BV  min 
time per = EBCT × =  2.65  ( 6 BV ) = 16 min
regen  BV 
column
8. Estimate the total regeneration cycle time per cycle.

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MWH’s Water Treatment: Principles and Design, 3rd ed. Version 1
Chapter 16 - Ion Exchange
 The typical backwash times range from 5 – 20 minutes. If a backwash time of 10
minutes is selected, then the total time a column will be out of service for the
regeneration cycle is estimated to be:
Total regeneration Re generation Rinse Backwash
cycle time = time per + time per + time per
per column column column column
Total regeneration
cycle time =
12 min + 16 min 10 min =
38min
per cycle

Homework Solution Manual Page 19 of 19

MWH’s Water Treatment: Principles and Design, 3rd ed. Version 1
Chapter 16 - Ion Exchange