METHOD OF REDUCING WATER HARDNESS SALTS AND HEAT AND MASS EXCHANGE EQUIPMENT FOR ITS IMPLEMENTATION

Abstract

Thousands of steam and water boilers of medium and low parameters operate in the country's industry, municipal energy, and agriculture. Their reliable work is largely determined by maintaining a rational water-chemical regime. Dissolved impurities that affect the operation of boiler equipment primarily include hardness salts. When using hard water, scale is formed on the surfaces, heat transfer deteriorates, and pipes are overheated from the heating side, which can lead to their destruction. The purpose of the work is to improve the quality of softened water, reduce the consumption of reagents, and accelerate the softening process due to the use of heat and mass exchange equipment. In the work, water desalination was carried out by the method of discrete-pulse energy input in a rotor-pulsation apparatus. Ammonia was used as a reagent for removing hardness salts. The water-ammonia mixture is processed in the rotor-pulsation apparatus at a flow pulsation frequency of 3-5 kHz and a pressure drop amplitude of 360-400 kPa until the temperature rises to 40ºС. The increase in temperature occurs due to the transition of mechanical energy into thermal energy. It was determined that the degree of softening of water is 99% at a mass concentration of ammonia of 0.022%, and the amplitude of the pressure drop is 400 kPa. As the amplitude of the pressure drop decreases to 380 and 360 kPa, the degree of water softening decreases to 90 and 95%, respectively. It is also determined that water desalination using the rotor-pulsation apparatus should be carried out in the mode of recirculation of ammonia solution with a concentration of 0.022%, with a flow pulsation frequency of 4 kHz and a pressure drop amplitude of 400 kPa. As a result of the work, the optimal technological parameters of water treatment were determined and the efficiency of its purification using the proposed equipment was proved in comparison with the conventional one.