DEMINERALIZATION

&
CONDENSATE POLISHING
( By Ion Exchange Process)
 DEMINERALIZATION
Presentation Summary
 Basics of Ion Exchange, Construction /Internals, Type of
Resins.
 Co-Current & Counter-Current Units
 UPCORE™ System
 Brief Introduction To Condensate Polishing System
 Commonly Seen Demin. System Performance Problems
 Demineralization Basics
What is demineralization (or deionization)?
It is a reversible process of removing of dissolved ionic mineral
impurities present in the water and other liquids using the principles of
ion exchange.
Ions are positively charged cations and negatively charged anions that
permit the water or solution to conduct electricity. Water is electro-
neutral I.e. number of positive ions equal the number of negative ions.

Typical processes to produce demineralized water:

Ion Exchange Units
Reverse Osmosis (RO) followed by Ion Exchanger unit
RO followed by ElectrodeIonization (EDI)
Distillation

Difference Between Softening & Demineralization:

Softening is a relatively simple process of exchanging calcium and
magnesium minerals for the softer salt sodium. This process needs one
resin to accomplish the job which is cation resin.
 Demineralization
(Or Deionization) Basics
Demineralization needs two column units in which cation resin is
used to remove positively charged cations and anion unit is used
to remove negatively anions.
Typical Applications Where Demineralized Water Is Used :
Power Industry: As boiler feed to reduce scaling and improper
energy efficiency.
Manufacturing: For process and as make-up water.
Electronics: To rinse microchips, PC boards, TV Tubes and
components
Food & beverage: To have reduced dissolved solids in product
formulation.
Also in Plating, Ice Production, Humidification, Printing,
Horticulture and various other sectors wherever quality water is
required.
 Demineralization Basics
Required Pretreatment:
Demin. System feed water shall essentially be from chlorine,
suspended solids, colloidal silica, organic matter(+), oil&grease, iron,
manganese ……………etc. The above shall be removed using a suitable
pretreatment system.
Note: (+)Dissolved organic matter can also be removed by anion resins
with some restrictions.
Typical Pretreatment Equipment At Upstream of Demin. System:
 Clarifier - Gravity Filter Unit: To remove high level of suspended
solids (typically > 20 PPM)
Pressure Sand / Media Filter Units - To remove (mainly) suspended
solids (typically < 20 PPM).
Green Sand Filter Units: To remove iron and manganese, otherwise
this can foul the resins.
Carbon Filter Units: To remove chlorine and organics.
Ultrafiltration Unit to remove colloidal silica which can not be
removed by ion exchange units.
 Demineralization Basics
What are the Impurities Removed In a Demineralizer
System?
Cations:
Positively Charged Ions such as Calcium, magnesium, Sodium,
Potassium, Iron, Barium, Ammonium, Manganese, gold, hydrogen
copper….etc.
Above impurities are removed by Weak & Strong Acid Cation Resins.

Anions:
 Negatively Charged Ions such as Chloride, Sulfate, Nitrate, Silica,
Bicarbonate, Carbonate, hydroxide, fluoride, phosphate ….etc.
 Above impurities are removed by Weak & Strong Base Anion Resins.
Gases:
Carbon Dioxide.
Above is removed by Degassification using a Tower or Degassification
Membranes.
 Demineralization Basics
Cation Resin: Mainly Two Types:
a) Weak Acid Cation Exchange Resin: To remove cations associated
with alkalinity. Alkalinity get converted to carbonic acid when the resin
is used in H+ form. In Na+ Form can remove all the hardness in the
water. But needs acid and caustic for regeneration.
B) Strong Acid Cation Resin: When used in H+ Form has the ability to
remove all the cations. When used in Na+ Form removes calcium and
magnesium only.
Cation resins are normally regenerated normally with hydrochloric or
sulfuric acid in demin. Systems. Softening cation units (in Na+ form) are
regenerated with brine solution..
Anion Resin: Mainly Two Types:
a) Weak Basic Anion Resins: This has the ability to remove those anions
which form highly ionized acids such as hydrochloric, sulfuric and
nitric. These are not ion exchangers, but are adsorbers, adsorb only
highly ionized acids.
b) Strong Base Anion Resins: These resin have the ability to remove
those anions which form weak and high ionized acids such as silicic,
carbonic, hydrochloric, sulfuric and nitric.
 TYPICAL VIEW OF RESIN BEADS

Above pictures shows fouled resin, broken resin beads and

different particle sizing of resin..
 Demineralization Basics
Water Source: Surface Water (River, Reservoir/Lake), Well, Desalinated,
Treated Sewage ……
Units To Express Water Analyses: Mg/l or PPM, PPM as CaCO3,
Equivalent Per Million (EPM) or Milliequivalents Per Liter (meq/l)…..and grain
per gallon. For design purpose values are normally converted to PPM as
CaCO3 or to EPM.
E.G.: 1 meq/l = 50 PPM CaCO3 = 29.21 grain CaCO3/US Gallons
1 Grain/ US Gallon = 17.1 PPM or mg/l
Exchange Capacity: An expression of the quantity of an undesirable material
which can be removed by resin between regenerations. Expressed as g
(CaCO3) /l, Kgr (CaCO3)/ft3, eq/l……..
E.g.: 1 eq/l = 50 g (CaCO3)/l, 1 Kgr (CaCO3)/l = 2.29 g(CaCO3)/l
Regeneration Level: Chemical used to regenerate the unit quantity of resin in
g/l or lbs/ft3. E.g.: 1 Lb/ft3 = 16 g/l
Exhaustion of Resin: The state of ion exchange material in which it is no
longer capable of effective function due to the depletion of of the initial
exchangeable ions. In the case of demineralization the exhaustion point is
defined in terms of leakage of ion or electrical conductivity.

.
 Demineralization Basics
T.D.S: Total Dissolved Solids , T.H. : Total Hardness
T.S.S: Total Suspended Solids
Resin Swelling: Reversible swelling behavior when the resin form changes.
Different resins behave differently and percentage swelling also varies.
Strong Acid Cation & Strong Base Anion Resins swell during the regeneration.
Weak Acid Cation (15 to 20% H+ >> Ca+ , 60 to 100% H+ Na+) & Weak
Base Anion Resins swell during exhaustion phase of service cycle
Mixed Bed Units: Is made up of single vessel containing strong acid cation
and strong base anion resins intimately mixed together. The water quality out
of these units is extremely good due to the infinite number of cation and anion
resin beads next to each other treating the water.
End Point: Is the point in the exhaustion run of the deionizer at which water
quality has dropped below acceptable level. After the ‘end point’ the unit or
the train goes for regeneration.
Water Quality: Is the degree of Purity achieved during the deionization
process. Mixed bed unit can provide theoretically upto 18 megaohms-cm of
water quality which 0.056 micromho/cm @ 25 Deg. C.
 Typical Water Analysis Format Used
DESIGN WATER ANALYSIS :
Cations (ppm as Anions (ppm as
CaCO3) CaCO3)

Calcium 113 Alkalinity 112

Magnesium 26.7 Sulfate 32.2
Sodium 75.5 Chloride 74.7
Potassium 6.66 Nitrate 2.98
Ammonia 0 Phosphate 0
Others

Total Cations 221.9 Total Anions 221.9

Carbon Dioxide (as PPM) 3.5
Silica (as PPM) 8

Other Contaminants
Aluminum NR PPM
Iron NR PPM
pH NR PPM
Free Chlorine <0.1 PPM
Oil Grease NR PPM

NOTES: The design water analysis is the analysis given in the specification with 4
PPM as CaCo3 of Chlorides added to balance the cations and anions.
 Demineralization Basics
Chemicals Used For Regeneration of Ion Exchange Resins:
Strong Acid Cation Resin in H+ Form:
Hydrochloric acid (@ 4 to 6% concentration)
Or Sulfuric Acid (@ 0.7 to 5% concentration)
Cation Resin in Na+ Form: Sodium Chloride (@ 10 to 13% concentration)
Weak Acid Cation Resin in H+ Form:
Hydrochloric acid (@ 2 to 6% concentration)
Or Sulfuric Acid (@ 0.5 to 0.8% concentration)
Anion Resin (Strong and Weak Base) : Caustic (@ 3 to 6% concentration)
Anion Resin (Strong Base In Organic Trap Unit) :
Mix of Sodium Chloride & Caustic
( Mix 10 : 1 Ratio appr. 10 % Sod. Chloride & 1 %
caustic)
 Demineralization Basics
Typical Regeneration Levels (RL):
Regeneration level depends upon the expected leakage for the given
feed water, required exchange capacity, type of chemical and type of
unit (Co or Counter current), operating cost……... .
Strong Acid Cation Unit (Use Acid For H+ Form Resin):
5 to 8 lbs/ft3 for Co Current unit
3 to 5 lbs/ft3 for Counter Current Unit.
Weak Acid Cation Unit (Use Acid For H+ From Resin:
104 to 120 % of theoretical Ionic Load.
Strong Acid Cation (Use Sodium Chloride For Na+ Form Resin):
5 to 15 lbs/ft3
 Demineralization Basics
Strong Base Anion Resin (Use Caustic For OH- Form Resin):
3 to 8 lbs/ft3 for Co Current Units
2 to 4 lbs/ft3 for Counter Current Units
Weak Base Anion Resin (Use Caustic for FB form resin):
120 to 130 % of theoretical Ionic Load
Mixed Bed Units (Working, Polishing, Condensate Treatment):
For Strong Acid Cation Resin (HCl or H2SO4):
7 to 10 lbs/ft3
For Strong Base Anion Resin (Caustic):
6 to 10 lbs/ft3
Note: RL for MB unit is normally high since it gets regenerated less
frequently and product quality requirement is too good to a level of <
0.1 Microsiemens/cm.
 Demineralization Basics
Expected Product Water Quality:
a) Sodium Softener Unit :
Hardness < 5 PPM as CaCO3 depending upon feed water quality &
regeneration level, Can be high in CO current unit .
b) Co Current Cation/Anion Units:
 5 to 10 MicroSiemens/Cm@ 25 Deg.C or More
c) Counter Current Cation/Anion Units:
 < 5 MicroSiemens/Cm@ 25 Deg.C UPCORE Counter Current
Cation/Anion Units: < 5 MicroSiemens/Cm@ 25 Deg.C .
d) Mixed Bed Units (Polishing/Working/Condensate Polishing*):
<0.1 MicroSiemens/Cm@ 25 Deg.C .
< 10 PPB (or 0.01 PPM) Sodium
< 10 PPB (or 0.01 PPM) Silica
6.5 to 7.5 pH
e) Decarbonator : 5 to 10 PPM of Carbon Dioxide at the outlet
(*) Some Condensate polishing systems have different guarantee
requirements.
 Demineralization Basics
Typically A Demineralization System Consists of the following:
• Pressure vessels complete with Internals & resins.
•Face piping skid for each vessel with necessary valves &
instrumentation.
•Acid & Caustic Regeneration Systems
•Waste Neutralization System
•Control system consisting of PLC & HMI.
•Chemical Feed system if necessary.
Piping Material:
If HCl is Used: Lined CS piping for Cation & MB units
If H2SO4 is Used: Stainless Steel Piping for Cation & MB Units
Caustic For Anions: Typically Stainless Steel Piping in North America.
Typical Instrumentation:
Pressure: Pressure Gauges, PDIT (Option), PITs (Option)