Delivering high-purity water with an integrated UF and RO solution for Brazil’s sugar cane industry
Water purification is essential in Brazil's sugar cane industry, a sector of global importance, with the country accounting for 21% of the world’s sugar cane production.
Fluid Brazil, a leading OEM in the Brazilian water treatment industry, has partnered with MANN+HUMMEL Water & Membrane Solutions to develop innovative filtration solutions that meet the growing demands of this market. One such partnership with Bom Sucesso Agroindústria SA, a large sugar cane mill in the Goiatuba/GO region, highlights how advanced water treatment technologies can address complex water challenges.
This case study explores how the integration of PureULTRA II UF and MICRODYN RO elements delivered a highly purified, chemical-free water solution that reduced feedwater contaminants, optimized operations (delivering high performance at the highest recovery rate), and minimized maintenance for Bom Sucesso.
The customer: a leading OEM in Brazil's water purification industry
- Fluid Brazil, a key original equipment manufacturer (OEM) in the Brazilian water purification industry, has a long-established partnership with MANN+HUMMEL.
- The end user, Bom Sucesso Agroindústria SA, operates a sugar cane mill in the Goiatuba/GO region and collaborates with Fluid Brazil to tackle the ongoing water challenges they face in their daily operations.
The challenge: enhancing water purity and reducing maintenance
Surface water, while a convenient and abundant resource for steam boilers, is often loaded with contaminants like sediments, dissolved minerals, salts, organic matter, and pollutants. These impurities pose significant challenges to maintaining the efficiency and longevity of equipment. To ensure optimal boiler performance, a robust filtration system is required to produce hardness-free, highly demineralized water.
Initially, Bom Sucesso Agroindústria SA only treated their water to meet local discharge regulations. After collaborating with Fluid Brazil, we were tasked with creating a solution that not only delivered higher-purity water but also reduced maintenance costs and prevented biofilm buildup within the boiler. Additionally, the system needed to be chemical-free, stable, and easy to operate, with low turbidity at the inlet and minimal operational support required.
The solution: combining UF and RO technologies
In collaboration with Fluid Brazil, we provided engineering expertise and handled the plant's start-up processes. Together with Bom Sucesso Agroindústria SA, we developed a comprehensive solution that met all requirements. The result is a highly effective membrane filtration system integrating ultrafiltration (UF) and reverse osmosis (RO) technologies.
The solution includes 80 PureULTRA UF II PHF-107-V modules used as pretreatment for the RO system, combined with 96 MICRODYN RO 8040-BW-400 elements. This system delivers permeate water with an extremely low concentration of total dissolved solids (TDS), hardness and other pollutants, ensuring the highest quality water for optimal boiler operation.
Maximized performance with simplified operation
- The integrated multi-technology water treatment system has significantly reduced contaminant concentrations in the boiler, effectively minimizing the risk of scaling.
- This outcome meets the customer's expectations for chemical-free, high-purity feed water and ensures easy operation with minimal staff involvement.
Read the full case study for a detailed comparison between the original raw water analysis and the high-quality results achieved.