Advertorial by Energy Recovery
Unrivalled Performance in Harsh Environments
New Research Demonstrates a 30-Year Design Life for Energy Recovery Pressure Exchangers
Seawater desalination is an essential solution for mounting freshwater needs, especially in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region where water scarcity is commonplace. While desalination is an energy-intensive process, innovative technologies have helped make these facilities run much more efficiently. However, energy efficiency serves no purpose if a facility must stop production to maintain or replace broken equipment. Energy Recovery believes that pursuing energy efficiency should never come at the expense of operational reliability and that operators should protect against the risks associated with unproven technologies. Recent data underscores the exceptional reliability of their products.
Durability for Decades
Energy Recovery has been a leader in the desalination industry for more than 30 years. The company’s PX® Pressure Exchanger® technology revolutionized the industry by providing a durable and powerful solution to energy efficiency. Over these years, a major achievement of the product is proven reliability, even in harsh environments. The consistent performance of over 35,000 PX units deployed worldwide since 2002 showcases the reliability and durability of these devices.
To confirm the peerless performance of the PX, Energy Recovery dove deeper into customer data to inspect how these devices were withstanding harsh conditions around the world.
Designed to Last
Seawater reverse osmosis (SWRO) is a challenging application because of long-term continuous operation in high-pressure, highly corrosive seawater and brine. PX devices in SWRO applications are built for several decades of operating life. The reason? The PX features a robust design developed from advanced computational and analytical tools. It is fabricated with a careful choice of materials and precision. Each unit undergoes rigorous inspection and validation testing.
Every component of the PX is carefully chosen to meet the maximum operating temperature and pressure ranges demanded in the field. Requirements include strength, durability, and compatibility with highly corrosive brines.
For all non-ceramic components in the PX assembly, the peak stress levels are well below the endurance limit; as such, the material can withstand an infinite number of loading cycles without failing. That means that under normal operation, these materials are designed and fabricated for infinite fatigue life.
Unmatched Customer Satisfaction
An excellent indicator of a product’s quality is the quantity of returns or warranty claims on the product. As a part of this research, Energy Recovery explored the number of claims and the reasons behind them, specifically on the PX Q300.
With over 25,000 of these devices deployed in the field, it is the company’s best-selling device and constitutes the vast majority of PX models sold to date. Less than 170 of these devices have needed service by Energy Recovery in the field or have been returned to the manufacturing facility. This represents less than a 0.7% overall return rate.
Careful analysis of returned devices indicated no incidences of materials or manufacturing defects. Rather, all returned devices had suffered some sort of contamination, most typically hard debris in the water fed to the device. Therefore, the PX Q300 has enjoyed a 0% return rate for design or fabrication issues in 14 years of production and operation.
Feedback from Field Tests
Energy Recovery also performed field testing to evaluate several units that had operated continuously for over a decade. These were tested, disassembled, and analyzed. The accompanying analysis showed that the units and their components remained in their original condition, with no signs of life-limiting wear or damage.
Where Efficiency Meets Longevity
Increasing capacity and efficiency in the desalination industry is the obvious goal for operators. But only the Energy Recovery PX can provide the benefit of energy efficiency with a proven design life of 30 years in SWRO applications. Its reliability in harsh environments is in a league of its own.
Facility managers can’t afford to experiment or leave their systems to chance. Energy Recovery’s reputation and data showcase why it is the standard bearer for SWRO applications, giving industry professionals peace of mind around the globe.
This advertorial is provided by Energy Recovery, a trusted global leader in energy efficiency technology. With a strong foundation in the desalination industry, Energy Recovery has delivered transformative solutions that increase operational efficiency and environmental sustainability to our customers worldwide for more than 30 years. Read more about their High-Pressure PX series.