Preprint

UCRL-JC-143230

Spreadsheet Based
Scaling Calculations and
Membrane Performance

Thomas D. Wolfe
CEO
PerLorica Inc.
Grass Valley, California

William L. Bourcier, Ph.D.

Geochemist
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
Livermore, California

Thomas F. Speth, Ph.D., P.E.

Environmental Engineer
U.S. Department of Energy U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Cincinnati, Ohio
Lawrence
Livermore
National
Laboratory
This article was submitted to the 2001 Membrane Technology
Conference, San Antonio, Texas, March 3-7, 2001.

December 28, 2000

APPROVED FOR PUBLIC RELEASE; FURTHER DISSEMINATION UNLIMITED

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 Spreadsheet Based Scaling Calculations and Membrane Performance

Thomas D. Wolfe
CEO
PerLorica Inc.
Grass Valley, California

William L. Bourcier, Ph.D.

Geochemist
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
Livermore, California

Thomas F. Speth, Ph.D., P.E.

Environmental Engineer
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Cincinnati, Ohio

Abstract

Many membrane element manufacturers provide a computer program to aid buyers in the use
of their elements. However, to date there are few examples of fully integrated public domain
software available for calculating reverse osmosis and nanofiltration system performance. The
Total Flux and Scaling Program (TFSP), written for Excel 97 and above, provides designers and
operators new tools to predict membrane system performance, including scaling and fouling
parameters, for a wide variety of membrane system configurations and feedwaters.

The TFSP development was funded under EPA contract 9C-R193-NTSX. It is freely
downloadable at www.reverseosmosis.com/download/TFSP.zip. TFSP includes detailed
calculations of reverse osmosis and nanofiltration system performance. Of special significance,
the program provides scaling calculations for mineral species not normally addressed in
commercial programs, including aluminum, iron, and phosphate species. In addition, ASTM
calculations for common species such as calcium sulfate (CaSO4.2H2O), BaSO4, SrSO4, SiO2,
and LSI are also provided.

Scaling calculations in commercial membrane design programs are normally limited to the
common minerals and typically follow basic ASTM methods, which are for the most part
graphical approaches adapted to curves. In TFSP, the scaling calculations for the less common
minerals use subsets of the USGS PHREEQE and WATEQ4F databases and use the same
general calculational approach as PHREEQE and WATEQ4F. The activities of ion complexes
are calculated iteratively. Complexes that are unlikely to form in significant concentration were
eliminated to simplify the calculations. The calculation provides the distribution of ions and ion
complexes that is used to calculate an effective ion product Q. The effective ion product is
then compared to temperature adjusted solubility products (Ksps) of solids in order to calculate
a Saturation Index (SI) for each solid of interest. The SI is expressed as a log value (log(Q)
log(Ksp)) where positive values indicate potential scaling conditions. As this is an unprotected
spreadsheet, the methodology is plainly visible to and readily modified by the user.

SPREADSHEET BASED SCALING CALCULATIONS AND MEMBRANE PERFORMANCE 1

Calculation Methodology

General Comments

Although most of the major membrane manufacturers provide calculation programs designed for their
specific membranes, the experienced engineer can often be well served by having the calculation
methodology available for easy viewing and/or modification. A spreadsheet-based program therefore
provides a useful tool to the water system engineer. The feedwater to a membrane system is rarely
scaling before it is concentrated by a pass through membrane system. However, scaling becomes
more likely as fluid concentrations increase and it is useful to be able to predict the concentrations of
the various ions at all points in the system, particularly in the concentrate. In addition, it is important to
estimate the effective concentration at the membrane surface, which is always higher than the bulk
fluid concentration due to concentration polarization.

In this spreadsheet we use a combination of iterative and direct calculation methods to first estimate
the performance of a given membrane system, then predict the concentrations of the solution at
various points in the system, and finally compute a scale index for the species of interest.

Program Flow

The Program Flow is designed as follows:

Enter Analytical Data Ions, pH, Acid, etc.

Enter System Flows, Membranes, etc.

Calculate System & Analytical Data

Complete Scaling Calculations & Display

Display and/or Print

Results

Figure 1 General Program Flow

Since this is a spreadsheet, the data and calculations are organized by type and function onto
different sheets or tabs. Buttons on the sheets provide an alternate means of navigation between
sections.

Where possible, the spreadsheet itself was used to perform the calculations. For example, the
carbonate equilibria in the feedwater are handled in the spreadsheet. In addition, Langelier
Saturation Index (LSI) and ASTM methods for CaSO4, SrSO4, BaSO4, and SiO2 are also handled in
the spreadsheet. However, the more detailed membrane performance and scaling calculations are

SPREADSHEET BASED SCALING CALCULATIONS AND MEMBRANE PERFORMANCE 2

handled using a combination of iterative add-ins (Excels Solver) and Visual Basic code specifically
written for the purpose.

RO & NF Calculation Methods

General Approach

The general approach used is the same as used by most commercial membrane design programs.
Basically the user needs to guess a design and then a detailed calculation is made. The TFSP
program assists this process by continually displaying and updating an estimated feed pressure and
TDS values for the user in the spreadsheet. This estimated pressure is the seed pressure for the
start of the iterations. Final data display includes calculations for permeate, feed, net feed with
recycle, and concentrate. Interested users can modify the program to display bank by bank data if
they so desire.

The computational approach, although well understood conceptually, is more complicated in practice.
The TFSP program makes one simplification over most commercial programs that greatly helps the
calculation rates in that each vessel is converted to the form of one element, which directly returns
the performance for each bank in the system. TFSP calculates salt flux on an ion-by-ion basis during
each pass through the system and balances carbonates in the concentrate and permeate analyses
while accounting for the free passage of CO2 through the membranes. As an aside, the free
passage of CO2 is responsible for the significantly lower pH in the permeate as compared to the
feedwater in most membrane systems.

Water flux, or more properly the flow rate, is calculated as follows, where Pi is osmotic pressure. The
effective pressure or PNet is the net trans-membrane differential pressure. All values are first
converted to meters, seconds, and atmospheres to make calculations simpler. Even though using a
flow rate based on m3/sec results in small absolute numbers, the precision of the spreadsheet is
more than sufficient to return accurate results. Data can be displayed in a variety of conventional
metric or US units.

A review of some of the simpler membrane transport functions might be useful to understand the
calculation process.

A value, or the water transport value, or simply the water flux, is defined for each membrane type
as water flow through the membrane per unit of membrane area per some pressure unit. For
example:

Equation 1

m3
sec = m
" A" Value = 2
m * atm sec* atm

Note that A value is dependent on pressure, which is of course the effective transmembrane
pressure and the area, thus multiplying by the area and net pressure provides a direct calculation of
the water flow rate through the membrane.

A Salt Flux coefficient, or B value is also generally defined as a salt passage rate or some unit of
mass or volume per unit of membrane area. This reduces to a velocity type factor i.e. m/sec. Note
that the salt passage rate is almost entirely dependent on the concentration difference between both

SPREADSHEET BASED SCALING CALCULATIONS AND MEMBRANE PERFORMANCE 3

sides of the membrane. Actually, B was originally defined as grams/(min*cm2). In any case, the
mass or volume term later cancels so the actual unit of choice is irrelevant as long as consistency is
maintained. B value combines terms for salt distribution and diffusion coefficients as well as
membrane thickness as previously defined1,2.

Equation 2

m
" B" Value =
sec

Both B and A are dependent on temperature and in some cases can be dependent on feed
concentration, pH, and/or applied pressure. The corrections for pH are most important when
considering the selectivity of TFC type membranes for silica transport or rejection. However, for most
applications, a good approximation can be made if only temperature is considered.

Combining the equations for A & B we get the familiar equation used to determine permeate
concentration for each individual ion.

Equation 3

Similarly, using the familiar reverse osmosis transport equations, flow through the membrane at any
point in the system can be expressed as follows:

Equation 4

Thus by combining the above equations for flow and permeate concentration, calculating a realistic
concentration polarization, and calculating a transmembrane pressure which accounts for pressure
losses through the system, we can compute the conditions for each individual element within the
system.

The concentration of each ion in the permeate is found as follows. A variable, "MegDiff" is defined for
each ion first which is the effective difference in concentration of the ion from the membrane surface
to the permeate. This includes a factor for concentration polarization. Note also that the Bvalue is
different for each ion. However, rather than define a separate value for each ion, it is customary to
define a ratio to either sodium or chloride. Typically the ratio varies from 0.1 to 4, corresponding to a
salt flux of 10% to 400% of the chloride rate.

SPREADSHEET BASED SCALING CALCULATIONS AND MEMBRANE PERFORMANCE 4

Equation 5

MeqDiff = BulkLMAvg Conc * ConcPolarization PermConc

Equation 6
BValue * BCorrectionByIonIon
PermConcIon = MeqDiff Ion *
PNet * AValue + BValue
PermTDS = PermConc(ion)
all ions

PNet is as defined above, i.e. the feed pressure less differential pressure less the osmotic pressure
difference between the average feed stream and permeate. BcorrectionByIon is stored in the
spreadsheet as a function of the membrane type selected. This is the ratio of salt flux for the ion in
question relative to either chloride or sodium. This value is easily modified by the user to provide for
special cases, or to even create new ions and coefficients.

Since the permeate concentration obviously affects the water flux and required pressure and vice
versa, an iterative approach is necessary to solve the system. The general steps are as follows:

a) Acquire a valid water analysis and target feed pH from the user supplied data. Read this
data into the internal variables.
b) Acquire flow and recovery information from the user via a graphic screen.
c) Convert all flow rates to the internal flow scheme - TFSP uses m3/sec as the base flow units.
d) Acquire from the user the suggested array, bank, and vessel layout and save in the internal
variables. Typically, a system with higher recovery needs more banks. For example a 75%
recovery system might specify 6 elements per vessel, 2 banks total in the array, and an
array layout of 16:8. That is 16 vessels feeding 8 vessels in bank 2.
e) Acquire from the user the selected membrane element information. When the user selects
the type of element, the program loads the specific data about the element such as A value,
B value, B values relative to Na or Cl per each ion (dependent on membrane type), area in
m2, differential pressure coefficients and so on. Membrane data is stored on the Membrane
Data sheet. It is freely changeable and allows the user to create new elements as needed.
f) Set up the selected membrane element in the vessel and calculate delta pressure and
concentration polarization coefficients (called the BetaCoef in the code) for the selected
elements. Delta pressure is calculated from a coefficient specific to the membrane
configuration. The TFS program by default utilizes coefficients based on commercial
membranes typical of those elements used for so called pure water applications. These
assume water is the medium processed and assumes normal thickness feed size spacer
materials. The user can adjust these coefficients for special elements as needed. Note that
TFSP uses a simplified approach for this purpose. Given sufficient empirical data and
physical dimensions, it is also quite feasible to calculate DP directly from using more
rigorous techniques. However this requires physical data not usually obtainable from the
manufacturers and the approximation below can be created from the tech data sheets
provided by many manufacturers.

SPREADSHEET BASED SCALING CALCULATIONS AND MEMBRANE PERFORMANCE 5

 Equation 7
FeedFlow + ConcFlow
1.5

dp = dpCoef *
2
Equation 8

ConcPolarization = CP = Exp( BetaCoef * Recovery )

The BetaCoef coefficient is unique to each physical configuration of the membrane and is
generally determined empirically. The recovery value refers to the recovered water fraction
in the unit or element of interest. The BetaCoef used by the TFSP was developed for single
elements by using various commercial programs from the major manufacturers. By
comparing the calculated concentration polarization values from these programs at a variety
of conditions, an estimate of BetaCoef was made for four and eight inch diameter generic
elements.
A physical means of visualizing the effect is to imagine that the spacer found in spiral
membrane elements is more or less efficient at creating turbulence. If more efficient, then
the mixing at the membranes surface will be better and the concentration polarization will
approach 1.0 more closely. With a BetaCoef = 0.0 there is no concentration polarization, i.e.
CP = 1.0. Of course higher recovery in any given segment of the system or individual
membrane element will lead to higher concentration polarization. The simple equation
above has proven adequate for most design cases with normal flow parameters. A typical
design maximum concentration polarization is normally in the range of 1.20 to 1.25
depending on the type of water being treated. For completely non-scaling waters, such as
2nd pass RO systems treating RO permeate, much higher concentration polarization values
can be tolerated without inducing scale formation. This is of course a very simplified
approach to computing the concentration polarization. Nevertheless it has proven useful in
many commercial programs and it is more than adequate for prediction of concentrate
concentrations to use for scaling calculations.
g) At this point, calculations are ready to begin. The first step is to "Guess" the applied
pressure needed to produce the water flow rate required. To do this the total membrane
area in the system is calculated and the feed osmotic pressure is calculated. Based on
nominal recovery and a nominal rejection for the element, a concentrate concentration is
estimated by mass balance. The concentrate osmotic pressure is then calculated. Next a
differential pressure is calculated for the first and last elements in the system and the
average is used to calculate a differential pressure for the system. The "Guess" pressure
needed is then calculated:
Equation 9

Flow FeedPi + ConcPi

Guess (atm) = + Total _ dp +
" A" value * Area 2
N.B. - Flow is m3/sec, A value is m/(sec*atm) or m3/sec/m2/atm, dp and Pi in atm.
h) Guess is the net pressure, which includes osmotic pressure and dp losses so the applied
pressure is increased by average of the feed and concentrate osmotic pressures and the
differential pressure. Osmotic pressure is calculated using the typical equation of state,
summed for each ion in the analysis.1 Total organic carbon contributions (if any) are ignored
since the contribution is highly dependent on the type of organic carbon present.

SPREADSHEET BASED SCALING CALCULATIONS AND MEMBRANE PERFORMANCE 6

 Equation 10

OsmoticPressure(atm) = Pi = RT * [c ]
AllIons
i i

R = GasConst , T = deg K , i = activity coefficient , [c ]i = moles / l

The Calculations for RO (reverse osmosis) and NF (nanofiltration) systems are arranged in
a "Do While Loop" that starts with an assumed applied pressure. From this pressure, flow
rates and concentrations are calculated on a vessel by vessel basis through the system.
The total calculated flow is then compared to the target flow the user provided. If low, then
the pressure is raised proportionally, and if high then the pressure is lowered proportionally.
Once the calculated flow is within the set percentage of the target flow - typically 0.2% to 1%
- then the calculation program terminates and data is returned to the spreadsheet for
display.
i) RO and NF calculations differ in approach to the transport of ions. For reverse osmosis
systems, the permeate anions and cations are balanced equally. That is, any difference in
overall charge in the first pass through the permeate concentration calculation (Equation 8)
is split equally and the permeate concentration adjusted proportionally for each ion. For an
NF system, the anions are assumed to control and the cations are adjusted to balance the
permeate analysis.
Scaling Calculation Methods

ASTM Methods

Calculations for CaSO4, BaSO4, and SrSO4 are taken from ASTM D 4692, Figures 1-3 respectively.2
ASTM D4993 is the source for SiO2 solubility.3 Langelier Saturation Index (LSI) is taken from the
definition of LSI in the literature, which is consistent with data in Stumm and Morgan4 ASTM data was
used for these common scale forming minerals since this the accepted industry method. 5

Calcium Fluoride (CaF2) is computed in a similar manner to the ASTM data except that the Ksp was
taken from the Phreeqe database. The Vant Hoff method is used to correct for different
temperatures.

Equation 11

H 1 1
Van' tHoff Equation = KspT 2 = KspT =25
R T2 298.16
R = GasConst, T2 = deg K of solution, KT =25 = Ksp at 25o C, H = Enthalpy
The ASTM methods are essentially polynomials derived by curve fitting techniques. These provide a
Ksp value as a function of temperature and ionic strength (IS). The corrected Ksp is compared to the
actual ion product for the stream of interest and a percent of solubility or percent of saturation is
defined as follows. This method is also used for calcium fluoride.

Percent Solubility = Ion Product *100

Ksp corrected
Equation 12

SPREADSHEET BASED SCALING CALCULATIONS AND MEMBRANE PERFORMANCE 7

The Langelier Saturation Index (LSI) is computed as follows:

LSI = pH pHs where Equation 13

pHs = ( pK 2 pKSo + pCa + pAlk )

pH is the pH of the solution, "pHs" is Langeliers calculated saturation pH. Thus a negative LSI
indicates that CaCO3 should not precipitate from solution.

The values of pK2 and pKSo are the carbonate solubility products and are corrected for
temperature. pK2 is corrected for ionic strength as well. Values were taken from Stumm &
Morgan.4 At 25 deg C, pK2 ~= 10.357, pKSo ~=8.48.

pCa equals -log([Ca]) where [Ca] = calcium activity in moles/liter (activity can be thought of as an
ionic strength-corrected concentration). Activities are computed using the Debye Huckel method.

pALK equals -log([Total Alkalinity]), and Total Alkalinity = [HCO3] + [CO3] + [OH] [H]. [HCO3]
and [CO3] are also corrected for ionic strength.

The value for carbonate (CO3) is computed from [HCO3] and pH.

It should be noted that LSI is not considered useful above an ionic strength of about 0.3. There are
many excellent texts on LSI calculation so it will not be covered in further detail here.

Other Minerals

Less common minerals which are nevertheless of interest to membrane system designers are
handled by the more rigorous aqueous complexation methods typical of the WaterEQ or Phreeqe
programs (WATEQ4F, Plummer et al., 19766, PHREEQE Parkhurst et al., 19807, and Truesdell,
19748). A given solution analysis is first numerically speciated into the various aqueous complexes
that are present using thermodynamic stability constants. The saturation state of the solid is then
calculated from the true solubility product, which is not a function of ionic strength, and the ionic
concentrations determined from the speciation calculation.

After a careful consideration of many possible minerals, it was decided to limit the calculations and
display to the minerals of most interest in the operating temperature and operating pH range of most
membrane systems i.e. 5 to 50 deg C, and pH 4 to 10.

The minerals of interest include:

Analcime NaAlSi2O6.H2O
Gibbsite - aluminum hydroxide Al(OH)3
Amorphous Al(OH)3 - aluminum hydroxide Al(OH)3
Fe(OH)3 (amorphous) - Ferric hydroxide Fe(OH)3
Goethite - Ferric hydroxide FeO(OH)
Siderite - Ferrous carbonate FeCO3
Vivianite - Ferrous phosphate Fe3(PO4)2:8H2O
Hydroxyapatite - Calcium hydroxy phosphate Ca5(PO4)3OH
Gypsum (also by ASTM methods) - Calcium sulfate CaSO4.2H2O
Sepiolite (High pH silica foulant) - Mag Silicate Mg4Si6O15(OH)2:6H2O

SPREADSHEET BASED SCALING CALCULATIONS AND MEMBRANE PERFORMANCE 8

In a very simplistic sense, the approach is to create a list of all possible complex species which could
exist in the solution, and then solve a set of equations describing these complexes based on known
thermodynamic data for each complex

For example, for ferric iron, we consider the following aqeuous species:

Fe3+ + Cl- = FeCl++

Fe3+ + SO4-- = FeSO4+
Fe3+ + 2OH- = Fe(OH)2+
Fe3+ + 3OH- = Fe(OH)3(aq)
Fe3+ + HCO3- = FeHCO3+
Fe3+ + CO3-- = FeCO3+
Fe3+ + HPO4-- = FeHPO4+
Fe3+ + H2PO4- = FeH2PO4++

The solution to this set of equations provides the concentrations and activities of all species, including
uncomplexed metal ion activities that are used to compute the ion products for the solids. These ion
products are then compared to known Ksp values for the minerals of interest and a saturation index
(SI) is calculated:

Ion PRODUCT
SI = Log = Log ( IP) Log ( Ksp ) Equation 14
Ksp

IP is also referred to as Q, thus SI = Log(Q) Log(Ksp).

A negative SI value indicates under-saturation while a positive SI indicates over-saturation and

possible precipitation. An SI of zero of course suggests the solution is exactly at saturation.

For example, Na and SO4 form a complex with one negative charge - i.e. NaSO4. The Log(Ksp) is
calculated for this complex at the solution temperature on the sheet entitled LogKs. The formula for
this complex is created as follows, where represents the activity of the species under consideration.
Activity values are calculated for each complex and each species on the sheet ActCof, and the
"Available" concentration is determined on the sheet entitled "Calc".

[ Na ]available * Na*[ SO4 ]available * SO 4 *10 log Ksp

[ NaSO4 ] = Equation 15
NaSO 4

Of course many other complexes containing both Na and SO4 are also produced, and the amount
available of each ion is affected by all of the other complexes. Because of this, the solution to the
problem must be obtained iteratively. The Excel built in Solver is convenient for solving this problem.
The program automatically implements a series of VBA commands which sets the Solver up and
then runs it. The Solver continues to be invoked until the system of equations is solved to a degree of
accuracy that is acceptable to the user.

SPREADSHEET BASED SCALING CALCULATIONS AND MEMBRANE PERFORMANCE 9

 =

80
2
l
5
)
4
*
S
(
0
.
SI
Log
Ksp
og(
9
0885
47
0292
I

For example, assume we wish to calculate the actual ion product for CaSO4 - 2H2O in the solution to
determine the scaling potential. We calculate the actual and available concentrations as follows.

Species Ca(molal) SO4 (molal)

Actual Conc 0.00374 0.01041
Available Conc 0.00292 0.00885
Activity coefficient () 0.447 0.447

We then calculate the Log(Ksp) for CaSO4-2H2O in this solution and temperature to be -4.59. The
logarithm of the ion product for CaSO4 based on the concentration available is compared to the
Log(Ksp) to provide an SI.

SI = Log (0.00292 * 0.447 * 0.00885 * 0.447) log( Ksp) Equation 16

SI = 5.29 ( 4.59) = 0.70

Thus at this condition, CaSO4 is significantly undersaturated. Since the SI is log based, the percent of
saturation is 10(-0.7) = 0.1995 or about 20%. In this example, the ASTM method, which uses a Ksp
corrected for ionic strength with typical analyses yielded a value of about 21% of saturation. Thus the
ASTM method compares very well and slightly conservatively in this case. As an aside, this points
out the big difference in comparing solubility using percent of saturation values as compared to SIs.
SIs are logs so some confusion is possible when comparing different systems.

Nevertheless, it should be noted that the calculations performed using the ion complex method are
performed for minerals that may actually supersaturate to a very high degree, and thus not cause
problems in many membrane system applications. The aluminum and iron compounds investigated
are almost always present to some degree in surface and ground waters. This program provides the
user a means to effectively determine the optimum pH conditions to minimize potential fouling from
these compounds. However, the user should note that iron and aluminum compounds are usually
present in the amorphous condition and the fouling or non-fouling tendencies of the compounds may
be greatly dependent on the presence or absence of organic or biological components in the
feedwaters, The organic and biological components may act either to solublize or precipitate them,
depending on the water conditions and nature of the organics present.

Carbonate Equilibrium

The calculation of the appropriate carbonate and pH distribution is an important part of this program.
Note that membrane systems readily pass carbon dioxide (CO2) while carbonate (CO3--) is strongly
rejected. Thus the permeate side of the membrane is enriched with carbon dioxide while the
feed/concentrate side of the membrane is enriched with carbonate and bicarbonate. The net effect of
this separation is to lower the pH of the permeate while the concentrate pH rises. The TFSP program
effectively models this behavior. For applications in which a membrane system precedes a
deionization (DI) system, the additional carbon dioxide can pose a load on the anion resins. The
TFSP program can help the user to evaluate the use of acid versus scale inhibitor or softening resins
as the pretreatment step.

The steps necessary to calculate the carbonate equilibrium are as follows:

a) The solution ionic strength is calculated, defined as

SPREADSHEET BASED SCALING CALCULATIONS AND MEMBRANE PERFORMANCE 10

 Equation 17
IS = 0.5 * [Ion] * Abs(z)
All Ions

b) pK1 and pK2 are corrected for the solution temperature.

Ionic strength corrections are then applied to pK1 and pK2. The methods are described in
Stumm and Morgan.4
c) pK1 and pK2 are converted back to K1 and K2 values.
d) The [H+] concentration is calculated from solution pH
The Mole Fraction (fraction of the total inorganic carbon) for HCO3 is calculated from K1, K2,
and pH. If the HCO3 concentration was specified then the Total Inorganic Carbon (TIC) is
calculated from the mole fraction of HCO3. If TIC was specified then the concentration of HCO3
is calculated using the mole fraction of HCO3.
1
(H + ) K2
MoleFraction HCO3 = + 1 + +
K1 H Equation 18

[ HCO3 ]
Total Inorganic Carbon = TIC =
MoleFraction HCO3
e) Knowing the Total Inorganic Carbon (TIC), we then calculate the CO2 and CO3 values from
pH and K1 and K2 as follows. The values are in moles/liter.

1
(H + )2 H+ Equation 19
[CO3 ] = TIC * +1+
K1 * K 2 K 2
1
( K1) 2 K1 * K 2
[CO2 ] = TIC * +
+1 + + 2

H ( H )
f) For the treated feed - i.e. the feed with the pH adjusted, we have already computed the
Total Inorganic Carbon (TIC) and thus the new carbonate distribution can be readily
calculated from the equations above. The amount of acid required is easily computed from
the change in bicarbonate concentration from the user-supplied feed water to the treated
feed water composition.

Scale Inhibition and Scale

Computing the likelihood of scale formation using the TFSP is a straightforward matter. Today, the
membrane designer has a wide variety of scale prevention techniques and products available that
potentially allow a system to operate at supersaturated conditions. The original scale inhibitor of
choice in membrane systems was sodium hexametaphosphate or SHMP. This has the advantage of
being relatively nontoxic, cheap, easily soluble in water, and reasonably effective with carbonates
and sulfates. Unfortunately, it also begins to hydrolyze immediately upon dissolution so the active life
of the material is poor and this has led to many inadvertent failures in RO systems over the years.
Phosphonate or polymer-based scale inhibitors with superior performance and no degradation in
solution have come to replace SHMP in most applications.

SPREADSHEET BASED SCALING CALCULATIONS AND MEMBRANE PERFORMANCE 11

Traditionally, membrane systems operated at lower pHs to avoid damage to the cellulosic
membranes and to avoid calcium carbonate precipitation. This usually necessitated acid
addition, a moderately dangerous practice. Today, many systems completely avoid the need for
pH control even in the presence of moderate calcium carbonate concentrations through the use
of phosphonate or polymer based scale inhibitors. In fact, operating LSIs of 2 or even higher
are routinely obtained with readily available scale inhibitors at moderate doses typically 2-3
ppm in the feed.
In addition, operation of systems that have a proclivity toward calcium, barium, and strontium
sulfate scaling have become routine as well. With many of the newer phosphonate type scale
inhibitors, for example those based on aminotrismethylenephosphonic acid (AMP), concentrate
levels of calcium sulfate corresponding to an SI of 0.4 or higher (250% of normal solubility) can
be safely obtained if certain operational parameters are observed. Poly acrylic acid (PAA)
polymers give slightly less protection.
Three mechanisms of action for typical membrane industry scale inhibitors are usually recognized.

Threshold
Dispersion
Crystal Distortion
Threshold inhibitors are typically represented by the phosphonates, such as AMP and related
compounds. Threshold inhibitors are believed to function by absorption onto specific areas of a
crystal that is just beginning to grow, retarding or preventing its growth. Thus the crystal can
never grow large nor connect with other crystals that are in solution or are already precipitated
on the membrane. Typical doses are in the order of 15 - 25 ppm in the concentrate at maximum
effectiveness.

Crystal distortion mechanisms are similar to threshold inhibitors except that they work by
distorting the crystal during growth. Photomicrographs of crystal distorters at work are
particularly striking, showing round or irregular crystals. The prototypical crystal distorter is a
long-used scale inhibitor known as polyacrylic acid (PAA) polymer.

Dispersants are useful with both crystal distorters and threshold agents. These are typified by
carboxylic acid polymers such as polymaleic acid (PMA) or phosphonobutane tricarboxylic acid
(PBTC).9 Since threshold agents may produce very small, microscopic crystals, if any at all, a
dispersant is warranted for optimum fouling control.

Affect of Iron and Aluminum

Iron and aluminum compounds are considered in the TFSP calculations. Normally very insoluble
relative to compounds such as calcium sulfate, they are usually only present in low concentrations
anyway. However, the presence of iron can decrease the effectiveness of a threshold or distorter
agent by reacting or complexing with the agent, thus hindering its ability to prevent scale . Scale
inhibitor doses for threshold agents in particular must be increased in the presence of iron. With high
iron concentrations, increased inhibitor dose combined with a dispersant type agent can effectively
prevent scale formation even in under severe conditions.

The presence of iron or aluminum compounds above their solubility limits thus is not limiting but
suggests that additional scale inhibitor may be required. Many commercial programs already

SPREADSHEET BASED SCALING CALCULATIONS AND MEMBRANE PERFORMANCE 12

account for this affect, which can be substantial.10 TFSP can assist the membrane designer in
assessing the possibility of iron or aluminum fouling in a given feedwater.

Summary and Conclusions

The Total Flux and Scaling Program (TFSP), written for Excel 97 and above, provides designers
operators, and educators new tools to predict membrane system performance, including scaling
and fouling parameters, for a wide variety of membrane system configurations and feedwaters.
Of special significance, the program provides scaling calculations for mineral species not
normally addressed in commercial programs, including aluminum, iron, and phosphate species.
In addition, ASTM calculations for common predicted species such as calcium sulfate
(CaSO4.2H2O), BaSO4, SrSO4, SiO2, and LSI are also provided. The spreadsheet is fully
transparent, allowing the operator to manually change all aspects of the program.

The TFSP development was funded under EPA contract 9C-R193-NTSX and is freely downloadable
at www.reverseosmosis.com/download/TFSP.zip, or by contacting Thomas Speth at
[email protected]. Mention of trade names or commercial products in this article and
spreadsheet does not constitute endorsement or recommendation for use by the U.S. Government.

This work was in part performed under the auspices of the U.S. Department of Energy by the
University of California, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory under contract No. W-7405-
Eng-48.

References
1
Castellan, GW, (1964) Physical Chemistry, Addison-Wesley Publishing, p 263ff.
2
ASTM. (1993) Section VI - Water-Treatment Materials: Section D 4692 - 87 "Standard Practice
For Calculation Of Sulfate Scaling Salts (Caso4, Srso4, Baso4) For Reverse Osmosis". In
Annual Book of ASTM Standards, Vol. 11.02, pp. 868-871.
3
ASTM. (1993) Section VI - Water-Treatment Materials: Section D 4993 - 89 "Standard practice for
Calculation and Adjustment of Silica (SiO2) for Reverse Osmosis".
4
Stumm W., Morgan J, 1976, Aquatic Chemistry, Wiley and Sons.
5
ASTM. (1993) Section VI - Water-Treatment Materials: Section D 3739 - 88 "Standard practice for
Ccalculation and Adjustment of the Langelier Saturation Index for Reverse Osmosis".
6
Plummer L. N., Jones B. F., and Truesdell A. H., (1976) WATEQF - A Fortran IV version of
WATEQ, a Computer Program For Calculating Chemical Equilibrium Of Natural Waters, United
States Geological Survey, Report Number Wat. Res. Inv. 76-13.
7
Parkhurst D. L., Thorstenson D. C., and Plummer L. N., (1980) PHREEQE- A Computer
Program For Geochemical Calculations, United States Geological Survey.
8
Truesdell, A.H., and Jones, B.F., (1974), WATEQ, A Computer Program For Calculating
Chemical Equilbria of Natural Waters U.S.G.S. J. Res., 2, 233-248.

SPREADSHEET BASED SCALING CALCULATIONS AND MEMBRANE PERFORMANCE 13

9
Sullivan,PJ, et al, A Multifunctional Additive for Deposit Control, NACE Annual Conference,
1996.
10
Darton, EG, RO11.2, A Program to Compute Scale Inhibitor Dose Rates, PermaCare UK,
1999.

SPREADSHEET BASED SCALING CALCULATIONS AND MEMBRANE PERFORMANCE 14