Iron reduction filtration unit for agriculture irrigation

Project aim: Development of a filter unit for the reduction of iron ions from groundwater used in irrigation systems in agriculture.

 

About the project: Irrigation water with iron may lead to iron rust stains, and discoloration on foliage plants and can cause clogging of drip irrigation emitters. The high concentration of iron (above 4ppm) in combination with root medium pH below 5.5, can cause toxicities in plants and can have negative effects on human health. Certain bacteria thrive on elevated levels of iron and may cling to pipe surfaces as a suitable habitat. These bacteria may become dense enough in population to clog pipes and reduce flow rates. Clogging will also occur if ferrous bicarbonate is present in the water. Standard treatment of iron in water includes aeration or chemical oxidation, followed by filtration. The aeration process is relatively slow process that requires an aeration pump and large retention tanks for filtration. On the other hand, the oxidation includes the use of oxidants such as chlorine, chlorine dioxide, ozone, etc. Chlorination is widely used for oxidation of soluble divalent iron. However, the number of the plants are very sensitive to chlorine.

 

Standard methods do not represent a good solution for the irrigation in agricultural production where a well system are used with high water flow and where the installation of expensive filtration tanks or using the reagents are not possible. The aim of the project is to develop a specific iron filtration unit for well irrigated system that will combine ion exchange resins, greensand, birm, activated carbon and specifically designed organic polymer-porous silica hybrid membranes. Amounts and composition of all components of the complex filter assembly are adjusted in order to optimize the iron removal efficiency, without compromising the required water flow of the irrigation system. The goal of the project was to construct, test and validate the iron filtration unit for well-irrigated system. The performances of prototype were validated and assessed against specific indicators, such as water and fuel consumption, efficiency of the filtration and economic efficiency.