Softening is a water treatment technique designed to reduce water hardness, which consists of removing calcium and magnesium ions. Water that contains a significant amount of calcium and magnesium is called hard water, which is capable of clogging pipes and disturbing the dissolution of soap and detergent in water. The softener works through a process called ion exchange, in which the calcium and magnesium ions present in the water are exchanged for sodium ions.
The softener system consists of an exchanger with a cationic resin bed and a brine saturation tank. The raw water is fed to the equipment through a nozzle at the top and distributed over the cross-sectional area of the bed, which is crossed in a downward direction, the softened water being collected by crepines installed in the false bottom that supports the bed that lead it to the bottom outlet of the vessel. Regeneration can be performed manually or automatically by passing a 10% brine solution downstream through the resin, the regenerating solution being introduced into the vessel through a dedicated manifold located at a small height above the bed.
The cationic resin used in softeners is a solid chemical substance. Water is passed through the resin so that calcium and magnesium ions bind to it and sodium ions are released into the water. This results in softer water that is less prone to limescale deposits.
Softener is used in industrial applications not only to reduce water hardness but also to protect hot and cold water equipment such as boilers, heat exchangers, piping from damage caused by hard water and also improve water treatment efficiency. .
The cationic resin is able to exchange the calcium and magnesium ions present in the water for sodium ions, which results in softer water that is less prone to the formation of lime deposits.
Hard water can cause damage to heating equipment such as boilers and heat exchangers, as well as to pipes and taps. The use of cationic resin can help extend the life of these equipment.
The removal of calcium and magnesium can improve the efficiency of subsequent treatment steps.
The cationic resin does not affect the taste and odor of the water, and can improve the quality of water for human consumption.
A softener system can be supplied by EP with automatic, semi-automatic or manual operation with or without a skid. Each type is rated on the amount of hardness it can remove before regeneration is required. Grupo EP, in addition to supplying the complete softener system, supplies cationic resin, sodium chloride (salt), brine tank, fiber tank, softener head valve, crepine, feed pump, etc.
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