Date: September 12, 2008
Eco Watch Asia: The NEWater treatment plant in Singapore
I visited the Singapore reusable water treatment plant (it is called NEWater treatment plant) sometimes ago and I got really excited about it. Most of the NEWater is used for wafer manufacturing industries and also blend with raw water in reservoirs.
The NEWater treatment plant in Singapore
So how does it work?
Stage 1: Microfiltration / Ultrafiltration Used water is treated before being sent to the Newater treatment plant. At the plant, the water first undergoes Ultrafiltration which filters out the solid particles and removes potentially life-threatening organisms. So it provides a relatively clean feedwater for the next stage. 
The Ultrafiltration system is made up of cassettes which is made up of hundreds of hollow spaghetti-like fibres.
Stage 2: Reverse Osmosis (RO) This is not really a new technology. However it is the core technology of NEWater process. Water is forced through a semi-permeable membrane to remove viruses, bacteria, pesticides, metal ions and dissolved salts. 
The RO facilities
Stage 3: Ultraviolet Disinfection Ultraviolet Disinfection mimics the purifying work of the sun and is a chemical-free process. UV rays are used to destroy any organisms in the unlikely event that they are present after the first 2 stages of treatment. The water is fit for drinking now. However, it will taste sour due to the UV rays treatment. Water Conditioning is done to adjust the pH balance so that the water tastes neutral.
The UV Disinfection process

The S.C.A.D.A. Control Room. The S.C.A.D.A (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition) system monitors and controls each stage of the Newater production process.

So how does it work?
Stage 1: Microfiltration / Ultrafiltration

The Ultrafiltration system is made up of cassettes which is made up of hundreds of hollow spaghetti-like fibres.
Stage 2: Reverse Osmosis (RO)

The RO facilities
Stage 3: Ultraviolet Disinfection


The S.C.A.D.A. Control Room. The S.C.A.D.A (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition) system monitors and controls each stage of the Newater production process.



