The French National Water Training Center : New educational units for drinking water production

In 2014, two new educational and testing units for drinking water production were completed with professional equipment on the IOWater-FNWTC site at La Souterraine:

- The first one is a water remineralization unit with injection of carbon dioxide and micronized lime milk. Outcome of test studies made after the termination of maerl extraction in Glénans, it allows providing solutions for communities to remineralize their drinking water.

This fully automated unit, with sensors for measuring turbidity and pH parameters, is placed in a container and is thus entirely mobile, which allows for on-site testing to determine the treatment rates to be used for CO2 and micronized lime milk, and their associated costs.

Many partners have helped to complete this project, including the General Council of the Creuse, the Loire-Brittany Water Agency, the Limousin ARS, Veolia Water, SAUR, Air Products, Comap, Sofrel and Lhoist.

 

- The second unit achieves training on operating ultrafiltration membranes for drinking water production.

This unit is also mobile. It allows carrying out the conditioning/ deconditioning of modules, different production and washing cycles and integrity tests on these modules. Membrane manufacturers participated in this pilot unit with 2 modules that are already operating (Aquasource and Polymem) and two others that will be installed later (X-flow and Hydranautics).

These pilot units can be used by communities or industrialists... to validate the proper technical solutions for water to be remineralized or clarified.