Reclamation awards $1.49M for nine desalination, water purification research projects

DENVER, CO, July 29, 2015 -- The Bureau of Reclamation recently announced that it has selected nine projects across the United States to receive $1.49 million under its Desalination and Water Purification Research Program. Reclamation's funding will support almost $13.5 million in research.

Research laboratory projects are small-scale endeavors used to determine if a process is feasible. Funding is provided for one year and is capped at $150,000 per project. New projects are:

Carollo Engineers ($150,000, California): "Identifying Factors to Increase the Membrane Life in a Seeded Slurry Environment"

Regents of the University of California ($150,000, California): "Overcoming Operating Pressure Barrier in High-Recovery Membrane Desalination via Hybrid RO-NF Processes"

Vanderbilt University ($145,471, Tennessee): "Omniphobic Membrane for Robust and Versatile Membrane Distillation Desalination"

WateReuse Research Foundation - Hazen and Sawyer ($98,905, New York): "Developing a Methodology for a Comprehensive Analysis of Alternative Water Supply Projects Compared to Direct Potable Reuse"

WateReuse Research Foundation - University of Arizona and Black & Veatch ($150,000, Arizona): "Integrating Management of Sensor Data for a Real Time Decision Making and Response System"

Pilot-scale projects follow research studies that demonstrate how technology works. They determine the physical viability and suitability of a process on a larger scale. New projects are:

Padre Dam Municipal Water District ($200,000, California): "Maximizing Product Water through Brine Minimization: Innovative Recovery RO Testing"

WateReuse Research Foundation - City of San Diego ($200,000, California): "Realizing Reverse Osmosis Potential for Potable Reuse: Demonstrating Enhanced Pathogen Removal"

If the selected pilot projects complete a sufficient amount of work in the first year, they may receive additional funding for a second year. Pilot projects on their second year of funding are:

New Mexico State University ($199,974, New Mexico): "Demonstration of Monovalent Selective Ion Exchange Membranes for Desalination and Reuse Enhancement"

San Diego County Water Authority ($200,000, California): "Pilot Testing Program for the Proposed Camp Pendleton Seawater Desalination Project"

Reclamation received 53 full proposals, having a combined request of $9.6 million in federal funding. These proposals leveraged $18.2 million in non-federal funding. Of the nine projects selected to receive funding, two are continuing pilot projects from Fiscal Year 2014, three are new pilot-scale projects and five are new lab-scale projects. The program is open for academia, private sector, non-profit entities, state and local entities and municipalities to apply.

"Bureau of Reclamation makes WaterSMART grants available to improve water, energy conservation"

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