Numerous water filtration systems are disclosed. Each filtration system contains one or more filtration units, and each filtration unit contains one or more membrane units. Each membrane unit receives impure water at high-pressure and filters the water with one or more reverse-osmosis membranes, yielding clean water. Leftover brine is discarded or mixed back into the input with the impure water. Each filtration system further comprises a control unit for controlling a feed valve, brine valve, and product valve for each membrane unit. Optionally, the control unit can sequence those activities to achieve constant energy consumption, minimal energy consumption, or constant output of clean water.

An energy recovery system for use in a reverse osmosis system is provided. The energy recovery system has a pair of double headed pistons that reciprocate to pressurize unfiltered water into a reverse osmosis filtration unit. High pressure wastewater from the reverse osmosis filtration unit is used in conjunction with a pump to pressurize the unfiltered water that is pumped to the reverse osmosis filtration unit.

At least one pressure exchange unit with a hollow cylindrical body, a piston sliding in the body, the piston including a piston head separating the interior of the cylindrical body into a downstream chamber and an upstream chamber, the downstream chamber being provided with a device for the admission and discharge of water to be treated, the upstream chamber being provided with a five-way distributor linkage including, for hydraulic balancing, two pressurized liquid supply orifices, two orifices for the evacuation of the liquid and an opening in communication with the upstream chamber.

The reverse osmosis centrifuge converts rotational energy into fluid velocity and conserves the energy placed into the concentrate. As concentrate travels back towards the center of the reverse osmosis centrifuge, the velocity of the fluid is converted into rotational force, thus conserving energy. To accomplish this, the reverse osmosis centrifuge includes a stationary cylindrical housing having a vacuum chamber and a vacuum pump for generating vacuum pressure in the vacuum chamber, a driveshaft coupled to a membrane cylinder rotatable within the stationary cylindrical housing, the membrane cylinder having a plurality of vertical desalination membranes, and an energy recovery turbine. The reverse osmosis centrifuge can be placed on the concentrate or waste stream outlet of a desalination or reverse osmosis facility to increase freshwater production. Through using the methods described above, plant water production can be increased up to 40%, which in turn has a dramatic effect on plant profitability.

An apparatus, system, and method to desalinate water. The apparatus comprises an outer housing with at least one inlet and two outlets, wherein contaminated water flows into the at least one inlet and purified vapor exits from a first outlet and the contaminated water with a portion removed as vapor exits from a second outlet; at least one finned tube heat exchanger inside the outer housing; a heat energy source connected to the finned tube heat exchanger causing a portion of the contaminated water in the finned tube heat exchanger to form the vapor; and an inner tube with a plurality of holes inside the finned tube heat exchanger, wherein the inner tube is connected to the first outlet, and the vapor flows through the inner tube to the first outlet and exits the thermal desalination apparatus.

A portable filtration system is described. The system may comprise: a mixing portion, comprising: a pump adaptor and a contaminant regulator. The pump adaptor may comprise: an upper plate, a lower plate, and a screen. The screen may axially extend between the upper and lower plates, wherein the upper plate, the lower plate, and the screen define a channel of a mixing chamber. The contaminant regulator may comprise a through-passage coupled to the upper plate, wherein the through-passage is in fluid communication with the mixing chamber.

An apparatus, system, and method to purify produced water from a wellbore using heat energy recovery. The apparatus comprises a wellbore with a wellhead attached to the wellbore; at least one energy recapture device connected to the wellhead of the wellbore with produced water, wherein the at least one energy recapture device captures heat energy of the production fluids including produced water, and at least one distillation device connected to a heat recovery device wherein the at least one distillation device uses at least a portion of the energy from the heat energy recovery device to heat a volume of the produced water in the distillation device to remove contaminants from the produced water to create purified water. The method comprises steps to use the apparatus and the system comprises a control panel that operates at least one energy recapture device.

A reverse osmosis system includes a wheel formed of a hollow central hub, radial tubes fluidly connected to the central hub, semi-permeable membranes provided in each radial tube, a permeate outlet tube, and a concentrate outlet tube; a permeate collection tank; a concentrate collection tank; and a drive mechanism. The drive mechanism rotationally drives the wheel while the source liquid is supplied to the central hub of the wheel, the rotation causing the source liquid to enter the radial tubes in radially outward directions and cause pressure increase on the source liquid in the radial tubes. The pressure increase forces the source liquid through the semi-permeable membranes to separate into permeate and concentrate, the permeate being directed to the permeate collection tank through the permeate outlet tube and the concentrate being directed to the concentrate collection tank through the concentrate outlet tube.

Reverse osmosis (1) system having a first membrane unit (2) and at least a second membrane unit (3), the membrane units (2, 3) forming a chain of membrane units, the first membrane unit (2) having a first membrane (4) separating a first feed chamber (5) and a first permeate chamber (6), a first inlet (7) connected to the first feed chamber (5), a first permeate outlet (9) connected to the first permeate chamber (6), and a first concentrate outlet (8) connected to the first feed chamber (5), the second membrane unit (3) having a second membrane (10) separating a second feed chamber (11) and a second permeate chamber (12), a second inlet (13) connected to the second feed chamber (11), a second permeate outlet (15) connected to the second permeate chamber (12), and a second concentrate outlet (14) connected to the second feed chamber (11), wherein the concentrate outlet (8) of a membrane unit (2) in the chain of membrane units is connected to an inlet (13) of a following membrane unit (3) and a concentrate outlet (14) of at least one membrane unit (3) downstream the first membrane unit (2) in the chain of membrane units is connected to a hydraulic motor (18). In such a system the energy consumption should be optimized. To this end the hydraulic motor (18) is operatively connected to a first electric machine (21).

A portable filtration system is described. The system may comprise: a mixing portion, comprising: a pump adaptor and a contaminant regulator. The pump adaptor may comprise: an upper plate, a lower plate, and a screen. The screen may axially extend between the upper and lower plates, wherein the upper plate, the lower plate, and the screen define a channel of a mixing chamber. The contaminant regulator may comprise a through-passage coupled to the upper plate, wherein the through-passage is in fluid communication with the mixing chamber.