| dc.description.abstract | The epidemic of Chronic Kidney Disease of
unknown etiology (CKDu) has become a health
catastrophe for over 3.6 million populations in Sri Lanka.
Though the etiology of CKDu is unknown, studies
revealed the synergic effects of Arsenic and Cadmium as
their triggering factors. Consequently, some researchers
have emphasized that the quality of drinking water might
be the cause of this life-threatening crisis [5]. Sri Lanka
Navy introduced a sustainable water supply concept in
CKDu-impacted areas and provided safe drinking water
to more than 2 million people since December 2015
through 1,000 BWRO plants [9 & 10]. As a result of that,
the CKDu prevalence in Sri Lanka drastically comes
down. However, the membrane fouling in several places is
a major; drawback which declines permeate flux, the
lifetime of the membrane, and increases transmembrane
pressure (TMP). To find a suitable solution to minimize
membrane fouling, a group of researchers decided to
assess the performance of SLN-built BWRO plants based
on the quality of product water to achieve Sustainable
Development Goals (SDG) No 6. The groundwater of Dug
well (water source) had raised unacceptable levels of
alkalinity (94.45%), TDS (61.11%), and hardness
(83.34%) as per specified standards. Subsequently, it was
revealed that the Fluoride level (< 5mg/L) of the product
was lower than defined standards and leading to health
issues. SLN-built BWRO plants are 100% operational and
supply purified water as per ‘WHO’ and ‘SLS’ standards
to CKDu impacted community. Recommend to enhance
the recovery ratio up to 75% and mix permeate with pre-
treated water and improve the minerals level of product
water Further recommends integrating Softner filter to
pretreatment process when feed water has more hardness,
then treat the reject water and release to the atmosphere. | en_US |
