Saturday, May 27, 2017

Military Surplus ROWPU 3000 Water Treatment Units

By Timothy Cox


Perhaps you or people you care about have no access to clean water. Many regions of the world have polluted groundwater, lakes, and rivers; drilling wells may be too hard or expensive for the local peoples. Deserts have few sources, and arctic regions have lots but it's all frozen. Bringing water in from the outside is often the only option, but it is laborious, insufficient, and costly. However, owning a ROWPU 3000 water unit can solve the problem.

The acronym stands for 'reverse osmosis 3000 (gallons per hour) water purification unit'. Osmosis refers to the tendency of liquids to mix; in the process of reverse osmosis, liquid passes through a membrane with pores small enough to permit the pure liquid to seep through. However, microorganisms, particles, and larger ions and molecules are screened out. Chlorine is then used to completely disinfect the water for human use.

The process has been understood since the mid-1700s. However, it was more than 200 years later when universities in California and Florida made desalination using reverse osmosis practical. It took a few more years before the process became commercially viable. In 1977, Cape Coral, Fl, became the first municipality to construct and use a reverse-osmosis treatment plant for its supply. The process is also widely used in industry and in reclaiming rainwater for municipal landscaping in arid regions.

The military is often called on to operate in areas where only seawater or non-potable sources are available. They also have large numbers of troops that need a dependable supply. The US Army developed the ROWPU 3000. It provides up to 60,000 gallons a day if the source is fresh or brackish, and up to 40,000 if they are using seawater. The units run on electricity, but that can be supplied by a generator in remote or war-torn regions.

Today the various branches of the military have smaller units, capable of an output of from 125 to 1,200 gallons per hour. Some of them are self-propelled. For this reason, some ROWPU 3000 units mounted on thirty-foot trailers are available as army surplus. You can actually buy them online and have them shipped anywhere in the world - according to the internet.

Eskimos living on frozen ice flows can get saltwater through a hole in the ice and use a ROWPU 3000 to make it potable - as long as the temperatures are not colder than -25F. A reservation could supply its desert population. People in remote villages with no clean drinking water can live better and healthier lives, and the women and children no longer would have to travel miles to lug the daily supply home.

Military research and development has given us many valuable things. The GPS in your car or phone is one example. Microwave ovens, duct tape, freeze drying, the Epipen, the famous Jeep that goes off-road and on, and even the computer were first made for military use. There are now over 15,000 plants around the world desalinating seawater for human consumption.

It may seem strange to want a self-contained treatment plant mounted on a thirty-foot trailer that is powered by a diesel generator. However, there's a demand for these things, and they are like a miracle for those who need them. Modern technology can be a wonderful thing, especially when combined with GI ingenuity.




About the Author:



No comments:

Post a Comment