Evaluation of treatment alternatives and conceptual design of a reverse osmosis groundwater remediation system: A case study

Contaminated groundwater, from a closed landfill site in Novato, California, was subjected to treatability testing. The groundwater contaminates included heavy metals, chlorinated hydrocarbons, polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and high levels of dissolved solids. Two discharge options were considered for disposal of the treated groundwater The first option included discharge into the Novato Sanitary District publicly owned treatment works (POTW), while the second option included discharge into the San Pablo Bay. Six treatment alternatives were evaluated for the remediation of groundwater prior to discharge. Reverse osmosis (RO) was selected among these six alternatives for conceptual design based on the results of the treatability evaluation. The treated groundwater should be capable of meeting limits for both discharge options. The RO treatment system included various pretreatment and sludge treatment processes. The effluent resulting from such a treatment could be either discharged or appropriately reused