Softeners

Ion exchange softeners are equipment that are used to remove / reduce the hardness from raw water for low pressure cooling tower / boiler / air conditioning plant applications. These systems consist of vessel in MSRL / FRP design that is internally filled with a cation resin and externally fitted with a regeneration system and frontal pipe work. Resin is regenerated with brine (NaCl) after its exhaustion that is usually designed as per the customer / system requirement.

Ion exchange softeners have found uses in various industrial applications, such as produced water softening and brine softening in chloro alkali production. For produced water softening, weak acid cation, primary and polishing softeners and strong acid cation softeners are used for hardness reduction. Reduction in hardness makes the water suitable for steam generation in steam flood applications.

How it works
The basic work of a ion exchange softener is to reduce the hardness of water by removing its calcium and magnesium ions (hardness causing materials) and adding sodium ions.

Filled with small beads of ion exchange resin that contains sodium-a mineral, which does not cause water hardness. The softeners use the ion-exchange process for water softening. When the hard water travels through the resin, magnesium and calcium ions are absorbed by the ion-exchange resin, and sodium ions are released. When the sodium in the resin is depleted, no additional hardness can be absorbed. Salt brine (that contains lots of sodium) is the most common substance used to regenerate the softener. The brine removes the magnesium and calcium that the resin has absorbed, and replaces it with sodium, to make sure that more water can be softened.

Advantages
Some important advantages of the modern day ion exchange softeners include -

• Effectively remove the hardness of water.
• Easy to handle and operate.
• Help increase the useful life of water appliances, water heaters and plumbing by reducing the scale buildup.
• Low maintenance.