Brackish water treatment for small community by using membrane technology

High salinity water, containing high TDS and chloride, is a common problem in coastal areas of Indonesia. The chloride content in water causes water to taste salty. It occurs in a small community of Tambak Cemandi Village, Sidoarjo. The groundwater has chloride content up to 3,694.3 mg/L, hardness 2,071 mg/L (CaCO3), and total coliform 7,100 MPN/100 mL. Membrane technology has been overgrowing all over the world in the water desalination process. This study aims to examine the basic concepts, principles, advantages, and disadvantages of membrane technology and its application in brackish water treatment for drinking purposes. This research was conducted by literature review, secondary data analysis, and application of case studies. The case study is applied to small scale drinking water treatment (flow rate 0.2 L/second) with brackish raw water from groundwater in Tambak Cemandi Village, where some of the population do not have access to safe drinking water. The study concludes that RO membranes with UF pre-treatment are adequate to treat 98%, 96%, and 100% of chloride content, hardness, and total coliform and fulfilled Indonesia Ministry regulation's drinking water quality standard. The treatment can serve 202 people with an operational cost of Rp. 1,198/people.day.