The Challenge

A leading university in Connecticut required an upgrade to their water system to support the growing needs of their academic laboratories. These labs, which conduct a wide range of experiments and research, needed a reliable supply of ASTM Type 2 water to feed laboratory drops, lab equipment (washers, sterilizers), and various laboratory polishers throughout the building. Universities often specify ASTM Type 2 water, allowing individual labs to further polish the water to achieve different standards, such as ISO 3696 or ASTM 1a. Additionally, ASTM Type 2 water is often a versatile enough specification to feed various pieces of laboratory equipment commonly found in academic settings.

Our Solution

Atlas High Purity Water was selected to design, fabricate, and install a high purity water system tailored to meet these specific requirements.

Key components of Atlas’s high purity water system included:

  • Reverse Osmosis (RO) Unit: A 4 GPM RO unit served as the primary purification stage, removing dissolved inorganic and organic impurities to feed high-quality water to the storage tank. In this instance, the RO water passed through mixed bed deionization (DI) tanks to further purify the water before reaching the storage tank.
  • Storage Tank: A 1600-gallon storage tank ensured a continuous supply of purified water, accommodating fluctuations in demand and providing a buffer for the distribution system. This included a side stream filtration system through mixed bed DI tanks to ensure a continuous supply of ASTM Type 2 water.
  • Distribution Loops: Two independent distribution loops efficiently delivered ASTM Type 2 water to various laboratories within the university. The first loop distributed water at 80 GPM, while the second loop handled a flow rate of 85 GPM, ensuring that all labs received a steady and reliable supply of purified water. Each loop had its own UV unit and sub-micron final filtration.

The entire system was skid-mounted and controlled through a custom-designed PLC panel with an HMI interface, which was designed, built, and programmed in-house by our team of engineers and automation experts. This control system allowed for precise monitoring and management of the water purification process, ensuring optimal performance and reliability.

The result is a high purity water system that consistently meets both the quality and consumption requirements of this growing university.