1. Using Filtered Water for Ballast Water Exchange
Filtered sea water from a ship’s ballast can be released back into the sea, eliminating the potential of unloading non-native and often invasive plants and animals where they don’t belong. Many cruise lines are using on-board filtration to clean their bilge water during the ballast water exchange. By using Tekleen self-cleaning automatic filters, ballast water can be cleaned of debris and solids, thereby preventing animals, vegetation, and floating debris from exiting. Debris can then be collected and disposed of properly.
2. Pre-Filtering for Potable Water Processing from Sea Water, and Keeping Pipes Clean for Maintenance Minimization
When used for other purposes to filter water on board, an automatic self-cleaning Tekleen filter can support cooling systems, can pre-filter water for further cleaning and desalination, and can support the operational reliability of piping, spray heads and any devices that water flows through, by keeping them clean of deposits. Tekleen filters can be used to filter outgoing washwater from laundry, galleys, mess halls, swimming pools and spas, and bathing. It can be used as a pre-filter down to 2 microns, protecting R/O and microfiltration systems that might be used on board for potable water production from sea water.
Using a Tekleen filter increases the potential use of filtered 
Without a proper filtration system, the debris in source water can cause fouling of pipes and heat exchanging surfaces, which lowers the thermal efficiency of the system. Fouling also increases the friction losses and induces erosion, corrosion, and energy waste by increasing the demand for a higher flow rate. Other problems include the plugging of spray nozzles, blinding of sensors, analyzers, as well as the wearing down of pump gland seals, scrubbers, misters, membranes, and ion exchanger columns. These issues can cause unscheduled shutdowns for maintenance and cleaning and the loss of many man-hours. Filtration is one of the simplest and most convenient ways of solving these problems.
By using Tekleen self-cleaning filters, the solid debris can be captured, removed from the water flow, and disposed of properly before the filtered water reaches its destination. TEKLEEN® self-cleaning water filters provide the ultimate solution where dirty water is a problem. The filters operate on line pressure alone. The self-cleaning process is triggered by a pressure differential that occurs when water is too highly saturated with solids, and is accomplished in seconds without interrupting the main flow.
The filters are compact in size and designed to meet a variety of industrial applications.
The use of Tekleen self-cleaning filtration is also a great benefit to other uses of sea water, sea-based platforms used in extraction and processing, and water reinjection in general. For a description of these benefits, please see the Tekleen application sheet on platforms, oil production and reinjection wells in the OIL PRODUCTION section of our website.
For more information, visit Tekleen's article via their website or chat with an experienced Gallagher Fluid Seals Engineer.
Resources:
- http://www.tercenter.org/pages/bilgewater.cfm
- https://oceanconservancy.org/blog/2017/03/02/3-easyways-to-stop-invasive-species/
- http://www.stapgef.org/sites/default/files/stap/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/Durr.pdf
- MARPOL regulations- https://www.researchgate.net/
publication/277708775_Complying_with_MARPOL_7378