Bondalti Water, a company dedicated to the treatment and reuse of water, recently completed the installation of an advanced seawater desalination system for the Pestana Hotel Group, which will ensure the irrigation of green spaces and the maintenance of freshwater swimming pools in six tourist units that the company owns in the Algarve town of Alvor, in the municipality of Portimão, Portugal.
With a water production capacity of 40 m3/h (or 960 m3/day, the equivalent of what around five thousand people consume on average every day in Portugal*), the system applied by Bondalti Water represents an important step towards obtaining a sustainable source of water, a current and crucial need for various sectors of activity, including tourism, especially in the south of the country.
The project stands out for adopting a set of innovative solutions in the area of equipment and automation, which are the result of continuous investment in research in this area.
Examples include the reuse of kinetic energy from reject water (water flow carrying concentrates) to pressurise the feed water for desalination equipment, as well as the use of high-performance reverse osmosis membranes. Control and automation technology with specific algorithms has also been implemented, enabling effective interconnection with the photovoltaic energy production systems, specifically managing the volume of water production according to energy availability.
The salt water is collected from two wells located next to the Pestana Blue Alvor Beach hotel, in a volume that is automatically managed according to water availability, and is then stored and distributed to six hotels of the Group in the area. The installation is sized to meet the total water requirements of this group of hotels, should the need arise in the future.
Based on accumulated experience and a commitment to development and innovation, Bondalti Water has given a strong boost to desalination technologies, with other projects already underway, particularly in the Algarve. This area of activity is one of several that make up the company's wide range of solutions for the Integrated Water Cycle, with the aim of promoting sustainability and operational efficiency for operators in different sectors and ensuring better management of this essential resource.
*According to data from the Water and Waste Services Regulatory Authority
