Team 10-Oceanwell Multistage Water Filter System

University of California, San Diego

Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering 

MAE 156B: Senior Design Project

Project Background:

Reverse Osmosis (RO) is currently the most effective process of desalinating seawater, however, it has proven to be lethal to plankton and other microorganisms of the ocean. Dr. Michael Porter, the CTO of OceanWell, took the lead in the development of the OceanWell, succeeding to transform theoretical ideas into validated technology. OceanWell is a technology developed with the goal of being an effective RO system while eliminating the negative impacts they have on the oceanic environment. A significant component of the OceanWell is its multistage intake that prefilters macro/micro-particulates, including small marine organisms. Since the ultimate goal of OceanWell is to provide a source of clean water for many people across the world while not harming marine life, multiple unique filter types must be tested for different ocean environments around the world. Thus, the goal of this project is to develop a benchtop-sized (1 m x 1 m) device that can allow people at OceanWell to test many different prefilter combinations in different source water conditions. The device must be able to be easily handled by inexperienced individuals and must be able to recirculate the water back around the system to make it dirty again and pass through the filters once more.

Project Objectives:

High Priority Requirements:

• Benchtop size (1 m x 1 m)

• Easy to replicate design

  • Purchase as many components off-the-shelf as opposed to personal designs

• Maintain a maximum water flow velocity of 0.1524 m/s (0.5 ft/s) when water flows through filters

• At least 3 layers of filters can remain in use for 24 hours

• System functions mechanically

  • Manually sampling water between filters every hour

  • Measure water pressure and flow velocity through mechanical means (Pitot Tube)

  • Maintain water turbidity at inlet

Low Priority Requirements:

• Feedback system to maintain water turbidity

• Continuous monitoring of water velocity, water pressure, and water quality

• Upgrade system to hold 5 layer of filters

Final Design:

The final design of this project is a recirculating water system consisting of a source tank, 3” PVC Piping, 3” PVC Fittings used as Filter Holders, a T500 Thruster from Blue Robotics, a ¾” PVC hose, and sensors to collect data throughout the filter section of the system. Dirty water is maintained within the source tank, only being released into the system when a valve is turned. The water flows through a 3” PVC piping section where a combination of 3 filters in series are contained as well as sensors to constantly monitor the absolute relative pressure, turbidity, and flow velocity. Filters are exchanged manually by draining this section through ports installed underneath the pipes and unscrewing the PVC fittings containing the filters. After this section sits the T500 Thruster within a 6” pipe that pulls the water through and pushes it through the ¾” PVC hose that circles back around to the top of the source tank. 

Click here to view the Executive Summary