Mitigating the aftermath of Malaysia's worst flood in 50 years: emergency drinking water supply with ultrafiltration

In December 2014, a massive flood hit northern states of Peninsular Malaysia causing severe damage to thousands of houses and leaving the area in a disastrous condition. Electricity and public piped water supplies were cut-off, as sub-stations and municipal water treatment plants were submerged in flood water. As part of Techkem Water's corporate social responsibility initiatives, mobile ultrafiltration membrane water treatment systems were deployed to provide emergency drinking water supplies to flood victims. Four types of mobile system were evaluated in this case study. The operational parameters of the systems such as feed water turbidity, system capacity, filtrate quality, filtration flux, footprint required and specific energy requirement details are presented. Each system has distinctive features that help to accommodate different site conditions.