The wash of solar salt is a very easy, energy efficient and economical alternative to the thermal salt refinery.
The GEA Messo PT Salt Wash consists of unit operations selected according to the necessities to separate the solid and soluble impurities from the sodium chloride crystals by simple and separate physical means.
For this reason the entering salt is broken down to a particle size distribution which is appropriate for the washing process. The process is taking advantage from this crushing because inclusions of impurities are separated from the salt particles.
After the crushing the soluble and solid impurities are subsequently separated by means of dissolution and hydromechanical classification steps. By addition of water the soluble impurities are washed out and purged with a liquid effluent stream, which may be taken to feed a solar pond to improve the total process yield.
By taking advantage of different particle sizes of sodium chloride crystals and solid impurities the process contains steps with hydromechanical classification. The Gypsum crystals and other solid particles, like sand and clay, can be separated from the sodium chloride crystals. The separated solid impurities are concentrated and discharged.