CA2137256A1

CA2137256A1 - Process for producing and processing wash water in a washing installation, and washing facility

Info

Publication number: CA2137256A1
Application number: CA002137256A
Authority: CA
Inventors: Thomas Riedel; Gunter Lauer
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1992-06-02
Filing date: 1993-05-28
Publication date: 1993-12-09
Also published as: DE4218114C2; RU94046281A; HU9403391D0; ATE159700T1; WO1993024419A1; EP0643677A1; SK148294A3; CZ296494A3; HUT69436A; JPH07508454A; DE59307611D1; DE4218114A1; KR950701890A; EP0643677B1

Abstract

A b s t r a c t The invention pertains to a process for the production and processing of wash water for a washing facility, in particular a car washing facility, in which the wash water is used in at least of washing operation for the cleaning of a motor vehicle or the like and is drained off after each washing operation. In order to use only comparatively small quantities of the wash water, in accordance with the invention it is provided that the washing water that is drained away is reused, in an essentially closed water circuit, for subsequent washing operations, that for that purpose the water that is drained away is collected and fed to a filtering facility or a similar kind of treatment apparatus, and that at least a partial quantity of the filtrate or similar kind of pure water that is generated in the treatment apparatus is fed to at least one subsequent washing operation as wash water. The invention also pertains to a washing facility, in particular a car washing facility with at least one spray head or similar kind of wash water outlet, which is provided for bringing the wash water out onto a motor vehicle or a similar kind of object to be cleaned. What is characterizing about the washing facility in accordance with the invention is the fact that it has a collection arrangement for collecting the wash water after each washing operation, that the collecting arrangement is connected with a water treatment apparatus for the treatment of at least a portion of the collected water, and that the filtrate or pure water outlet of the treatment apparatus is connected with at least one wash water outlet of the washing facility. In the washing facility in accordance with the invention, the wash water that is needed is thus used in an almost closed water circuit.

Description

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ce~ g~ du~
W~ter ~ h~ a~lat~on, a~.d ~a~hln~ Facili~

The i~ention per~ains to a proCes~ ~or th prcduc~io~
and prOCQ~91~5 O~ wash wa~er ~or a wash~ng ~acility, in particular a C~r wa~hing facillty, in which the wa~h water i~ u3e~ in at lea~t Gn~ washing operation for t~e clea~ing of a motor vehicle ~r the ~ a~d after a wa~hing operati~n i9 a~ lea~ partiall~ reused, whereby for ~at pllrpose at ~e~ a portion of the ~rained ~ff wash water i~ ~oll~c~ad a~d led ~ raw ~ater to a filtering f~cility o~
a ~ nilar ~cind of treatment apparatus which haj at le~t one semi~
permeable membrane, which pass~s a por~io~ o~ th~ ~ed ra~ wate~
nder the ~rivin~ forc of a pr~sYllre dirfereslce a~ pure ~ater, and the ~ure w~tex is fed to at le~t one sub~equer~t washin~ operat~on as ~h wa'cer.
The inventi~n al30 inirolve~ a washilly ~acility, in partlcula~ a car washing facllity wit~ ~t least o~e spray head or sim~lar k~n~ o~ wah watex olltle~, wkich i~ pro~ided or ~ringing the wash water out onto a motor ~7ehicle or ~ ~imil~r kind of object to be c ea:~e~, whereby th~ washi~g fac~lity ~as a colloctin arrallgement for collecticlg the wash water aft~r each wa~hing opera~ion, which i9 connected with a wate~ treatme~ ~pparatus ~or pro~es~ g at lea~t a s~ortion of the collect~d water and whose ~iltra~e- or pure ~ater outle~ is ~onrLected w~th at lea~t one w~sh water outlq~ of the washir~y ~acil~ ty, wh~reby the treat~nent apparacu~ has at leas~ one ~emi-per~eable me~ra~e which di~idcs a raw ~ater area o~ t~.~ treat~nent ~pparatus ~om a pure water area.
VarioUs car washin~ ~ac:iliti~3~ are already known in which - th~ wash ~2.t~r i applied t~ .he n20tor vehicle to be c}eaned duri~
'che indi~idual wa~hing ~tat.iorla or-washi~g ~tage~ ~y m~an~ of a~

S000 ~LI~d TO~Z L~ Z T$~ ST~ ro 21~7256 lea3t one s~ray head, a washing ~u~h, or a similar kind a~ ~a~h wate~ outle~. Wi~h the pr~viously k~o~n wa~hin~ facilitio~, t~
wash water is drained away after each wa~hi~g op~rati~n, usually into the se~age sy~e~. This me~ns a 9~6tantial. consump~ion water~ as well a~ a ~rrespondingly large volume o~ was~e w~ter.
A car ~a~hing facility is already known from G~ 2 24~ 191, n which a r~sa of the w~h water i~ provid~d. In order to be able to re~se ~he waqh w~er, this pre~iously known w~shing facility ha~ a tr~atment apparatu6 to which a wat~r ~ontainer is assigned. ~his wa~er co~ta'ner is di~i~ed by 9epar~ting walls into three cham~ers. In this connectlon, the aollected wash water i~ condu~ted into a ~irst cha~ber of ~he w~er co~tain~r, which is connected vlth a ssmi-per~eable mem~rane in the for~ of ~ tubular module. Bo~h the raw ~ater i~let and the permea~e outlet of ~his membrane are con~cted with the ~i~st chamber o~ the water con~ain~r, while t~e concentrate outle~ leads to a separate c~ncentrate holder. ~ se~o~d chamber o~ the water cont~.ner i6 assigned to a fresh water qour~e a~d i5 co~nected with ~he thlrd cha~b-r o~ the wa~er container by mea~ o~ a ~harcoal ~ilter.
~ hrough various mixin~ ~al~e6 the w~ter s~ore from each indi~idual chamber a~ ~ell as from the concentra~e co~tainer ~an be mi~c~3d with each o~her to a d~gree, s~ that a dirt bulld-.lp by t}~e dissolved ~att~r i~ the wa~h water i3 ~voided. Since th~ ~ubular module in th~ treatm~nt appara~us of ~h~ pre~lously Xnow~ ~a~hing ~acilit~ can o~l~ proces~ a limited a~ou~ o~ th~ required wa~h water, ~uch a mi~i~g ~nd ~tretchi~g o~ the tre~ted wash ~ater i9 necesa~. Si~c~ ~he larger por~ion of ~he ~reated wash water is n~t a~ailable, .his is pro~lded abo~e all for a ~lnal puri~ication pxocess. B~ mean~ o~ t~i~ pxeviously known ~a~hing ~aci}ity a di~t b~ild-up on the car s~rface8 ~rom d~s~ol~ed material in the wash water ca~ l~e avoided, but a signifi~ant sa~i~g of water ~ h this pre~r~ously known appara~s is not achie~red.
The task therefore exists in p~rticul~r, o~ c~eating a prçcess of the typo ~entioned at-the ~e~ia~ing, that i~ con~ec~d ~001~ LINYd la~Z L~9 STZ IS3, ~ :LI t~.'lO.

`` 21372~

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wi~h a consu~ptio~ of wa~er that is only ~light in compa~iso~ ~o the ~reviously ~entioned t~pe. At ~he ~ame time, the-ta~k al~o exists of cre~tin~ a car was~tng ~ac~llty or a ~;imilar kind o~
wa~hing facility ~peci~ically ~or car~ylng out the process in accordance ~ith the i~e~ion.
~ he so~utio~ to ~his task i~ accordance with ~he in~e~tion, wit~ regard to the prace~s of the ~ype mentioned at ~he begl~ning, consists in the ~act that the wa~h water that i8 drained away is reu~ed, in zn e~e~tially closed wat2r circuit, for 6~bse~uent wa~hing ope~ations, tha~ the flo~ direction of the raw water ~hi~h flows past ~he semi-permeable membrane which i~ in the ~orm o~ a ~inding mod~le i9 revexsed ox ~han~ed, and tha~ the re~aining portion of the raw ~ater ~assing ~y the membrane lea~es the raw ~ater area of the membrane as concentrate ard 1s agaln f2d to a semi-permeable memb~ane an~/or a s~bse~ue~t washins operaeion with prefera~ly lower water quallty requlremen~s. Thus, i~ ~he case o~ the process in accordance wi~h the inventio~, the was~
~ater that i9 dx~ined aw~y after each washing op~ration i~ r~used ~or ~ub~e~ue~t wa~hing oper~tlons in an essentlallr closed water ciroult. In o der to achieve a water qua}lty that i~ as hi~h as po~sible t~ 9pite o~ this, th~ wa~h water that is drained a~ay and c~llected after the ~a3hin~ opexation~ is a~ lsa3~ extensi~ely cleaned in 2 tr~at~en~ a~paratus ~nd i9 fed to the su~eq~ent washing ope~ations a~ p~re ~ate~
For treatment of the ~ash wate~ a~cording to the proce~s 4f the prese~t in~ention, a ~reat~ent ap~ara~us i3 pro~ided wi~h at least o~e s~mi-permeahle membrane a~ the form of a wl~di~g ~odule.
~hile a partizl quantity o~ ~his raw water passe~ thro~gh the mem~rane a~ pure water under ~he dri~ing force of a pr~ssure dif~er~nce and i~ fed ~o ~b~equen~ ~ashing o~erations, the remaining ~uanti~y of r~w ~ater that i~ flowing past ~he metnbra~e leave~ ~he raw water area o~ m~ra~e as conc:entra~e, ~d is agai~ ~ed ~o a semi-p~rmeable ~embrane andJor to a s~bseq~ent wa6hirlg operatio~ ~tfith low re~uiremen~ for ~ater ~ality.
~3pecifically, su~;:h wat:er that has been proce~sed with the aid o~ a ~,. . -. : , ~:.-9001~ D~IN~d lflflZ L~9 ~IZ IS~ Pl:LT ~fl,'lO.~ZI
.. .. : ~
:: . : -2~3725fi s~mi-per~eakle ~e~rane does h3v~ a high wa~er quali~y; becauae o~
it~ salt content, ~hich is comparativ~ly low, and, ~or e~ampl~, i0 reduced by means of reverse o~me~i~. The addltion of only a co~parati~ely small ~u,~n~i~y of de~er~ents or sl~milar kinds o~
che~i~als i~ nece~a~y wi~h wa~e~ that ~as been processed in ~hi5 way, which has a be~e~icial effe~t on the saliniey o~ the wa~h water tha~ is fe~ into th~ water circ~it, ,~nd, be~use o ~he s~all osmoti~ CountQr-pr~ure, also re~ only a low operati~g p~os~ure ~or re~rerse o~osi3, for example.
I~ order to ~a~e the mo3t complete ~e pos~i~le of the ~a~h water that is fed to the t~ea~men~ appar~t~s after the ~llte~ or processing operation, it is p~efer~ble with th~
process according to tha lnvention i~ ~he pu~e ~ate~ i9 fed t~ ~ he subseque~t washi~g opera~ion3 ha~ing higher requirement~ ~or the wa~er qu~lity, and th~ co~centrate is advantageo~sly fed to t~ose ~ub~equent ~a~er oDera~io~s ~ith comparati~ely lawe~ requiremen~s ~for the water quality. I~, howe~er, a high water ~uality of the wa~h wate~ to be used is ~ece~a~y ~or the ~ashing ope~ations o~
the washing ~acility, then it can be advantageous if ~he remainins quan~ity of co~entra~e that is flowi~g past ~he ~embrane i~ mix~d in with the wash water ~hat i~ collecLed after the washi~s ~p~ra~ions and is a3a~n ~d to the m~m~rane as ~aw water.
5ince, with the process in accordance with the inventio~
the w~h water i~ reused ~or the ~ub~equent washin~ opera~ions in ~n es~tially closed wa~er clrcuit, it is pos~i~le tha~ it can beco~e in~rea6ingly laden wi~h di~t particles. I~ ord~r to achie~e long operating and ~e~brane ~er~icz lieti~es, even when the wa~h w~ter that i3 drained of ~ a~d fed to ~he treatment appa~atus i3 highly dirtied, i~ is pr~ided ;n ~ccorda~ce with the process o~
the in~e~tio~ that th~ direction of ~low o~ ~he raw w~ts~ ~lowi~g pa~t the ~e~brane i r~er~ed or changed at i~tervals of time.
Th~s, the conve~tional membra~ madule~ which exhibit at l~ast one ~emi-permeable ~embrane and, in parti~ula~, the windi~g n~od~les that axe preferred fo~ r~as0nE~ of coæt, are su~;ceptible to impuritie~ and br~akdown~. ~o~ that rea30n, there is routlrlely placed ahe~d of ~uch modul~:; in the direction of 10w 3 sie~-like ~00~ I,~d 168Z L~9 STZ T5L ~I:L~ ~JIOrZT

~ , . ,. . ~, . , -:: . - , 2~37256 S
pre-~ilter, whi ch is suppo~ed ~0 coUn~era~t an~ dirtylng of the membrane3 by large p~rti~les and Whi~h has 'Co be c~ange~ freguently if the raw w~er is hea~ily dirtied. I~l ~pit:e of thal~, the nbranes still ge~ dirt~ ed durins3 period~ o~ operation, particularly in the end a~ea tkat is ~CisLs ~he di~ection o~ 10 of the r~w wat~r. Thro~lyh tne reversal, which is pro~i~ed ror he~e, in the di~ectio~ of flow of the water 10wing pa~t th~ mem~rane or mernbrane~, both end areas oi~ the module bei~g used are made llse of.
When this i~ d3ne, ~hc particl~a of dirt ~hat had corne~ to rest on th~ membrane surface a'~er the wa~hing opera~ions, particularly in the end area of the windin~ module th~t ~as facing the direction of ~low be~ore the reversal o~ ~he ~low direc~iorl, ~re ~in~ed o~t, while ~he oppo~ite e~d area of the module, ~.Jhich llntil then had been le~s hea~lly loaded w1th particles of dirt, forms ~he ~ror~t~
Tno~t ~roa in the di-ection of ~low ~til the s~ rev~r~al in ~he direction o~ flow. By means o~ thi3 ~ron~-and-bask utiliz~l:io~ o the mod~}e, it~ operational and memb~ane service lifetimes can ~e ~ub~antiall~ increased, and the nece~sary mainte~ance i~erval~ of the ~reatment apparacus being used in co~junction with the process i~ acco~dan¢~ with the in~ention can ~ len~hened~ Si~ce with sach re~ersal in the direction of flaw, the area ~f the ~,nodule ~'n~t had been mor~ se~erely ~ir~l~d up ~ntil then tempor~rily forms the area ~ha~ i~ rear-most in the directio~ of ~low and that is rinsed ~hrough by drai~d o~ ~ash ~ater or ra~ water, the other~ise us~al pre filte~ th~t i3 placed ahead of the ~od~le, can be dis~ensed wi~h as ~uch, which makes for a ~o~-insigni~ican~ saYlnr~s in ~pace and escp~3nses.
In accordance ~ith a further de~elopmen~al s~ggestion that i~ impo~tant eno~gh to be deser~ing o~ protection in it~ ow~
rlght, it ii provided that by ~eans o~ a time-related reduction or ln~errup~ion o~ ~e di~charge of pure ~ater at the ~mbra~e, an increa~e of the st~tic water pres~ure on t~e pure water 6ide of the membrane is brought abou~, a~d ~hat ~ollowi~ a fitatic increa6e ln the pressure on the pure water 3ide, ~nd in particular following a balancing o~ ~he ~atic wa~r pressu~e o~ both side~ of the ~e~r~ne, the s~atic ~ater p~essure that exi~ts ~n ~he raw water `'` ~ '`"" .

LOol~ ~LIN~d T~aZ L~S SIZ TSa ~T:lT ~TOfZI

21372~6 si~e of th~ trea~ent apparatus is lower~d, at inter~als ~f ~i~e, brie~ly and pr~era~ly abruptly, relative ~o thl~ sta~ic water pr~sure that e~i3ts on the pur~ ~ater olde. Partlcularly by ~ean~
o. an abrupt -eduction of the itatic water pres~ure that exi3t6 on ~he raw wa~er side o~ the treat~n~ apparatu~ r~l~ti~e ~o ~e sta~ic water ~es~ure ~ha~ exists o~ ~h~ pura water ~ide, t~e p~oduc~ion of w~h wate_ or pure wa~er i~ i~deed i~t~r~upt2d, ho~ever, th~s txan6ient change in pres~llr~ l~ads to ~ ~ur~e-like reverse 10w o the pure water ~rom ~he pure w~ter area, whi~h is brie~ly exhiki~i~g the higher static pressu~e, to the raw wa.er area. This re~r~e flow brings about a rinsing o~ the ~nen~r~ne w~lls, as well a~ eaning o~ the! module at appropriate inter~rals of time, so that lo~ger me~b~ne periods of servi~e are enco~raged.
In conjunctio~L wlth this, by ~ay of exa~nple, the flow spee~ and with it the dynamic wa~ex pressure of ~he drained of ~ wash water or raw water ~hat i~ ~lo-~ing p~ist ~he membrane, can be increa3ed in order to lower the 6ta~ic water ~res~ure that exists on the raw water side.
The solution in accorda~ce wi~h the inven~ion ~or the car washin~ fa~ility or similar kind o~ washing facility of the type menti~n~d at ~he begin~i~g consist6 parti~ularly i~ the f act tha~
the ~emi-per~eable ~embrane is fo~med a~ a wi di~g module, ~hat the ~o~ direct~on of the w~ter flowi~g past the membrane o~ the ~r~atment appara~us ~n ~he raw water ~ide i~ reversible by means o~
a flow-re~ersing arr~.gement and io~ that pu~pase the apparat~
openi~gs l~adi~ to the r~w wate~ arca a~e provided ae interval~ o~
time o~ an alte~n~ting ~asis a~ a ~ater inlet connected with ~he collecti~g arrangemen on the inlet side or as a water Qu~let leadi~ ~o ~ wash water outlet o the washins fa~ility an~/or to a ~emi-permeable ~embrane, and tha~ th~ pure wa~er area of the treatment apparatus i~ con~ec~ed with at leagt one ~ur~her ~ash wat~ outlet of the ~ashi~ facility. I~ the ca~e ~f ~he washing ~acil~ty in accordance with the in~entlon, ~he wash water is ~hus not drained of~ into the sewa~e system after ~he individual washi~g ~pera~ione, b~ i~ ins~ead first collected in a eollectins arran~e~ent, f~om which it i~, ed to a wa~e~ treatment apparatu~

800!~ D~LI~Nd T~Z L~S STZ T~, 9T:LI ~,'TO~ZI .

2 5 ~

In ~chis w~te:x ~xeatment apparatu~, at lea~e a part of th~ h water tha~ was ~c~llect~d after ~h~: wa6hing operation~ is ~r~at~d ~nd purified, ~d is 6~lbse~uen~1y fed v' a ~he filtrate or p~rr~
water ourlet of th~ ~reat~ne~t app~ to at leac;t cne wash wa~er outlet, ~t ~his wa~h water out~ tr the filtrate or ~ure water that was prod~ced isl the t~eatn~.2~lt apparatue can ~e ~ed ~ain as wash water ~r che cleanin~ Q a motor ~ehicle or the 1 iXe. With c~e wa~hin~, acilit,~ acc~or~ance ~vich the inve~tion, the wa~h ~ater 1~ rhus c~,nducted ..n a~ es~entiall~r clo~ed water circ~it, pra~c~ ica~.ly without ~ny wa~e w~ter ha~ing ~o be fed ~rorn t:he inditrid.ual ~ashing ope~a~ion~ in~o ~che se~Rer.
For ~re~tme~t o~ the wa~ rate~ th~ trea~mbnt appara~l:u~
h~s at ie~3t ~ne serni-permeable ~Len~rar~e in the ~o~n of a winding ntod~le tha~ separates a r~w wat~r a~ea of the t~eatment apparatu~
.rom a ~?ure wa~e~ area. I~ order to achia~e long operati~al and meTobrane se~ice li~tir~es for che wash~ng facillty in a::~ordance wi~h :hæ in~rer~tion and ~o_ its treatment ~LpFara~us, eYen ~i~ h wash ~rater that ha~ beer severely dirtied ~y j?revious washlrLg oper3.tions, a~d i~ c~rder to maintain the w;~ter ~ircuit of the Wa5h wa~er ror the longest pos~ible per~ od of time, it i8 provided accor~ing to the washing fa~ility of the in~.-encion ~hat ~ke ~rection of flow o~ the water that i~ 10wing pa~t the membr~e of ~he ~reatnn~ t appa:~a~u~; on the ra~t water ~ide can be r~rer~ad by rne~s o~ a ~low-re1,-ersing arrangement, and t~at ~or thaL ~?urpo~e the apparatut ope~ings o~ tne ~rea~men. apparatus that l_ad to ~he r~w water ar~a of t~e m~ranl3 6erve a~ water inlets or wat2r outletg 03~ ar. al~ernati~g basis at irlter~als c~ time.
In order ~o a~ways ha~re a~allable a s~l~ficien~ Ltit~
o~ r o' the n~ces~ary water quality ~or the i~di~id~al washing op~ratio~s of th~ washing facility according to the in~en~ion, it 1~ pro~id~d wlth th6 washi~ ~acility accordlng ~o the in~ntior.
th~t ~he pure ~ater a~ea of the treatment app~ratu~ is co~nec~ d with at leas~ one ~ur~her wa~h wa~er ou~let of ths washln~
facilit~, w~ile t~e wa~h water outlet9 ~on~s~ted with the ~aw w~t~r area are provided for wa~hing oper~tlo~s o~ ~ashin~ ~ta~ions ~ith ~omparatively lower requirements fo~ w~t~r q~ality or again lead to ~~ Nd le~z L~9 ~IZ l$a 9~:L~
~ . ~. . .

21372~6 -a 6emi-pe~meabl~ m~br~na. In Cor.j~cti~n ~ith that, fo~ e~ample, ~he ~once~tra~e that ~lows frcm the wash water o~tl~ts that are conr.ected with the raw w~ter area can ba used f or p~e-wa~he~ or main washes.
~ fur~her developme~t in accordance wit:h tho invention p~ovides ~~or the ~act that th~ treat~e~t apparatu~ ha~ ~t lea3t two ~emi-permeable ~emkranes, one mem~ra~e o~ which is allocated ~o a fir3t trea~ment s~age, and the o~he~ membrane of whieh i~ allocated to a second treat~nt st~ge, that ~he raw water area of the first treatment etage is ~nnec~ed on th~ incoming and out~oins ~ides wi~h the collecting arrangemen~, and i~s pure water a~ea ~
connected with the raw w~ter area o~ the seco~d ~reatment stage, and tha~ ~he pure water are~ a~d ~he r~w wa~ar a~e~ of the ~econd trea~m~nt stage e~ch lead on the outgo~ng side to a~ 1eEst o~e wash w~ter ou~let. I~ a two-s~age treat~ent app~ra_us o~ thiq type, ~he pure water or permeate produ~ed in the ~eco~d treat~ent ~age h~s only a ~e~y low remaining s~l~ con~e~, e~en if the wa~h water that is being ~ed to the t~ea~ment appa~atus as raw water originally exhibited a hig~ salt con~ent. ~ve~ the ~o~c3n~te that is ~lowing pa~ the ~e~brane of the ~e?~ond ~rea~ment stage exhibits a high wate~ quality in ~o~parison to ~ pre-filtered ~a~er, and is thus suitabl~ ~or use i~ the wa hin~ ~acilit~ in arcord~ce ~l~h the i~e~ n, at l~ast for pr~ he~ and/or main ~ashe~
Additional features o~ the in~ention can be ~ound in ~he ~ollQwlng de~cription of imple~en~atio~ ex~mple6 i~ accorda~ce with ~e i~en~ion, in ~onjunction wi~h ~e claims a~d the drawing. The indi~id~al f~at~re~ ca~ b~ realizPd ~i~her irdividually or in gro~ps in conjun~ n wlth one form o~ im~le~entation o the inv~ntion. ghown, in a repre~entatio~ that is 50me~-ime~ strongly ~che~atic in natura, ~re the ~ollo~ing~
Fi~ a car washing ~acility wi~h a water ~reatment apparatus, the pllre ~a~cer area o~ which is con~ected -~ith four wash water outlets, and the raw w~ter a~ea of which leads to a collec~ior. device ~hat 19 made up of collecting basins, Fig~ z is a washin~ facili~y,. similar to the ~ne ~
~i~ure 1, in which on~ ~art o it3 wa~h ~ater outlets i8 co~nected ; ~, ` -`.
OTOI~ LI~ Z L99 SIZ 1~ 91~ `IO~ZI . ~:
. .. , ,, 2 i 3 7 2 5 6 , . .
g . . ~ "
with th~ pu~e Wa~er a~F~a o~ the treatmen~c appar~tu~, arld the other :
part o~ tho w~sh w~er outlets i5 connec~ed with the raw water ar~a, : ; -~ g~ a ~ashing ~a~ility in which th~3 direction o flo~ o~ the wa~e~ 1e~ing past a membrane o~ th~3 ~aw water sids of the treatrne~ appa~at~ re~rerslbl~ by mea~s o a ~low^reversin3 arrangemer.t, ~ 1~. 4 is a -~ashing f-a~ility wl~h a two-stage ~reat~en~
ap}?~ra~Us ~or the ccllectad wa~h ~a~er.
Flgure 1 shows a car wa~hing ~acllit~ 1, which has ~ur (not shown in de~ail) spray head~, washing br~he~, o~ similar kind~ o~ wash water outlets 2 thro~gh 5 ~or one ~aahing ope~ation :: :
each, ~rhesa wa~lh water outlets 2 throu~h 5 are pro~ided ~or the -applicatioll of t~.e wash water to a moto~ vehisle, fo~ exam~le, during a pr~-wash ~outlet 2~, ~ain wash ~outlet 3), ~ax-wa3~
(outlet 4), anh clear wa~h ~outlet 5) o~era'cion. In ~rdex to . .
collect the wash w~t~r a~te~ each wa6hing operation, the washing facllity 1 eY~ibits a ~ollec~ing arrange~ent 6, which is configured as a relatively de~p sediment?ti~n and collec~ion ba~$n. ~he ~a~h w~ter ~hat i~ d~ained away a~tèr the washin~ op~r~ion3 collect~ in th~ collecting ~r~angem~nt 6, whereupon the co~rser dirt p~ticles -~.-settle ~o ~h~ botto~ of the collec~ing b~in, and oilæ and other llgh~ ma~e~ial~ ~ove ~o the surfa~e o~ the collected was~ ~ater. ,.~
The collecti~g arra~g~me~t ~ i~ connect~d by means of a ~ . :
fe~ pu~p 7 a~d a feed pipe a ~ith ~ water trea~en~ apparatus 9 i~
which th~ wa~k wa~er that i~ ~rained away follo~i~g the ~hing o~e~ations ~nd collected in the collecting arrangement 6 i8 `~
tr~ate~, purified, ~nd made ~Yailab~e as p~re ~ater for ~ubseguen~
~ashing o~eratior,s. Fo~ that purpos~, the ~iltrate, pe~meat~, or ~ .
pure water outlet 10 o~ the ~reatment apparatus 9 i~ connected ~ith - ~ :
each oi the wash water outl~t~ 2 through 5 of the wa~hi~g facility 1 . . . - . : ~;
As i~ sho~n in Figure 1, the f eed pu~p 7, or more ~peciflcally, the incomlng ori~ice o~ the ~eed pipe ~, is placed in an area of the collectin~ arr~gement 6,.~hich is ~on~igured as a ~;
coll~ctl~g ba~in, that 1~ above th~ dlrt particles that ha~

IT0~ L~ Z L~S ~l~ l3~ 91:Ll ~6~ln ~1 :
: , , -, . . .

21~7~

collected on th~ ~ottom o~ the collecting arran~ement 5, and below thc lighc ~at~rials that a~ oa~ing ~ the ~u~face o~ th~ water.
Th~ collecting arrangemen~ 6 th~t is pla~ed undern,~a~h ~he ou~lets 2 thro~h 5 i~ eo~e-ed by means of a gra~e 27 ~r similar klnd o~
water-permeable cover that can ~e driven upon by the mato~ vehicl~s or the liXe that ar~ to be cle~ned. With a suitable desisn, ~owever, the c411ecting arrange~ent ~ ca~ also ~e well placed ~utside of ~h~ lane of t~e ~otor ~ehicle that i9 to be cleaned.
The ~eatm~nt apparatus g of the wa~h~ng facility 1 in Figure ~ has a semi-permea~le ~em~ra~e 11, which separates a ra~
water are~ 1~ o~ the trea~e~t a~paratus 3 ~rom a pura wat~r a~ea 13. As c~n be seen ln Figure 1, the raw w~te~ area 12 o~ the trea~ment appar~tus g is co~nected on the inco~in~ side to ~he collec~ln~ arr~ngement 6 by means o~ the feed pipe 8, and likewi3e has its outlet on the o~going ~ide in thi~ collecting arr~nge~ent 6, ~rom ~hich the concentra~e that i3 fed in i~ mixed with the wash wate~ th~t has been dral~ed ~way a~d iP again fed ~o the treatme~t apl?aratu~ 9 ~nd i, 8 mernbrane ~
The ~a~h ~a~er that ha~ been ~rained awa~,~ is thus ~sed again and again or ~ubseguent washi~g operations in ~n e~entially clo~ed ~rater cir~ui~, so tha~c practically rLo ~Ja~te water from the individual w~his~g ope~ation~ h~Ls to }~e fed intcl the s~w~Lge s~stem, and irl any c~e, o~ly a sli~ht dwindlin~ o~ th~ wash w~ter chat comes about as a re~ o~ e~rap~ra~ n o~ ths like ha~ De compensated fc~r.
Figure 2 3how~ a washing facility 14, ~hich i6 designed i~ a way eimilar to that of the ~qaching facility 1 tn FiS~ure 1.
With the wa~hirlg facility 1~ as weli, the collecting axrangemerlt 6 that i~ designed a~ a collacting ~in is connected ~rith treatme~t app~ratus ~, which exhibi~ a se~i-permeabl~ mc~br~ne 11 While coA~ser dirt particles ~an alread~ ~ettle out in the collecting ~rrangemerlt ~ er di~t particles are colle~ted ~
sie~e~like pre-filte~ 15 that is ~lace~ et~esn in the f~ed pipe a and ahead ~f th~ ~rea~ment a~para~us ~ in the direction of the flow. In };articular, e~en ~his pre-cleanlng ~akes it pos6ible for ~he concentra~2 that i~ flowlng on th~ raw water 6~d~ 12 pa~t the '~ ' ~' ' ZIOq~ ~d I~I~Z L3~ SIZ 1~ ~I:LI ~IO~ZI

-- :

i' ~ ' ' ~ ' ' ' ': ` ' ' " . . .

2~3725~

me~brane 11 to be used in ~o~nc~icn with the pre-wash or ~ain wa~h, where~y th~se wa3hi~g oper~tions place lowe~ r~uireme~ts on the water q~ali~y. The raw water area 12 is there~c,re connected on the o~tg~in~ side with the tw4 wash water outlet8 3, 4, In ~ontras~
with tha~, the pu~e wa~er ~rea 13 of the trea~mant apparatu~ 9 in ~i~ure 2 leads only to the two o~her ~ater outletq 4, 5, which are alloca~ed to ~he ~aæh-w~ and ~he clear ri~se opera~io~s, &ince these washing operations place higher requi~e~en~s on the w~ter quali~y of the w~sh water tha~ is made a~ailable.
The ~oll~cted ~a~h wa~er i~ ~sd ~o ~he treatmen~
a~paratuses ~ o~ th~ ~ashin~ .eacilitie3 shown here by means o~ ~e ~eed pu~p 7 i~ the ~ure ~ater produc~ion phase, using an operating pres~ure that o~ercomes the o~motic coun~er-press~re in the area o~
the membrane 11 ~r ~e~r~es. Under the drivl~g force of th~
p~essure di~erence o~ the p~re water slde, a partial g~tit~ of the wash w~ter that is fed tc ~he ~reatment apparatu~ 9 as raw water passes through thq membrane 11, while the re~ai~ing qua~tity of the raw water leaves the raw wa~ex axea 12 ~f ~.e membrane ~ 1 as conce~tra'ce. Pre~erably, the ~~eatment app~ratus~ç~ 3 ~ho~L here are ol~erated using a xe~erse osmo5is technique.
In Fi~u~e 3 a washing ~acility 1~ is 3hown, ~che ~cr~atment apparatus 9 of which is automatically cl~:aned at irltar~als of ~lme ~n order to en~ur~ a proper water c:irc~lation of wash water, eves o~er a long pe~iod 0c ~ime. For that pu~po~e, each of the two appar~us openings or pipes 17, 1 3 of the ,_r~a~merlt app~ratu~
tha~ lead to the raw water ~rea 12 of the mem~rane 11, i~ conne~ted to ~ wa~ex pipe L9, 20, each of which is, in turn, cor~ected with each ~ther on the incomi~ ide and 02L the ou~goi~ ide b~r mea~
of a multiple-way valve 21, 22. In con~unction wit~ that, the ir~co~ing-3ide pipe sections l~a, 20a of the water pipes 1~, 20 are connected with the ~eed pipe B ~nd the eed. pll~np '?, while th~ pipe sectio~ 13b, 20b that go fronl 'ch~ apparatus openi~gB or pipes 17, 18 empty into the colleçting arr~ngement 6 asai~ v~a the multiple~
way valve 2~ plus the common ret~r~ pipe 23, The two m~ltiple-way val~e~ 21, 22 are ~art o~ a ~low-reve~si~g arrangameIlt that allo~s a ~etrer~l at ir~ter~Ial3 of time ~100 EI~LI.~'~ Z L9S STZ 1~ LT :LT ~8 '10ZZI

:

21372~6 : ~

of flow direc~ion o~ the raw water that i9 f].owing pas~ ~he mem~r~ne 11. ~y n~eans of such a re~ersal ~ the ~low direction, the apparat~ls opeslin~6 17, 18 of, he ~re~tment ap~ar.~tus ~ tha~ lead to the raw water ~rea 12 are used a~ intervals o~ 'cime cn al~er~ating basis a~ a water inlet 03: a wa._sr ou~let, so ~hat each of thQ two ra~ water- sid~ ~nd area3 o~ the tre~t~T~en~ ap}~ara~cus ~empo~arily fo~s ~h~3 incomln~, and thus more heavily loaded with dirt pa:ctic:les, end area, ~ihile cne ou~going end a~ea at ~ha~
moment can be rirlsed by the ra~ watar, In ~hi~ w~y, e~ren i~ the ~ash water is very heavily dirtied, a~ egu~l ~tili~a~ion o ~he me~nbran~ 11 ard a com~ara~ivel~r long metnbran~ ser~rice li~e ~an be attai~sd, which ancourages ~ ~ontinuous water circ~ tion of t~e wa~h water in the wa3hing ~Acility 16.
ln order 'co direct the raw w~e~ in the raw wate~ area 12 pa~t the mem~r~ne ~ he one flow direction, the ~ultiple-wa~
val~re 21 con~e~ a the ~eed pipe ~ h the pipe 6ectlon 20a, ~Yhile t~e pip ~ection lgb is connec~ed with the r~tur~ pipe 23 by rnealns o~ ~he val~ 22. T~e ~aw ~ater ~hae flo~s past the membrane ~lows in the re~er~e direction of ~low, if the multiple-w~y ~alve ~l connectæ the feed pipe ~ with the pipe se~tion 19a, and the m~1~iple-way v~l~e 22 CQn~C~S ~he pipe section 20b with t~e -eturn , . .....
pipe 23.
I~ order t~ be able al~o to rlnse and clean the membrane ~-11 of the treatment app ratus 9 in Figure 3 d~ring a bri~$ rinsins phase, it ie pro~tded that the ~atic water pre~s~r~ that e~ist~ on t~ ~aw water side 12 o~ ~h~ treatment apparatus ~ be reduced relativ~ to the static water p~e~su~e ~ha~ exi3ts on the pure water side 13 at intsr~ o~ ~t~e for a brief ~eriod, p~eferably in an abrupt man~er. I~ ~his rinsi~g phase, i~ whi~h, unllkD during the `~
pure water production pha~e, re~ar~ed static p~es~ure relation~hips pre~ail ln th~ raw water an~ ~he p~re wate~ areas o~ the treatmen~ - -app~ratus ~, pure water trzn3~ers from the pure water area 13 i~to the raw water a~e~ 12, a~d in doin~ so, clo~ns th~ mem~rane pores o~ the me~rane 11. ~.
For th~ p~XPos~, the val~es 21, 2~ pl~s a stop -~al~e 24 ~hat is allocated to ~he p~re wa~er ~utlet lQ, ~re clo~ed in the - -d 10~2 iaS 91~ TS~ ~T:L~ TO~ZI . -,, 21372~ ~

rin~ing ;?ha~e o~ the tre~rnent apparat-~ 9 in Figure 3, so _hat the -~a~er pressu~e i9 a~pr;:)ximate~ly e~ual, ~th on ~he raw-w~te~ as ~ell a~ t~ pure-wa~er side .' 2, ~3 of th~ me~ ~e 11. ?~ow, lf befor~, duri~g, cr a~ter a flow directiorl re~r~r~al only the multiple-way vaive~ 21, ~2 are ~pened in ~ne of the t~o ~low d-receions of ~he ~aw water, ~hen, oppo:3~.n~ ~he static pr~sst:Lr~ on t~e pure btater ~ide 13, is - in acc~rdaxlcs wi-h 9~r~Loulll' 9 e~uation - a comparati~Jely lowe~ ~atic water pre~sure on the raw wa~sr side, which has a~ a con~equenc~ t~e ~bove-mentioned rin3ins o ~ the membrane pore~3 by th~ pure wa~er . In o~ler ~o l~wer thr s~atic water ~re~stlre tha~ exi~3 on ~he raw water side 12, ~che ~lcrr speed a~d, wlth ~hac, the d~a~nic w~ter pr~ssure o~ th~ raw water that is f}o~ing ~a6~ ~he me~nbr~ne c~n als3 ~e increased.
earti~larly in t~e e-~ent o~ a high ~alt conten~ oI the col1ected wa~h water, it C~}L be ad~a;l~a~eou~ i~ there io ~e~porarily fed to the treat~ent apparatus 9 i~ Figure 3 as raw wata~ for intermi~ten~ ~low through i~ a revers- ~low direction, especia11y du-ing a brief reduction of ~e static ~ater p~e~s~ra on the raw water ~ide 1~ in co~parison with ~he water pre3sure that exi~ts on the p~re water side in t~e ri~sing pha82~ pur~ water or ~ water with a low sa1t co~tent. In co~junction with that, it is b~neflcia1 if ~.ke int~r~a1~ of ~ime pro~ided for th~ ~low direction ~eversa1 and/or ~o~ ~ change ~ e w~ter pre~sure at the ~em~rane, and/or tn~ extent of the ~han~e in water pres3ure at ~h~ m~mbrane 11 duri~g ~he ri~3in~ phase, a~e ~elected ir dapendence upon the deg~ee of dirtying o~ the ~a~h wat~x that is collected a~ter the washing opera~10ns ~nd fed t~ the treat~ent apparatU~ 5 as raw watqr.
~ n Fisure 3, i~ is indicat~d th~t betwee~ the pure wacer area 13 and the ~top Y~ 4 0~ the pure wa~er out1et }o, there i~
pr~vid~d an interme~Late r~Eerv~irl whieh is connected with the pure wat~ ~re~ 13 o~ the treat~e~t ap~arat~3 ~, pre~erab1y ~ithout a check ~ra1~e, and ~hieh makes available ~Nring ~che~ rinsing phase a greater quan~ity of the ~re ~ater.or the permeate for rinsing th~ por~s of the ~em~rane. ~ particu1ar1y ef~e~ti~e rinsing ~ffe~t ~n be attained during the ri~ing phase/ i~ eh~ StOp ~l~e9 are ST~ Y~ 9 sT~ l5~ Ll:LT ~e ~Taf .. .

21372~6 : ~

'. ~'. ,', ~ .-' con~i~ured as ball ~alves ~r a 3i~il~r kind of quick-cl4si~g ~ittinss that e~couxage a~ abru~ cha~se o~: ~he pres~u~e relation~hip6 in ~he ~egion of the membr~n~
~ ure ~ sh~wj, there does no~ ha~e to be a sle~e-}ike and, in the reverse os~osis tech~i~ue, otherwlse u~ual pre-~ilt~r placed ahead of ~he ~reat~e~t apparat~ 9, slnce the tr~at~ent apparat~s ~ and its mem~r~ne 11 are cleaned at int~rvals of time agair. and again b~ means o~ a ~low dir~ction re~erj~l, as well as ~y means oI a reversal of the pressure rel~tion~hips eha~ exi8~ on ~ho raw-water and ~he pure-water gides 12, 13. I~ o~der to coun~era~t a dirtyin~ of the trea~ment apparat~ 9 even further, it can ~2 ad~n~agoous iI there a~ fed into ~he raw water ahead of the ~embrane in the dl~c~i~ of ~low ~emical dep~slt aicl5, ~dsorptio~ agent~ and/or abscrption agents, ~or exam~le activa~ed charcoal powder, whlch ~ake ~p a portion of the dix~ part~clQs and ~9t~1~ ahead o~ t~e membrane 11 unti~ the ~ext flow direc~lon reve~aal.
As with the wa~hina ~acili~ies 1, 14 and 25, the trsat~e~t apparatu~ ~ o~ the washing ~acility 16 i~ Figure 3 also exhibit3 a co~mercially availa~le ~o-called windi~g mod~le, which aan be placsd in ar. appara~us hou~ng, ~hich ~ not shown, a~d ~hich i~ connectad with the i~coming and ou~goins raw wacer ~i~e~
o~ the tr~atmene appa~atu~ 9~ I~ con~unc~ion wi~h ~hi~, the annular g~p tha~ is formed between th~ winding mwdule and the apparatus hou~ing is sealed by ~ear.s of a rin~ ~eal, wh~ch i9 preferably plRced a~ an e~d re~io~ of the winding module and which seals the annular gap ~n o~ly one dire~ion of ~low and is permeable i~ t~e oppo~ite dire~tion of ~low. ~n this way, the annular gap t~at i~
~med be~ween t~e ~ppa~atu~ housing and ~.e wi~ding mod~le is llkewise ri~sed and clea~ed ~y ~a~ water ~h~ver th~ raw wa~eF is flowing thro~l the ~reatment apparatu6 3 in ~h~ approp~iate di~ctio~ can be ~eneficial if at lea~t o~e f~ont face o~ the . winding module in the direction of f~ow ser~es ~ a deposit ~lt~r a~d/or pra-~ilter.
I~ Fisur~ 4, a washing facility 25 is ~hown, tne treatme~t appar~tus g o whic~ has two ~reat~ent ~tag~, each of 0TO0 DLIN~ I~Z L~S SIZ 1~ ~T:LT ~iro~zl ~ .
~ .`. i"

21372~6 ., ~
- ., ~ .- -which has one winding m~dule or semi-permeable membrane lla~ llb.
I~ c~njunction with that, the m~mbra~e lla ~ ~.llocat~d to the ~irst treatment s~age and the membrane llP to the second t~eatment st~e~ The raw ~ater area 12 of the fi~t treat~e~t stage is co~ne~ted on the incomlng and outgoi~g ~ides with the ~ollecti~
arr~n~e~ent ~ of the-~a~hing f~cility ~5, while i~s p~re wa~er ~r~a 13 leads ~o the raw ~at~r area 1~ of the ~econd trea~ment stage, which e~hibits the me~rane llb. ~he p~re wat~ area and the ra~
water area or the ~econd tre~tmen~ stage are con~ected on the out~oi~g side with the wa~h ~a~er ou~let~ 2 throu~h conj~nction with ~hich the wa~h water outle~s ~, 3 ~hat a~e pro~id2d for the pre-wash and main wa~ opera~ions are alloca~ed to the ra~ water area 12, and the w,~sh water outlets 4, 5 ~hat ~re provided ~or ~he wax-wash and the clear wa~h operations are al~ocated to the ~ure water area 1~ o~ ~he second treatment sta~ç.
~en if the wash water ~hat is collec~ed ater the w~shlng operatio~s a~d ~ed to ~he t~ea~men~ appara~us ~ h~s a high salt content, ~he pe~meate or pure w~ter aLter the second treatment ~tage has o~ly a ~ery low sal~ ~o~tene, ~nd e~en the aoncentrate of this second ~rea~en~ ~tage ha~ ~igni~ican~ly be~ter qualiry when com~ared with w~te~ th~t has ~i~ply been pre-filtered.
In Figure~ 1 th~ough 4, ~orm~ cf i~pleme~t. ~io~ ~re sho~n in which ~he treatment appara~uses 9 ar~ d~e~sioned ~o lar~e in t~r~ of their pure wacer produc~ion c~paci~y, tha~ t~ey ~o~er the actual wash water requ~re~en~3 of the wa~hin~ ~cilities 1, 14, 1 and 25, ~ithout it bein~ l~cessa~y or the pe~meate that i~ treated aga~n as wa h water i~ the ~rea~ment apparat~s ~ andJor the concen~ate 810win~ pa~t the ~embrane 11 to be stored temporarlly.
Howe~er, i~ order no~ to have to m~ch the capacity of the treat~ent apparatus to a peak ca~aci~y that mi~h~ be u~ed only rarely, and not to ha~ e ~o dime~ion i~c in a way that lS
corresp~ndingly la~ge, it can ~e beneficial to ~irst collect in intermediate reservoirs the wa~h wa~er tha~ is drained a~ay and to be p~sed alon~ ~o the treat~ent appara~us andlor the pure water t~at is produced, in order to alway~ be able to maXe avatlable ~: i L100 ~I~LI~ Z L~9 SIZ 1~ 8-t:LI ~JIOfZI

?,' r;',~;-. ` :,. " ` `

2 1 3 7 2 5 ~

su~ icient wa~;h ~acer, in ~pite of in~e~mit~eIlt operatisn o~ t1;1e . ~ -Partl~ularly with the forrn~ o~ lmFl~rnen~al:io}~ shown here, : .' .
which ~or~ by me~s~6 o~ the re~rersa o~mc~si~ ~ech~i~ue, the wash w~ er or p~ e w~ter t}lat i~ pu~if ied in the trea~ ent apparatus exhibits a comp~rat-vely lo~r salt content, so t:hat only slnall quar~itieq of detergent or similar kinds o~ chetnical~ ar~ Ileeded.
Due to the low oamotic c~unter-pr~sure, a lo~ sal~ or chemical con~en~ of the wash wate~ ~hat is ~ed to the ~rea~men~ apparatllSes re$uires a low oper~t~ ng pressure during the re~rerse OS~llOSlS ~
~hich i8 beneCicial fo~ the simple productiorl of the wa~h water that is guided in an almos~ closed recircula~ion Q~ water. ......
:, ' . .:
- Clai,sns ~

~ " ~

81~ LI.~Nd l~ L9q SIZ r~ ~ IO~'ZI ~ ~
.

Claims

C l a i m s

1. Process for the production and making available of wash water for a washing facility, in particular a car washing facility, in which the wash water is used in at least one washing operation for the cleaning of a motor vehicle or the like and after a washing operation is at least partially reused, whereby at least a portion of the drained off wash water is collected for that purpose and fed as raw water to a filtering facility or similar type of treatment apparatus, which has at least one semi-permeable membrane, which passes a portion of the fed raw water under the driving force of a pressure difference as pure water, that is fed as wash water to at least one subsequent washing operation, characterized by the fact that the wash water after each washing operation is reused in an essentially closed water circuit, for subsequent washing operations, that the flow direction of the raw water flowing by the semi-permeable membrane (11) which is in the form of a winding module is reversed at intervals or is changed, and that the remaining quantity of raw water that is flowing past the membrane (11) leaves the raw water area (12) of the membrane (11) as concentrate, and is again fed to a semi-permeable membrane (11) and/or to a subsequent washing operation with, preferably, low requirements for the water quality.

2. Process in accordance with Claim 1, characterized by the fact that the pure water is fed to the subsequent washing operations having higher requirements for the water quality, and the concentrate is fed to those subsequent water operations with comparatively lower requirements for the water quality.

3. Process in accordance with Claim 1 or 2, characterized by the fact that the remaining quantity of concentrate that is flowing past the membrane (11) is mixed in with the wash water that is collected after the washing operations and is again fed to the membrane (11) as raw water.

4. Process in accordance with one of the Claims 1 through 3, characterized by the fact that by means of a time-related reduction or interruption of the discharge of pure water at the membrane (11), an increase of the static water pressure on the pure water side (13) of the membrane (11) is brought about, and that following a static increase in the pressure on the pure water side (13), and, in particular, following a balancing of the static water pressure on both sides of the membrane (11), the static water pressure that exists on the raw water side (12) of the treatment apparatus (9) is lowered at intervals of time, briefly and preferably abruptly, relative to the static water pressure that exists on the pure water side (13).

5. Process in accordance with one of the Claims 1 through 4, characterized by the fact that in order to reduce the static water pressure that exists on the raw water side (12), the flow speed of the raw water flowing past the membrane (11) is increased.

6. Process in accordance with one of the Claims 1 through 5, characterized by the fact that the discharge of the raw water and the discharge of the pure water at the membrane (11) is briefly reduced or interrupted at intervals of time, and that before an opening or increase of the pure water discharge, an opening or increase of the raw water discharge takes place at the membrane (11), preferably in a flow direction that is reversed relative to the direction of flow of the raw water flowing past the membrane (11) before the reduction or interruption.

7. Process in accordance with one of the Claims 1 through 6, characterized by the fact that the intervals of time that are provided for a reversal of the direction of flow and/or for a change of the water pressure at the membrane (11), and/or the extent of the water pressure change at the membrane (11) are chosen in dependency on the degree of dirtying of the wash water that is collected and fed to the treatment apparatus (9) as raw water.

8. Process in accordance with one of the Claims 1 through 7, characterized by the fact that there is temporarily fed to the treatment apparatus (9) as raw or feed water, preferably for intermittent flow-through in a reverse flow direction, especially during a brief reduction of the static water pressure on the raw water side (12) in comparison with the water pressure that exists on the pure water side (13), pure water or a water with a salt content that is lower in comparison with the raw water that was previously being used.

9. Process in accordance with one of the Claims 1 through 8, characterized by the fact that chemical deposit aids, adsorption agents and/or absorption agents are fed into the raw water ahead of the membrane (11) in the direction of flow.

10. Process in accordance with one of the Claims 1 through 9, characterized by the fact that the process for pure water production is a reverse osmosis process.

11. Washing facility, in particular, a car washing facility with at least one spray head or similar kind of wash water outlet, which is provided for bringing the wash water out onto a motor vehicle or a similar kind of object to be cleaned, wherein the washing facility gas a collecting arrangement for the collection of the wash water after each washing operation, the collecting arrangement is connected with a water treatment apparatus for the treatment of at least a portion of the collected water, and that the filtrate or pure water outlet of the treatment apparatus is connected with at least one wash water outlet of the washing facility, wherein the treatment apparatus has at least one semi-permeable membrane that separates a raw water area of the treatment apparatus from a pure water area, characterized in that the semi-permeable membrane (11) is formed as a winding module, that the flow direction of the water flowing past the membrane (11) of the treatment apparatus is reversible by means of a flow-reversing arrangement and for this purpose the apparatus openings (17, 18) which lead to the raw water area (12) of the treatment apparatus are provided in time intervals on an alternating basis as a water inlet connected with the collecting arrangement (6) on the inlet side or as a water outlet leading to a wash water outlet (2, 3) of the washing facility and/or to a semi-permeable membrane (11), and that the pure water area (13) of the treatment apparatus (9) is connected with at least one further wash water outlet (4, 5) of the washing facility.

12. Washing facility in accordance with Claim 11, characterized by the fact that the raw water area (12) of the treatment apparatus (9) empties on the outlet side into the collection device (9) for the return of the concentrate that flows past the membrane (11).

13. Washing facility in accordance with Claim 11 or 12, characterized by the fact that the wash water outlets (4, 5) that are connected with the pure water area (13) of the treatment apparatus (9) are provided for washing operations or washing stations with higher requirements for water quality, and the wash water outlets (2, 3) that are connected with the raw water area (12) are provided for washing operations or washing stations with requirements for water quality that are comparatively lower.

14. Washing facility in accordance with one of the Claims 11 through 13, characterized by the fact that the treatment apparatus has at least two semi-permeable membranes (11a, 11b), one membrane (11a) of which is allocated to a first treatment stage, and the other membrane (11b) of which is allocated to a second treatment stage, that the raw water area (12) of the first treatment stage is connected on the incoming and outgoing sides with the collecting arrangement (6) and its pure water area (13) is connected with the raw water area (12) of the second treatment stage, and that the pure water area (13) and the raw water area (12) of the second treatment stage each lead on the outgoing side to at least one wash water outlet (2, 3, 4, 5).

15. Washing facility in accordance with one of the Claims 11 through 14, characterized by the fact that for the alter-nating pressure matching and pressure changing of the water pressure existing in the raw water and the pure water areas of the treatment apparatus (9), the pure water outlet (10) and the apparatus openings (17, 18) that lead to the raw water area (12) can each be regulated by means of a stop valve or a similar kind of shut-off device or regulating device (21, 22, 24).

16. Washing facility in accordance with Claim 15, characterized by the fact that the stop and regulating devices are configures as ball valves or similar kinds of quick-acting fittings.

17. Washing facility in accordance with one of the Claims 11 through 16, characterized by the fact that between the pure water area (13) of the membrane (11) and the stop valve (24) of the pure water outlet (10), there is provided an intermediate reservoir (26) that is connected, preferably with out a check valve, with the pure water area (13) of the treatment apparatus (9).

18. Washing facility in accordance with one of the Claims 11 through 18, characterized by the fact that the treatment apparatus (9) exhibits at least one winding module as a semi-permeable membrane (11) and that at least one face of the winding module preferably serves as a deposit filter and/or pre-filter.

19. Washing facility in accordance with Claim 18, characterized by the fact that the treatment apparatus (9) has an apparatus housing for holding a winding module, the housing interior of which is connected with the incoming and outgoing raw water or feed water pipe, and that the annular gap formed between the winding module and the apparatus housing is provided with a ring seal, which is preferably placed at an end region of the winding module and which seals the annular gap in only one direction of flow and which is permeable in the opposite direction of flow.
- Abstract -