Military Surplus ROWPU 3000 Water Treatment Units

By Timothy Cox


Perhaps you or people you care about have no access to clean water. Many regions of the world have polluted groundwater, lakes, and rivers; drilling wells may be too hard or expensive for the local peoples. Deserts have few sources, and arctic regions have lots but it's all frozen. Bringing water in from the outside is often the only option, but it is laborious, insufficient, and costly. However, owning a ROWPU 3000 water unit can solve the problem.

The name literally means 'reverse osmosis 3000 gallons per hour water purification unit'. Reverse osmosis refers to the passage of liquid through a membrane. The membrane has pores, or openings, that allow the liquid to pass through but screen out microorganisms, larger ions and molecules, and particles.

Reverse osmosis has been understood since the middle of the eighteenth century. It took over 200 years for the theory to be put to practical use. University researchers in Florida and California developed a desalination process which Cape Coral, FL, began to use in 1977. This city still gets its municipal supply this way today, even though it now has quite a large population. The process is widely used in industry to keep even tap water from depositing minerals on machinery. City landscapers in dry areas like Los Angeles use it to reclaim rainwater for beautification programs.

US Army research teams came up with the ROWPU 3000 to sustain troops in the field. The self-contained units are run on power from diesel generators and are mounted on thirty-foot trailers so they can be transported. The output is 60,000 gallons a day from fresh or brackish sources, and 40,000 gallons if they're using saltwater.

Today the various branches of the military have smaller units, capable of an output of from 125 to 1,200 gallons per hour. Some of them are self-propelled. For this reason, some ROWPU 3000 units mounted on thirty-foot trailers are available as army surplus. You can actually buy them online and have them shipped anywhere in the world - according to the internet.

Eskimos have lots of seawater; as long as the air temperature is no lower than -25F and they can cut a hole in the ice, the ROWPU 3000 will work. People on a desert island surrounded by seawater could use one to desalinate what they need. People who struggle on Indian reservations, forced to haul their drinking and household supply in in tank trucks at great trouble and expense, could have a dependable supply for themselves and their livestock.

Military research and development has given us many valuable things. The GPS in your car or phone is one example. Microwave ovens, duct tape, freeze drying, the Epipen, the famous Jeep that goes off-road and on, and even the computer were first made for military use. There are now over 15,000 plants around the world desalinating seawater for human consumption.

It just goes to show that you can buy almost anything on the Internet. A self-contained purification device operated by a diesel generator and carried on a 30-foot trailer isn't everyone's cup of tea, but if you need one, it's nice to know you can get it.




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