Industries
Industrial Wastewater Treatment
Physical, chemical and biological treatment systems tailored to food, textile, chemical and metal industries.
Industrial effluent composition changes radically from one sector to the next: colour and high COD in textiles, fat-oil-grease and organic load in food processing, heavy metals and cyanide in metal finishing. There is therefore no off-the-shelf answer for industrial wastewater treatment. The first step in a sound design is a characterisation study on a representative sample, followed where necessary by lab or pilot scale treatability work. A plant built without that data ends up either oversized or unable to meet its discharge limit. A typical flow sheet has several stages. Physical pre-treatment captures coarse solids, fat and grease. The chemical stage separates suspended solids and precipitable metals through coagulation and settling, and pH correction usually happens here. The biological stage removes organic load. Where the discharge limit is tight or water is to be recovered, membrane filtration or advanced oxidation is added. The order and sizing of stages follow the sector and the specific character of the effluent. Water recovery has come to the fore in recent years. Rising water cost, abstraction limits and sustainability targets have turned returning treated water to the process into an economic as well as an environmental decision. A well-configured reuse line cuts fresh water consumption markedly and shortens payback. On existing plants, capacity and efficiency can often be raised by revising equipment and process while keeping the existing tank volumes.
Problems We Solve
- Variable effluent character
- Sudden pH, COD and conductivity spikes driven by production shifts and product changeovers. An equalisation tank and automatic dosing control absorb that swing.
- Inhibitory compounds
- Heavy metals, solvents and biocides that poison the biological stage must be captured upstream; otherwise sludge activity falls and the system fails.
- Water recovery
- Rising water cost and abstraction limits push effluent back into the process; the membrane stage and concentrate management must be planned together.
- Sludge disposal cost
- Chemical precipitation generates a large volume of sludge. If dewatering equipment and the disposal route are not planned from the outset, operating cost overshoots.
Frequently Asked Questions
What should happen before selecting a system?
A wastewater characterisation on a representative sample: COD, BOD, TSS, fat and grease, pH, conductivity and sector-specific parameters. For complex effluent, lab or pilot scale treatability work substantially reduces design risk.
Can my existing plant be upgraded?
In most cases yes. Capacity and efficiency can be raised through equipment renewal, aeration revision and process changes while keeping the existing tank volumes. That route is both faster and markedly more economical than a new plant.
What if I cannot meet my discharge limit?
Start with a measurement-based analysis of the existing system: is the inlet load above the design figure, is aeration sufficient, is sludge age correct. The cause is often operating parameters rather than capacity, and process optimisation resolves many cases without further investment.
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