With sustainable development being the only hope for the planet to remain green and healthy, wastewater treatment is necessary. Industrial wastewater is a global concern. The manufacturing industry runs human lives, but the consequent wastewater poses a threat. Removing contaminations from this water and making it usable for domestic and industrial purposes is gaining popularity. Though it is a time-consuming and costly process, it can be beneficial in numerous ways. Let us understand the fundamentals of wastewater treatment.

Wastewater Treatment Process

Wastewater refers to contaminated/unusable water from domestic, industrial, or agricultural sectors. Treatment is the process of removing contaminants from water, making it reusable. This is a long process involving multiple stages.

STEP 1: Screening – Odor treatment and girt removal

STEP 2: Primary Settling

STEP 3: Removal of Biological Particles

STEP 4: Disinfection & Aeration

STEP 5: Sludge Treatment

Screening: Domestic wastewater (sewage) is drained into treatment plants. Industrial wastewater is collected separately from sewage as it contains a massive amount of chemical waste. The collected water is given an odor control treatment. Vapor-based odor treatment is used to remove components released into the air. Odorous contaminants in the water are removed using the liquid phase treatment. Various stages of treatment and purification follow this.

The initial step is removing rags, wood, plastic, grease, and other objects. This is followed by girt removal where sand, gravel, and the like are removed. After these steps of screening, the wastewater is then pumped in for primary settling.

Primary Settling: The settled material and floating particles are pumped off at this stage. This stage also involves the removal of phosphorus.

Biological Particles: The next step is the removal of suspended and dissolved biological particles using microorganisms. This stage results in the production of bio-waste or sludge, which is treated separately.

Disinfection: The next stage is disinfection. Also known as effluent polishing, this stage involves the removal of colloidal matter and aeration if required. Chlorination and UV treatment are popular methods for disinfection.

Sludge Treatment: The sludge produced after the biological treatment is thickened and digested using enzymes. This is then dried (dewatered) and can be used as fertilizers. It is not advisable to use it for food crops. Sludge is also incinerated or disposed of in landfills.

BENEFITS

Wastage Reduction

The most tangible benefit of wastewater treatment is wastage reduction. Reusing water ensures that groundwater lasts longer. Wastewater poses health risks for people and the environment. Water treatment gives the dual benefits of resource conservation and pollution control.

Energy Production

The industrial sector demands a tremendous amount of electricity. Energy conservation, therefore, is a need of the hour. The sledge produced from wastewater treatment can be processed with anaerobic digesters to produce methane gas. This can be used for electricity generation for industries.

Fertilizer Production

The sludge (bio-waste) generated during the water treatment process can be used as fertilizers. Industries can contribute to a green future by promoting water treatment and reusing biowaste.

Optimization of Water-Based Processes

Water treatment is a necessity to optimize water-based processes in industries. This can help reduce the operating costs and risks by providing enough water sources for cooling, heating, processing, cleaning, and rinsing needs. Removing organic matter, metals, and similar harmful chemicals from the wastewater can be used safely for reuse in plant operations. This is cost-efficient and reduces transportation and disposal costs. It can as well minimize the environmental impacts by conserving the water. Treating conventional pollutants like grease and oil, ammonia, chromium, and so on is always a challenge. This water can be purified with proper treatment by removing these harmful substances and using the water for industrial needs.

Important Beneficiaries

Water treatment is helpful for all industries. However, some industries hugely require reused water. Water treatment brings cost efficiency and other benefits to these industries:

Dairy Industries

Food industries generally follow internal water recycling. However, there are possibilities to use treated water in certain sectors. The dairy industry, being one of the most polluting food industries, can use water treatment technology to reduce wastage and water consumption. There should be a balance between the usage of treated water and the safety of water reuse applications. Water is the primary processing medium in the dairy industry. All the processing steps, including cleaning, sanitization, heating, cooling, external areas washing, demand massive amounts of water. Treated water can be used to clean the external area, ensuring that the water is not in contact with the food products.

Food Processing Industry

The food and beverages processing industry demands enormous amounts of water. Food plants continuously generate wastewater. This industry requires water as an ingredient, a cleaning agent, for boiling and cooling purposes, conditioning of raw materials, transportation, etc. Since wastage and pollution are rampant, reusing water can be beneficial for food and beverage processing units.

Iron and Steel Industry

The iron and steel industry is one of the most important industries contributing to a nation’s economy. Unfortunately, it is one of the significant contributors to pollution as well. The iron and steel industry requires water for dust scrubbing, cooling, descaling, processing, etc. Steel industry waste usually consists of hazardous compounds like benzene toluene xylene, ammonia, phenols, cresols, and more. These are highly harmful to the environment. However, water pollution from these industries can be controlled by installing a water recovery system. This is economically feasible and environment-friendly.

Breweries

The brewing process generates enormous amounts of wastewater. It generates effluent and solid wastes that can be treated in cost-effective, green methods, thus making their industry less polluting and environment friendly. Water is required for brewing, rinsing, and cooling processes. Reducing water usage is not easy or practical in the short term. Finding means to treat the wastewater from the breweries can reduce water consumption and wastage.

Mining

The mining industry generates highly concentrated wastewater. Flow process acids, water used for refining and scrubbing, and other processes generate wastewater. Drainage from rainfall can also generate vast amounts of wastewater. Discharging these into the environment will be hazardous. Water treatment and reuse can ensure zero discharge and consequently reduced consumption. This will be a huge step towards sustainable development as well.

Industries are the supporting pillars of an economy. Increasing production costs would be a burden on the nation. At the same time, creating environmental risks is not viable. Developing cost-effective methods to treat and reuse wastewater can benefit the industries and the economy at large. The UAE is taking significant steps towards this.

Why Us?

Bio Catalyst Middle East offers the best services for this purpose. We provide industrial, commercial, and domestic odor treatment, water clarification and mineralization, wastewater treatment and collection system, hydrocarbon cleaning, and more. With our Bio-Organic Catalyst technology, we contribute to the building of a safe and green future.

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