Most industries produce waste and wastewater, which are released into the environment. These wastes are found to contain heavy concentrations of chemicals, which are a threat to humans, as well as the wildlife and environment. There is a huge concern among governments in the developed and developing countries to curb the severity of wastewater released into the environment. Thus, strict regulations are being imposed in several countries to curb the wastewater discharge, and reduce environmental pollution. In the previous post, we have discussed a few wastewater resources. This post is a continuation of the discussion.
A Few Important Wastewater Resources You Need to Know About
The following are a few important industrial wastewater resources:
- Paper and Pulp Industry: Paper and pulp industry is one of the energy and water-intensive industries. The paper manufacturing mainly involves two operations: the pulp production and conversion of pulp into cardboard or paper. Many paper manufacturers integrate these two processes. Wastewater produced in this industry is extremely toxic and dangerous in regards of quality.
Modern paper plants produce wastewater during washing and draining, bleaching, preparation of wood, and condensates from evaporation and cooking. The wastewater contains high concentration of insoluble fibers, BOD and COD, chlorinated organic compounds.
- Textile Industry: It is also a water-intensive industry. Huge volumes of water is used during steam generation, application of colorful dyes and finishing agents, and impurity removal. Thus, wastewater produced in this industry has high concentration of chemicals, detergents, salts, and organic acids.
- Mining Industry: Water management is a big concern in the mining industry. In mining areas, water is mainly used for ore treatments and metal recovery. The water consumption at the mine depends entirely on factors like its geographical properties, service life of the mine, type of the ore extracted, and the mining process employed. Effluents from this industry may contain high concentrations of dissolved metals, rock particles, hydraulic oils, and acids and salts.
- Chemical Industry: This industry is vast in terms of activities. Wastewater produced during the production and use of downstream and upstream chemicals in daily life, and across various industries may differ. Generally, the effluents produced by this industry is known to comprise hard COD, complex metals, and organohalogenic compounds (AOX), and cyanide.
As seen above, the wastewater contaminants largely vary across various industries. Thus, there are several approaches employed for separating these contaminants from water, before its disposal into the environment or reuse of water. If you belong to any of the above-mentioned industries and are planning to invest in an efficient wastewater management program, it is always better to consult an industry expert. HPI Processes, Inc., specializes in design and manufacturing of industrial wastewater systems.
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