Effluent Treatment Plant

Course name: Environmental Studies

Course Code: WPE 407

Course Teacher:
Tabassum Ferdous Jenny
Assistant Professor, Department of Wet Process Engineering
Bangladesh University of Textiles
Effluent Treatment Plant

• Ef flu ent Treatment Plant or ETP is one type of waste water treatment method which is
particularly designed to purify industrial waste water for its reuse and it’s aim is to release safe
water to environment from the harmful effect caused by the effluent.

• Industrial ef flu ents contain various materials, depending on the industry. Some ef flu ents
contain oils and grease, and some contain toxic materials. Ef fluents from food and beverage
factories contain degradable organic pollutants.

• Since industrial waste water contains a diversity of impurities and therefore specif ic treatment
technology is required. The ETP Plant works at various levels and involves various physical,
chemical, biological and membrane processes to treat waste water from different industrial
sectors like chemicals, drugs, pharmaceutical, refineries, dairy, ready mix plants & textile etc.
Benefits of ETP:

1. To clean industry effluent and recycle it for further use.

2. To reduce the usage of fresh water in industries.
3. To reduce expenditure on water acquisition.
4. To preserve natural environment against pollution.
5. To meet the standards for emission of pollutants set by the Government & avoid heavy
penalty.
Characteristics of waste water that produced in dye house:
• pH- 9-11
• BOD – 300 mg/L
• COD- 200 mg/L
• Suspended Solid (SS)- 200 mg/L
• Color- Dark

After treatment characteristics of wastewater changed as follow:

• pH- 7-8
• BOD- 30 mg/L
• COD – 160 mg/L
• SS- 30 mg/L
• Color- Light brownish
Industrial Effluent Treatment Levels:

Wastewater treatment technology includes physical, chemical, and biological methods.

Depending on the type and extent of contamination, various treatment levels involved
during the treatment of industrial effluent are shown in below table:

Tertiary or
Preliminary Primary Secondary
advance
treatment treatment treatment
treatment
Different levels of waste water treatment

Treatment Level Description Method

Removal of large solids such as rags, paper,

plastic, grit and gre ase that may damage
1. Preliminary Treatment or
equipment or result in operational problems. It Physical
Pretreatment
uses bar screens and grit chamber to remove
these suspended solid materials.

It involves removal of f loating and settle able

materials such as suspended solids and organic
2. Primary Treatment matter. It removes about 70-80% of suspended Physical and chemical
solids and 25-30% of BOD. Sludge that settles to
the bottom of the primary clarifier is pumped out
and subjected for sludge processing.
Different levels of waste water treatment (cont..)

Treatment Level Description Method

Removal of biodegradable organic matter and

suspended solids. It involves most preferred
3. Secondary Treatment biological aerobic process called “activated Biological and chemical
sludge process” which effectively removes about
85% of organic matter.

It ta ke s out re sidua l suspe nde d solids or

dissolved solids. It improves the quality of
4. Tertiary or advance treated water in order to comply with discharge Physical, chemical and
treatment s t a n d a r d s . I t i n v o l v e s a p r o ce s s ca l l e d biological
disinfection (uses disinfectants like chlorine,
ozone, UV light in common) for removing any
undesirable microbes.
Block diagram of a complete waste water treatment plant
Types of ETP

• Chemical ETP

• Biological ETP

• Biochemical ETP
Chemical ETP:
• Mainly used for washing industry (sweater, garments), printing, ceramics etc.

• Require very less space, so it is used when there is scarcity of land.

• Treatment scheme is designed based on chemical.

• Investment cost is lowest among all ETP.

• Operating cost is higher than other ETP.

• Process flow chart of a chemical ETP:

Equalization Coagulation and Primary Treated

Screening
Tank flocculation unit clarifier water tank
Biological ETP
• Mainly used for Dyeing industry.

• Required very large area due to higher retention time (48 hrs)

• Civil construction cost is very high.

• Operating cost comparatively lower than chemical ETP.

• Process flow chart of Biological ETP:

Aeration Secondary Treated water

Screening Equalization Tank Unit clarifier Discharge
Bio-Chemical ETP
• Suitable to use for small or large dyeing industry.

• Very high chemical consumption.

• Higher amount of sludge generation.

• Investment cost less than biological ETP.

• Operating cost higher than biological or chemical ETP.

• Process flow chart of bio-chemical ETP:

Coagulation
Equalization Primary Secondary Treated water
Screening and Aeration unit
Tank clarifier Clarifier Discharge
flocculation
Factors to consider for choosing an ETP:

1. National or international standards that must comply with.

2. Volume of effluent, the chemicals it contains and its concentration.

3. Afford to spend on constructing and running an ETP.

4. Available land on which to build the ETP.

5. Which ETP expert or designer should be involved.

6. Capacity of factory to manage the ETP including man power.

After considering all these factors, it is possible for industry owner and designer to choose the
plant which will best suit their requirements.
Treated Effluent disposal

The proper disposal of treatment plant’s ef fluent or its reuse is an essential part of planning and
designing wastewater treatment facilities. Different methods of ultimate disposal of secondary
effluents are discussed as follows.

1. Natural Evaporation
2. Groundwater Recharge
3. Irrigation
4. Recreational Lakes
5. Aquaculture
6. Municipal Uses
7. Industrial Uses
8. Discharge into Natural Waters
1. Natural Evaporation:

The process involves large impoundments ( such as a reservoir ) with no discharge. Depending
on the climatic conditions large impoundments may be necessary if precipitation exceeds
evaporation. Therefore, considerations must be given to net evaporation, storage requirements,
and possible percolation and groundwater pollution. This method is particularly benef icial
where recovery of residues is desirable such as for disposal of brines.

2. Groundwater Recharge:

Methods for groundwater recharge include rapid inf il tration by ef flu ent application or
impoundment, intermittent percolation, and direct injection. In all cases risks for groundwater
pollution exists. Furthermore, direct injection implies high costs of treating ef flu ent and
injection facilities.
3. Irrigation:

Irrigation has been practiced primarily as a substitute for scarce natural waters or sparse rainfall
in arid areas. In most cases food chain crops (i.e. crops consumed by humans and those animals
whose products are consumed by humans) may not be irrigated by ef fluent. However, f ie ld crops
such as cotton, sugar beets, and crops for seed production are grown with treated wastewater
ef fluent. Treated wastewater ef fluent has been used for watering parks, golf courses and highway
medians.

4. Recreational Lakes:

The ef fluent from the secondary treatment facility is stored in a lagoon for approximately 30 days.
The effluent from the lagoon is chlorinated and then percolated through an area of sand and gravel,
through which it travels for approximately 0.5 km and is collected in an interceptor trench. It is
discharged into a series of lakes used for swimming, boating and fishing.
5. Aquaculture:

Aquaculture, or the production of aquatic organisms (both f lora and fauna), has been practiced
for centuries primarily for production of food, f ib er and fertilizer. Lagoons are used for
aquaculture, although artif icial and natural wetlands are also being considered. However, the
uncontrolled spread of water hyacinths is itself a great concern because the f lora can clog
waterways and ruin water bodies.

6. Municipal Uses:

Technology is now available to treat wastewater to the extent that it will meet drinking water
quality standards. However, direct reuse of treated wastewater is practicable only on an
emergency basis. Many natural bodies of water that are used for municipal water supply are also
used for ef fluent disposal which is done to supplement the natural water resources by reusing
the effluent many times before it finally flows to the sea.
7. Industrial Uses:

Ef fluent has been successfully used as a cooling water or boiler feed water. Deciding factors for
effluent reuse by the industry include-

i. availability of natural water,

ii. quality and quantity of effluent, and cost of processing,

iii. pumping and transport cost of effluent, and

iv. industrial process water that does not involve public health considerations.

8. Discharge into Natural Waters:

Discharge into natural waters is the most common disposal practice. The self-purif ication or
assimilative capacity of natural waters is thus utilized to provide the remaining treatment.
Any Question?
Thank You