Wastewater Treatment
Primary function of the wastewater treatment system used in industrial facilities is to remove or reduce the high-level contaminants in the waste stream from being discharged to local sewer systems or the environment.
Local, state and federal government have imposed regulations on the waste discharge of industries. Such regulations come of the Clean Water Act passed by the federal government; most local and state governments adopt these laws and may impose separate regulations. Noncompliance to local, state and federal regulations can result in series financial or legal consequences.
Treatment Process
Typically for the wastewater treatment process a number of tanks and equipment will be employed. The wastewater treatment process will normally be referred to as a batch or continuous process. The majority of the can plants will use a continuous process. A continuous process is equipped with several tanks or segmented compartments to accommodate the separate functions of equalization, acidification, oil break, and pH adjustment, flocculation and sludge consolidation. Continuous process is considered when high flows are anticipated. The wastewater treatment in an industrial facility starts with the collection of wastewaters. The wastewater is collected from the washer sump, where wastewater is overflowed from the various washer stages. The water from the washer sump is pumped to the washer equalization tank. Another collection point is the coolant waste sump. From here the effluent is pumped through an oil/water separator (coalescer). Un-emulsified oils are separated and sent to a waste oil holding tank.
Wastewater Equipment
The washer equalization tank is usually a large tank, large enough to allow an equalization time for the wastewater. During this time the wastewater will have time to allow for pH equalization and to allow for oils to split. These oils will be over- flowed or pumped off when the oil level reaches a predetermined depth. From the equalization tank the wastewater is pumped to the treatment chambers. There are a number of steps in the treatment of the wastewater before the solid’s separation; treatment starts with the influent pumped from the equalization tank.
- Oil Water Separator (Coalescer)
- Acidification
- Oil Break
- Neutralization
- Flocculation
