Clean oil producer boosts productivity with low-maintenance centrifuges
Problem: Integrated Water Management needed to produce the cleanest water and oil possible from produced brine and oily wastes in oil production. The company tried belt presses and other technologies that required maintenance, including shutdowns for cleaning. When the equipment was shut down and then opened up again, it released harmful vapors, which was dangerous.
Solution: The company chose low-maintenance, easy-to-operate, high-performing centrifuge Tricanters from Flottweg. The centrifuge is a closed system with controllable venting. The operators only needed to start it up and let it run. Monitoring technology lets operators see what is happening any time. Once it reached the required standards, the setting was secured.
Result: The company experienced growth and high-quality production. The facility increased production while handling and better controlling production quality. The steady-flow throughput, durability and low operating cost made production “10 times better,” according to the facility manager, while reducing maintenance. Technicians created a preventive maintenance program that requires only additional greasing of the bearings and standard changing of worn parts. 859-448-2331; www.flottweg.com
Venturi system elevates water at treatment plant for discharge into river
Problem: The Sidney (Ohio) Wastewater Treatment Plant receives substantial industrial wastewater. To meet current and future needs and protect the Great Miami River, the city undertook an upgrade to increase capacity to 7.5 mgd design and 14 mgd peak, along with conversion from chlorine to UV disinfection. The plant must maintain at least 6 mg/L dissolved oxygen in the effluent. However, the UV system eliminated the pressure head needed for the cascade aeration system.
Solution: The Hazen design firm recommended a venturi aeration system from Mazzei Injector Company. The system uses a pump to recirculate water through a venturi injector, creating a vacuum that draws in ambient air. The air-water mixture is then discharged back into the basin. Two parallel venturi aeration systems to provide redundancy and turn-down capability, with injectors mounted above the water level.
Result: The system fits entirely within the basin boundaries and enables the plant to meet permit without increasing staff responsibilities. After nearly five years, plant personnel noted that annual oil replacement in the pump is the only routine maintenance required. These enhancements positioned the plant to support local growth while maintaining permit compliance. 661-363-6500; www.mazzei.net
Network helps plant with expansion plans
Problem: One plant treats all wastewater from Fond du Lac’s and neighboring Wisconsin communities before discharge to Lake Winnebago. The plant needed an expansion to 7-8 mgd.
Solution: PRIMEX built one cohesive network, allowing all devices to interact with required information, including a redundant fiber optic network ring between all buildings. A copper ethernet network was created within each building. PRIMEX integrated Smart Motor Control Centers with 17 PLC panels using the above-defined network. The company also handled overall documentation, including a comprehensive description of operation, controller programming and system commissioning.
Result: PRIMEX took sole responsibility for all controls and instrumentation and coordinated with all vendors to ensure efficient project management. The company provided a completely integrated solution on time and within budget. 218-847-1317; www.primexcontrols.com
Affordable housing project overcomes stringent water requirements
Problem: A Boston-based developer aimed to provide 50 affordable and accessible residential apartments, but faced strict limits on effluent total nitrogen at less than 5 mg/L TN at the treatment system outlet and net at the property line because of proximity to natural water sources and a conservation area.
Solution: The project was to generate 9,990 gpd, just under the 10,000 gpd limit for Massachusetts groundwater discharge permits. The team turned to BioMicrobics for a BioBarrier High Strength Membrane Bioreactor, the only viable and affordable option to meet the requirements. The system treats all blackwater and graywater to be 99.9% free of contaminants such as organic matter and disease-causing organisms. A SaniTEE a screening device is followed by a blower for aeration and mixing. Wastewater is then pumped up through microfiltration and ultrafiltration membranes to produce clear and odorless water.
Result: The high-performing project serves as a reference site for other projects with similarly strict treatment requirements. 800-753-3278; www.biomicrobics.com
MBBR process provides clean water for power generation
Problem: The island nation of Jamaica needed more power to satisfy peak demands and prepare for future base-capacity requirements. Generating the incremental 125 MW required large quantities of clean water, a scarce commodity.
Solution: The Mirant Corporation reached out to Headworks International for an ActiveCell moving bed biofilm reactor to treat municipal wastewater suitable for reuse at the power station. The technology uses thousands of polyethylene biofilm carriers in mixed motion in an aerated. Each piece of media provides a protected surface area to support the dense growth of bacteria that achieve high-rate biodegradation with process reliability and ease of operation. Headworks proposed a three-stage biological process to nitrate, followed by positive flotation to removed phosphate and TSS. The plant treats up to 1.8 mgd from the Bogue wastewater treatment plant a few miles away. The system consists of three ActiveCell bioreactors in series designed to yield 10 mg/L BOD and less than 2 mg/L nitrogen. Next, the effluent is fed to a dissolved air flotation system for TSS removal.
Result: The process reduced BOD, ammonia and TSS levels. 713-647-6667; www.headworksintl.com
