Concentrates in Zero Liquid Discharge Processes Investigated : WEHRLE Participates as Industrial Partner in HIGHCON Research Project
German wastewater and landfill leachate treatment specialist, WEHRLE, is participating as industrial partner in two of the thirteen research projects of the WavE funding measure: “HighCon“ and “WEISS“.
The company explained that when recycling industrial effluents, especially in case of the so-called Zero Liquid Discharge (ZLD) process, concentrates are inevitably produced. Their disposal may cause considerable costs.
The HighCon research project focusses on those concentrates. They often contain important raw materials, which shall be recycled. For this purpose, in the HighCon project, existing methods are improved and new methods are developed and adapted to each other.
The WavE funding measure, which is financed by the German Federal Ministry of Research and Education (BMBF) within the topic “Sustainable Water Management”, deals with future-oriented technologies and concepts to increase water availability by water reuse and desalination.
Four research institutes participate in the project: Berlin Technical University – Department of Environmental Process Technology, the Association for Chemical Technology and Biotechnology (DECHEMA e.V.), Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE and the Research Centre at the Engler Bunte Institute at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT).
The four participants are industrial companies: WEHRLE Umwelt GmbH, SolarSpring GmbH, Terra- water GmbH and DEUKUM GmbH contribute their experience and technical know-how to promote an economic use of the concentrate as source of raw materials.
In this project, WEHRLE is to investigate and optimise the pretreatment of the concentrates by using membrane filtration and is responsible for the conditioning of the concentrate for further treatment and for the recycling with new technologies.
Moreover, the company said that it will investigate methods for the treatment of the residual currents produced.
Finally, the processes will be tested in operation at different industrial sites. The sites are provided by L’Oréal, Clariant, MEWA and DEK – Deutsche Extrakt Kaffee Berlin.
Also during the duration of the project, the possible products from the concentrate reuse and their target markets are defined and feasibility studies are drawn up.
The conclusion of the project is planned for the end of August 2019.
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