There are an estimated 29,528 facilities in the U.S. that discharge wastewater containing metal working lubricants (MWL). Waste
MWL typically contain about 1 - 5% oil, 10 - 20% solids, and 80 to 90% water. MWL are made up of
mineral oil, fatty acids, tall oil, and additives such as surfactants, anti-corrosion agents, biocides, and
dispersants. Stricter environmental regulations and increasing consciousness towards wastewater reuse
lead to reconsideration of the "conventional" wastewater treatment processes. The "conventional"
wastewater treatment systems such as chemical emulsion breaking and gravity separation, chemical
emulsion breaking followed by dissolved air flotation (DAF) treatment, and free oil removal and ultra
filtration (UF) are typically used for treating oily wastewater in the automotive industry. All these systems
produce effluent that is close to equivalent; however, none are considered as effective when treating
synthetic or semi-synthetic MWL. To meet the regulatory standards for oily wastewater, biological
treatment using membrane reactors has been identified as the most common solution. A better understanding of the MWL chemistry, environmental health and safety issues, and review of existing
treatment technologies are important steps for assessing the effectiveness and associated costs for treating
the oily wastewater. This paper discusses all of these elements and relates to the economic effect on
industry as well as the environmental effect on the natural resources. Includes 10 references, tables, figures.
| Edition : | Vol. - No. |
| File Size : | 1
file
, 1.7 MB |
| Note : | This product is unavailable in Ukraine, Russia, Belarus |
| Number of Pages : | 26 |
| Published : | 11/01/2008 |
