Biodegradation of Toxic Pulp and Paper Mill Effluent using innovative bio carriers with net

energy generation

Dr. Imre Pascik LEVAPOR GmbHwww. levapor.com Leverkusen, Germany

About us

• We are Levapor Biofilm Technologies and Bio Consulting , GmbH.

• A specialized company providing innovative solutions for the treatment of wastewater and polluted air

• A team with more than 40 years of experience in research and development of fixed film based technologies for industrial and difficult to treat wastewater and polluted air

What We do • Problem analysis for the treatment of high strength

industrial and municipal wastewater treatment • Define treatment goals and conceptual process

design • Development of optimal process and parameters • Manufacturing of high performance tailor made bio

carriers for the application • Process Start up

I Indian Pulp and Paper Industry

• One of the core and oldest sector in India

• Highly Capital, Water and Energy Intensive

• A wide Range of raw materials , finished products, manufacturing processes

• 16 m3 to 130 m3 per tonnes water consumption

• Produces effluent of varying quality and quantity

• Treatment required due to legislative requirement

Anaerobic treatment • A Well established biological process for high

strength effluents in other industries and sewage Principle advantages: • Reduced energy consumption • Lower capital investment • Lower land requirement • Useful biogas production for energy generation (0.3-

0.4 m3/kg.COD removed)

Applications in P&P industry

• Reasons for ANA in the PP industry• Better biodegradation of refractory pollutants like chlorinated aromatics and lignine degradation

products than under aerobic conditions• Less excess sludge production and energy

consumption• Production of energy rich biogas (65-70% CH4)

Problems of Anaerobic Technologies • Slow sludge growthmethanogenic• Sensitivity to inhibitors

How to avoid those problems ?

By IMMOBILISATION = adhesion on solid surfaces plus biofilm generation

Problems

Solution • Immobilization of biomass on suitable carrier

material Advantages:• Retention of more biomass • Protection against toxic shock loads• Stable performance over a range of pollutants• Higher volumetric , COD loading and thus gas

production along with COD reduction

Our REQUESTS on OPTIMAL CARRIER• PROPERTY EFFECT

• 1. Adsorbing capacity - binding toxic pollutants - fast colonization + bio film

- fast start up at high level

• 2. Porosity, high inner surface - protection of the biofilm (high biomass content) - high space-time-yields

• 3. Fast wetting - homogenous fluidisation

• 4. Water binding - mass transport, bioactivity

• 5. Proper fluidisation - lower energy consumption

Our Technology

Properties

High Adsorbing Surface • 10 to 12 kg of activated

carbon per m3 of foam matrix

• PU foam surface area 2500 m2/m3

• 1000-2000 m2/g surface area of activated carbon

• Extremely high adsorbing surface

Benefits:• Reversible Adsorption• Rapid microbial colonization

and biofilm formation • Temporary adsorption of

toxic and inhibitory substances

• Subsequent biodegradation and thus regeneration of surface

Advantages • Treatment of effluents containing toxic substances • Short process start up and higher performance compared to

suspended mass based systems (100 to 300%)• Higher process stability against toxic shock loads and

fluctuations in reactor conditions • Lower Degree of Filling (12 to 15%) • Smaller foot print • Lower energy consumption for fluidization • Lower sludge production • Simpler process control

Case Study

SAPPI – Ehingen (Germany) - Biotreatment of toxic pulp mill effluents by LEVAPOR-fixed biomass.

SAPPI,GERMANYSAPPI EFFLUENT TREATMENT PLANT: (1990)• South Africa Pulp and Paper Industry, Ehingen, Germany • Magnesium-BiSulfite based pulping and paper industry• Application of Chlorine for bleaching • High Concentration of toxic, weakly bio degradable

chloro-organic compounds (AOX-90 mg/lit)• Strong Stream : COD 45 t/d @ 10 MLD • Weak Stream : COD 2.45 t/d @ 3.5 MLD

SAPPI,GERMANY

Lab scale testing Anaerobic or Aerobic?• Aerobic treatment with

suspended bio mass • Only 40-45 % COD

elimination • Anaerobic-Aerobic

Treatment ? • Anaerobic reactors using

different bio carriers

COD Elimination:SAPPI,GERMANY

• 1 :Levapor • 2: Activated Carbon • 3: Unmodified PU foam • 4: Suspended Bio mass

COD effl. 1.500 susp. cells immob. cells 1 st. immob. cells 2 st. 1.000 500 0 0,65 2,35 3,57 g COD L x d

Effect of immobilization on COD effl. in the anaerobic treatment of pulp bleaching effluents

Vana =65.000 m³

Vana =20.000 m³

Vana =15.000 m³

SAPPI,GERMANY• Solution :• Micro Aerobic Equalization • Anaerobic Treatment Using Levapor Carriers • Reactor Size only 15000 m3 instead of 65000m3 with

suspended bio mass • 1500 m3 of Levapor media • 66-70% COD removal • Further 50% of COD removal in Aerobic Treatment • 50,000 m3 less volume

SAPPI,GERMANY

Startup: 1990, only 2 of 3 ANA-reactors were started with LEVAPOR in order to compare the effect of immobilisation. After few weeks a toxic shock has stopped the reactor without LEVAPOR ~ 85 % COD- removal , 4 – 6 t/d sludge, 14.000 m³/d biogas

SAPPI,GERMANY

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0.5

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1.5

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1 3 5 7 9 11 13 15 17 19 21 23 25 27 29 31 33 35 37 39 41

susp.biomass

May 90 June 90

immob. biomasskgCOD/m³ x day

Full Scale Plant

Advantages • 25-33 Tonnes COD reduction in Anaerobic Step • 17500- 23100 KWh energy saving compared to

Aerobic only step • 14,000 m3/day Bio Gas production • 28000 KWh of useable energy • 308,000 MJ of total Thermal Energy equivalent • 50,000 m3 of foot print saving • Lower nutrients requirement • Lower sludge production and handling costs

How Can We Associate

• Problem analysis for the treatment of high strength industrial and municipal wastewater treatment

• Define treatment goals and conceptual process design

• Development of optimal process and parameters • Manufacturing of high performance tailor made bio

carriers for the application • Process Start up

Thank You !!!!