Pharmaceutical & Chemical Wastewater Treatment
Wastewater treatment for the pharmaceutical and chemical industry
Water is a key raw material in pharmaceutical and chemical manufacturing processes. Consistent and high-quality water is required for production processes, and complex wastewater is generated once the pharmaceutical products and chemicals are produced. More and more producers are implementing strategies to minimize the water they draw from external sources, meaning that less wastewater is discharged and more wastewater is being reused as process water. In this way, water reuse provides savings through the reduction of both fresh water and waste disposal costs.
The chemical industry generates wastewater containing toxic, mutagenic, carcinogenic materials and difficult to biodegrade components. The same happens in the pharmaceutical industry, where in addition, the quality of process water is critical and has to meet the highest sterilization standards and protocols.
Pharmaceutical and chemical industry wastewater varies in flow and composition, depending on the production rate and the final product manufactured. This implies that the characteristics and peak loads of the wastewater are variable over time. Pharmaceutical and chemical wastewater may contain:
- High concentration of organic compounds, a portion of them being easily biodegradable, such as alcohols, and ketones
- Slowly biodegradable and refractory organic compounds, such as organic solvents, aromatics, and chlorinated hydrocarbon
- Inhibiting and toxic compounds, such as phenols, and antibiotics
- Soaps and detergents containing surfactants
Challenges for wastewater treatment in the pharmaceutical and chemical industry
Pharma and chemical industries all over the world face tremendous environmental regulatory challenges in treating their wastewater effluents. The main pollutants are organic chemicals, some of them toxic and difficult to biodegrade. Active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) are also known to have a detrimental impact on the environment, due to the fact that they are bio-refractory and persistent, tending to accumulate in the environment.
Wastewater treatment has been traditionally based on biological processes. However, there is an increased awareness of the limitations of conventional technologies for addressing the required removal of contaminants and the current discharge requirements.
Benefits of Tubular Membrane Solutions for the Pharmaceutical and Chemical Industries
Berghof’s MBR technology has come up as one of the best available technologies for handling the challenging streams from the pharma and chemical industries. The specific operational conditions – mainly linked to high MLSS in the bioreactor and high SRT– allow the growth of highly specialized biomass able to degrade the slowly biodegradable pollutants. Inhibition by toxic compounds is also avoided to a large extent.
Direct filtration also plays a significant role in water/wastewater management within the pharma and chemical industry. Tubular UF is applied as a direct filtration system for removing specific contaminants and also for brine recovery. High-quality deionized water is required for producing chemicals and pharmaceuticals. As a result, significant volumes of brine are produced by the use of nanofiltration and reverse osmosis systems. Here, Berghof tubular UF is applied coupled with a chemical pretreatment for brine recovery in the scope of ZLD strategies.
Applications of Tubular Ultrafiltration (UF) Membrane Technology in the Pharmaceutical and Chemical Industries
MBR | Wastewater treatment
Direct Filtration | Brine recovery
Please choose the application that applies to you.
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Project References
Take a look at our case studies
Water softening | New Material Industry
Project Details
Capacity: 200 m3/d
Membrane: 8mm PVDF, CR
Location: Huguan County (China)
AnMBR & MBR | Dairy Industry
Project Details
Membrane: 8mm, PVDF, backwashable
Capacity: 1,900 m3/day
COD load: 9,000 to 18,000 kg/day
Location: Wisconsin
AnMBR | Creamery
Project Details
Membrane: 8mm, PVDF, backwashable
Capacity: 155 m3/day
BOD load: 1,587 kg/day
Location: Menomonie, Wisconsin
Manufactured in Germany
Tubular UF Membrane Modules
To prevent fouling and clogging, Berghof Membranes developed its line of robust tubular UF (ultrafiltration) membrane modules based on inside-out crossflow filtration.
Membrane Skid systems
Berghof Membranes developed B-SMART®, a customizable external membrane filtration system that can be designed with various features and functionalities.
Pilot systems & Lab testing
Bridging the gap between lab-scale testing and manufacturing. Our experts gives you the confidence to apply the technology for your specific wastewater challenges.
B-CARE® Service and Support
The B-CARE® program is an end-to-end comprehensive program developed to support our OEM partners from the piloting/engineering phase to operational system monitoring.
