Zero-Liquid Discharge Treatment of Wastewater from a Fertilizer Factory

Svetlana B. Zueva, Francesco Ferella, Giuliana Taglieri, Ida De Michelis, Inna Pugacheva and Francesco Vegliò
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Svetlana B. Zueva: Department of Industrial and Information Engineering and Economics, University of L’Aquila, 67100 L’Aquila, Italy
Francesco Ferella: Department of Industrial and Information Engineering and Economics, University of L’Aquila, 67100 L’Aquila, Italy
Giuliana Taglieri: Department of Industrial and Information Engineering and Economics, University of L’Aquila, 67100 L’Aquila, Italy
Ida De Michelis: Department of Industrial and Information Engineering and Economics, University of L’Aquila, 67100 L’Aquila, Italy
Inna Pugacheva: Department of Chemical Engineering, Voronezh State University of Engineering, 394036 Voronezh, Russia
Francesco Vegliò: Department of Industrial and Information Engineering and Economics, University of L’Aquila, 67100 L’Aquila, Italy

Sustainability, 2020, vol. 12, issue 1, 1-13

Abstract: This article describes the improvement of wastewater treatment in a fertilizer plant located in Central Italy (municipality of Vasto). In this facility, water is used for the removal of dust and fluorinated gases from the air. The resulting wastewater contains fluorides and phosphates in hazardous forms. Its treatment ordinarily does not result in a Zero-Liquid Discharge (ZLD) process. To achieve this purpose, several reagents were tested, focusing on the correlation linking pH, type of reagent and the effect on the separation of fluorides and phosphates from the wastewater. It was eventually found, and explained with a model, that hydrated lime at pH = 12 was so effective as a precipitating agent that phosphate and fluoride separation reached a value of 99.9%, thus allowing for reuse of the water in the plant process. Furthermore, phosphates and fluorides precipitated in a non-hazardous form, so that the material could also be recycled. In synthesis, wastewater treatment of the fertilizer plant was upgraded so that it became a ZLD process coupled with the recovery and recycling of fluorides and phosphates.

Keywords: fluoride; phosphates; separation; ZLD; fertilizer; wastewater (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:12:y:2020:i:1:p:397-:d:305016

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