Wastewater

Removing metals from wastewater is a major concern of almost any metal finishing operation in order to meet local and state regulations.

Short-circuiting is a condition that occurs when water flows along a nearly direct pathway from the inlet to the outlet of a tank or basin, often resulting in shorter contact, reaction, or settling times in comparison with the calculated or presumed detention times.¹

In this episode of “Seen and Solved,” Robin Deal Product Leader – AquaPure, discusses metal removal from industrial wastewater treatment systems.

FinishingAndCoating.com is hosting a free webinar: “7 Things I Wish I Knew About Wastewater Treatment,” on July 21 at 2:00 p.m. ET

It’s easy to imagine that the days of widespread use of cyanide, hexavalent chromium, and cadmium were a dark era in the history of surface finishing.

Question: We struggle with making down our flocculant to the proper percentage/ppm range.

An electroplater was having an issue treating metals, particularly zinc, that was affecting their continuous flow system.

Whether a finishing shop is scaling up production — or just wants to ensure their wastewater system is running smoothly for the next five years — planning is crucial. A free webinar on November 16 will help with that.

Robin Deal is the Product Leader for the Aquapure line at Hubbard-Hall.

Question: We have a chance to expand our business by adding a new production process.

Water consumption in the metal finishing and electronics industries has become an increasingly expensive commodity.

As a new owner of a company, you never want to find out that the wastewater system is not operating within its design parameters.

Filtration is the mechanical process to separate unwanted materials from the cleaner. The filtration unit is a medium through which only the cleaner can pass.

Q: We are a zinc-chloride plater and flow 15,000 gallons per day through a membrane system. We struggle with keeping the membranes running properly. We average between 36 and 48 hours of run time before we must stop and clean the membranes. What can we do to improve the run time?

A question from a customer: “We are a zinc-nickel plater with a discharge of 80,000 gpd. While we are able to meet our zinc and nickel discharge numbers, we struggle with our total suspended solids (TSS). We have a small floc formation with slow settling. We have solids coming over our weir. What can we do to help solve this problem?”

Aerospace facilities are among the most high-tech plants in manufacturing and require efficient, effective wastewater treatment systems.

On a global level, wastewater treatment is an increasingly critical topic of discussion that has been addressed at the very highest levels of government and major corporations.

Robin Deal, a Wastewater Specialist for Hubbard-Hall, presents a paper on “Industrial Phosphates and Wastewater Impacts.”

The wave of globalization in manufacturing has led to new manufacturing processes being implemented in locales that do not have previous experience with industrial wastewater discharges, much less with the impacts that the contaminants, which may be present in these discharges, have on human health and the environment.

Hubbard-Hall has completed the first phase of a three-year Digital Initiative Strategy.  This phase focuses on creating a more engaging user experience, with use of Web Chat and On-Demand Portal technologies.

While the history of electroplating is very rich and interesting, the environmental impact of the wastewater generated from the process can not be overlooked. In 1972 the Clean Water Act came into being, and gave structure for regulating the discharges of pollutants into the waters of the United States. Metal finishing guidelines can be found in 40 CFR Part 433.

Element Solutions, a global and diversified specialty chemicals company which is the parent company of MacDermid Enthone Industrial Solutions, announced its acquisition of DMP Corporation, a premier provider of turnkey wastewater treatment and recycle and reuse solutions across multiple manufacturing industries.