Institutional approach toward combined industrial waste treatment

A centrally located facility has been proposed for Ventura County, Calif., to accept trucked residual wastes generated as a result of industrial wastewater pretreatment activities. The treatment scheme for the oil waste category, as for all waste categories, includes maximum piping flexibility so that only those unit processes required to clean up a particular waste will be used. An API separator will be used to remove non-emulsified oils. Depending on its quality, the effluent could either be discharged or treated using other unit processes. When emulsified oils are present, further treatment would be required. De-emulsifiers would be added and a dissolved air flotation unit would be used to scrub the process water. The system would also handle other types of waste, e.g., nonmetallic toxic wastes and brine wastes. Capital costs for the system are estimated at just under $1.5 million. Operation and maintenance costs would be $50,400-$127,500/yr for a plant handling 20-100 cu m/day of wastewater.