Food Processing Facility Improves Effluent Quality to POTW
Application / Industry: Food Processing
Customer Name: Albert Foods, Albertville, AL
Consulting Engineer: Saxon Environmental Service Company, Inc. Gadsden, AL
Process Fluid: Raw Wastewater from Food Processing
Process Treatment Method: Effluent Equalization and Storage Tank
Challenge
Albert Foods stores its process wastewater in an equalization tank so flow can be metered and equalized in transfer to the local POTW. Food processing wastewater residual BOD levels can be very high, accelerating the transition to anoxic and septic conditions. Another challenge of this project was the existing enamel-coated bolted steel storage tank which complicated equipment retrofit installation.
Solution
The process fluid contained solids that would settle out if not mixed and would clog air piping if allowed to back-flow into the air piping. Tideflex® Technologies Engineers designed a maintenance-free Coarse Bubble Mixing and Oxygen Supply System, which provided high oxygen rates to keep the process fluid aerobic, along with complete mixing and solids suspension. Tideflex® Check Valve Diffusers keep fluid and solids from entering the system, allowing operators to utilize the blower only when needed to minimize operating cost.
Tideflex® Engineers also designed special brackets for mounting the piping system to the existing tank frame structure along with all the isolation systems for separation of carbon steel and stainless steel components.
Results
The Tideflex® system has allowed Albert Foods to discharge their effluent wastewater to the local POTW at a high oxygen content and homogeneously mixed. The ON/OFF operation capability has reduced the operating cost by 60% over their alternate coarse bubble systems. Since the system is resistant to clogging, service maintenance requirements have been eliminated – another significant reduction in operating cost.