Introduction
In industrial processes, water is commonly used as a cleaning/cooling agent. This means that the water captures contaminants, such as soot, coal fines, tar, and other particulates, as well as heat from the medium it is contacted with (e.g. synthesis gas).
AHT’s Water Conditioning technology is designed to regenerate and recirculate this process water within a closed-loop system, minimizing freshwater consumption and reducing environmental impact.
The description and benefits of our Additive-Enhanced Flotation product line is given below. Through our systems that we label as “HydroCycle”, contaminants are removed efficiently by using a combination of coagulation, flocculation, and dissolved air flotation. Subsequently, the treated water is cooled and can be used for another cleaning cycle, while the recovered thermal energy can be utilized for applications such as feedstock drying.
By implementing a closed-loop water conditioning approach, AHT enables several key benefits:
• Water can be recovered and re-utilized on site.
• Dependence on external water treatment parties decreases.
• Costs and efforts for wastewater treatment and maintenance are minimized.
During wet gas cleaning, the wash water continuously absorbs contaminants such as soot, fine particles, and tar residues from the synthesis gas. Before this process water can be reused, it must be treated to restore its quality and ensure continuous operation of the gas conditioning system.
AHT’s Additive-Enhanced Flotation Technology regenerates the contaminated wash water through a multi-stage treatment process. Initially, the wash water is collected in the foul water tank, where it is supplied to the conditioning system. Coagulants and flocculants are then dosed into the water stream to destabilize suspended particles and promote the formation of larger flocs, for the efficient downstream separation.
The conditioned water then enters the flotation tanks, where dissolved air flotation technology is employed. Air-saturated water produced by the saturator generates fine air bubbles that attach to the flocs and lift them to the water surface. A flotation scraper continuously removes the resulting flotation tailings, which are collected for disposal or potential further utilization.
The conditioned wash water is collected in the wash water tank before passing through an integrated wash water heat exchanger. Here, thermal energy is recovered and transferred to a low-temperature circuit, allowing the recovered heat to be reused for other plant processes, such as feedstock drying. Finally, the cooled and conditioned wash water is pumped back into the gas conditioning system, enabling continuous closed-loop operation with minimal freshwater demand.
Benefits | Effects |
|---|---|
| By treating and reusing the wash water within the gas conditioning process, our technology significantly reduces freshwater consumption and minimizes wastewater generation. This closed-loop approach improves resource efficiency and supports sustainable plant operation. |
| The combination of coagulation, flocculation, and dissolved air flotation removes suspended solids, soot, and tar residues without the need for conventional filtration systems. The separated solids can be collected for disposal or potential further utilization. |
| With our optimized conditioning process, thermal energy can be recovered via the wash water heat exchanger. As such, the heat will be reused for other processes, thus reducing overall energy requirements. |
| Optimized water and additive consumption, combined with a robust process design in-house, ensures minimized maintenance, storage or disposal concerns and reduced operating costs. |
For additional technical data regarding our Water Conditioning product category, all relevant information on the AHT product line Water Conditioning and related products can be found in the brochure below.