A UK based poultry processor realised the importance of wastewater in their process and felt that the incumbent wasn’t providing effective results, which incurred high Mogden charges. The factory, which processes both chickens and turkeys, found that it was producing an annual wastewater discharge volume of 400 megalitres per annum. The effluent was treated with an inorganic coagulant and polymer combination by the incumbent with limited effectiveness for COD reduction. This was causing a problem for the customer as high COD levels in the effluent equate to high Mogden charges. The challenge for Biochemica Water was to remove the COD better in the process in order to provide cost savings.

The challenge for Biochemica Water was to remove the COD better in the process in order to provide cost savings.

WHAT WE DID

• To understand the existing process, we tested the incumbent chemistries against other viable alternatives alongside a survey of the existing plant and operating parameters.
• We identified a more effective coagulant chemistry.
• Improvements to the existing dosing setup were made.
• Selected a suitable polymer for the process and both chemistries implemented into the process. The improvements of this are seen in Table 1.

WHAT WE ACHIEVED

• Increased process efficiencies (e.g. COD and TSS)
• Maximised process efficiency through regular site service visits as part of solution offering
• Offered potential to re-use treated water back into factory process
• Delivered significant annual savings of £235,174.34 (Table 2)

Table 1 Incumbent chemistry performance versus Biochemica performance (actual plant data)

Table 2 Annual savings in Mogden charges using Biochemica Solution