Phenol Removal From Wastewater
Our Nyex process can reduce phenol from industrial effluent down to well below 0.5 mg/L, often trace levels, and can be placed at source to remove this harmful chemical from your water.
Phenol removal from water requires a specialised tertiary process like Nyex™ Rosalox which localises the phenol contaminant onto the surface of a patented adsorbent media.
The Nyex™ process is really effective in removal of phenol from wastewater – see CASE STUDY for removal figures. The way it works is that firstly the wastewater percolates though our Nyex media. The contaminants are attracted to the media and adsorb to its surface. Next the contaminant is completely mineralised using a low electrical current, which is passed through the bed.
One key benefit of the Nyex™ system is that the adsorbent media regenerates inside the system. This means that there is no waste to dispose of. Also the treatment does not need to be interrupted for renewal, like with activated carbon. This means that these harmful compounds can be removed onsite with very little maintenance in comparison to alternative treatment processes. Once the phenol is removed from wastewater, the water is suitable to be reused in-process or for other uses around the facility.
Phenol Removal from Water
Phenol removal from water is often required to protect other treatment systems from the harmful effects of phenol. Our Nyex Rosalox can preferentially remove phenol from wastewater containing COD. This is very useful when you wish to remove COD using biological process.
What we achieved
Our Nyex Rosalox removes phenol to trace levels at an energy rate of 12.8 kWh per kg of phenol.
How it works
Where are phenols used?
Phenols are some of the most essential chemicals used in modern manufactured products. Widely used by the specialty chemicals industry, they are constituent in everything from aspirin to analysis kits, pharmaceuticals to paint.
Without them, it’s true to say that modern life as we know it would probably cease to exist. They truly are the building blocks of modern chemistry, allowing talented chemists to create ever more effective products.
Phenols are incredibly useful ‘commodity’ chemicals. However, in concentration, they’re actually very dangerous and must be treated with the utmost caution.
What are phenols?
Phenols are similar to alcohols but because they form stronger hydrogen bonds, they are more soluble in water and thus are more likely to be unwanted constituents of industrial wastewater.
In its simplest form, phenol is known as monohydroxybenzene (benzenol or more simply, carbolic acid) and was reportedly used as the first surgical antiseptic by British surgeon Joseph Lister in 1865.
However, medicine has come a long way from 18th Century ‘kill or cure’ treatments and although phenols are now widely used as a disinfectant in cleaners and mouthwash (in low concentrations of course) a small amount on the skin in concentrated form can cause severe burns and could eventually lead to death.
Why do Phenols need to be removed from wastewater?
When phenol mixes in water, it can combine with other compounds to form extremely hazardous compounds which are harmful to aquatic and human life. For this reason, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the EU have listed phenolic compounds of pollutants of priority concern.
Chemical manufacturers who use phenol need to be very careful not to discharge phenol to avoid environmental bad press and fines.
Fortunately, the Arvia Nyex™ system is perfectly suited to remove these compounds down to below measurable levels.
How do phenols get into wastewater?
There are two main ways by which these unwanted compounds can appear in industrial wastewater and both are an unavoidable by-product of many manufacturing processes.
Water is used in the production process that also features phenols.
Any washdown or maintenance routines will add to concentrations of phenols in water used.
With the increasing cost of water – and sometimes even its availability being under threat – it makes sense to purify plant wastewater as much as possible. Many companies are starting to consider the possibility of ZLD (zero liquid discharge). Nyex Rosalox™ helps to make this possible.
Removing phenols from wastewater
Most companies Arvia deals with are of a sufficient size to have trade effluent consents in place that will specify wastewater purity and so they are concerned about adhering to limits as well as minimising adverse CSR exposure.
Our Nyex Rosalox™ treatment system overcomes the issues often experienced with traditional AOPs (advanced oxidation processes) and provide a robust and effective solution for the removal of organics. It works through a unique combination of adsorption and oxidation and can be placed at various points in many industrial water polishing processes.
As well as efficiency and high performance, the overriding advantage of Nyex™ systems is that the process leaves no residue, resulting in minimal maintenance, maximum up-time and no toxic residue requiring removal and incineration (itself a major cause of pollution.)
Our new-generation Nyex Rosalox™ systems can reduce phenols to below the limit of detection in many specialty chemical processes – literally to parts per trillion. In many applications it has been shown to deliver COD polishing from >300 mg/L to below LOD.
Learn how Arvia products can help
Phenol Removal by Nyex™
Phenol removal from water requires a specialised tertiary process like Nyex Rosalox™ which localises the phenol contaminant onto the surface of a patented adsorbent media. A low electrical current is applied to the media bed which oxidises the organic chemical, leaving the clean water to flow from the system. Phenol removal using Nyex™ ensures that the water is safe for reuse or compliant for discharge to the sewer or environment.
Phenol Removal by Adsorption and Oxidation
This is the way that the Nyex™ system works. One key benefit of the Nyex™ system is that the adsorbent media used in this process is simultaneously regenerated inside the system. So, there is very little maintenance and operating cost to consider in comparison with activated carbon. Phenol removal by adsorption in this case is much more efficient and lower maintenance, with lower operational costs as the only input required is electricity to run the Nyex™ system.
Benefits of Nyex
As a consequence of the way it works, combining absorption and oxidation, Arvia’s Nyex™ system is particularly effective in treating phenols at both low and high flow rates. In both lab and real-world tests, we’ve achieved excellent results down to parts per trillion – essentially below LOD.
The main benefits are:
1
No waste
Arvia’s latest Nyex Rosalox™ system combines adsorption and oxidation into one space-efficient system, resulting in targeted and complete destruction of contaminants – all without the production of secondary wastes.
2
Dosing not required
Using Nyex™ avoids any handling or storage issues with chemicals, H&S training for maintenance teams, COSHH compliance and risk assessment paperwork as well as negative environmental impacts.
3
Onsite treatment
Nyex™ negates the high costs and negative environmental impact of having sludge or media transported and disposed of regularly. Our Nyex™ media is simultaneously regenerated during the treatment process. All a Nyex reactor needs is a minimal top up annually.
4
High up-time
There’s no need to stop processes to clean or replace fouled membranes as you’d have if only using a RO process.