Wastewater treatment is a very integral process that must be done with meticulous care and effective strategies. It is the process of removing solids, harmful chemicals, pathogens and other contaminants from domestic or industrial wastewater. Proper wastewater treatment involves several stages, like multiple clarifications, bio-treatment and filtration. By doing so, this water achieves potable quality, which can then be released safely back into the environment or reused within the facilities. These processes are crucial for protecting natural waterbodies, preserving aquatic life, and supporting corporate social responsibility.
With the increasing urbanisation and industrial expansion, the volume of wastewater produced worldwide is a whopping amount at unprecedented levels. Knowingly or unknowingly, every individual contributes to this massive level of wastewater generation. Treating these wastewaters effectively is essential for the environment as well as these industries.
As the leading engineering company in Oman, Ocean Technical and Mechanical services delivers a comprehensive range of high-performing wastewater treating technologies from the world’s most trusted name, Valmet. They are renowned for smart process control, automation and environmental technologies. Valmet’s solutions equip industries across the world to attain higher treatment efficiency, reduce operational cost and ensure full regulatory compliance.
Let us get into the significance of properly treating the wastewater, its processes and associated details.
The Importance of Wastewater Treatment in Oman
Wastewater treatment has always been a critical priority in the Gulf region, given the pace of urbanisation and industrial growth, but with limited freshwater resources.
But, due to low annual rainfall, high evaporation and limited natural freshwater sources, Oman faces a unique constraint. As demand for water is always high in industrial, residential and agricultural sectors, treated wastewater has become a significant element in the country’s water strategy.
Why wastewater treatment matters:
- For effective water scarcity management: By reusing wastewater, the dependence on freshwater, including groundwater, can be reduced.
- Ecosystem protection: untreated wastewater carelessly disposed of may cause marine ecosystem disruption, pollute the groundwater, affect the soil quality and compromise public health.
- Resource recovery, sustainability and all-around economic growth: advanced wastewater treatment supports sustainability and resource reallocation, aligning with an economy’s strategic resource developments
- Supporting urban and industrial growth: advanced wastewater treatment solutions and networks make sure the demands are met with the population growth and industrial expansion.
- Stronger public health: proper wastewater management prevents the spread of waterborne diseases and exposure to toxic chemicals or wastes via waterbodies.
Ocean offers end-to-end assistance in wastewater treatment from the system design stages, equipment supply to installation, configuration and maintenance. Our most modern solutions and technologies are curated to meet the industry’s wastewater treatment hurdles, thereby ensuring environmental protection and operational efficiency.
What makes wastewater treatment an essential process?
Without effectively treating, wastewater can negatively impact the industries and the environment around them. Untreated wastewater contaminates natural waterbodies, disrupts the equilibrium and poses health risks to the public. For industries, the unscientific management of wastewater may result in equipment corrosion, operational hindrances and regulatory non-compliance. This may lead to fines, shutdowns and legal complications.
By properly treating wastewater, industries can protect the natural resources, ensure safer working conditions, and contribute to a cleaner and more sustainable environment.
Ocean TMS provides advanced wastewater management and solid measurement solutions from the renowned Valmet solutions. Their latest systems offer efficient monitoring and control of solid contents, precise assessment of solid levels, detection of impurities and scientific elimination of contaminants and effluents in the wastewater, ensuring a comprehensive approach to wastewater treatment processes.
Wastewater treatment: steps involved
Step 1: Primary Treatment
In the primary stage, wastewater is channelled into large settling tanks where the initial separation of solid materials starts. Heavy fragments and pieces sink to the bottom, forming sludge, and lighter materials, oils or grease come to the surface. Industrial scrapers scrape along the tank, forcing the settled sludge to the centre. This sludge is then collected and directed to separate areas for handling. The separated lighter liquid flows onward to the next phase for further purification.
Step 2: Secondary Treatment
In this phase, the processes are a bit more meticulous and deep. The secondary treatment phase is specifically designed to break down the biological compositions of the waste via aerobic processes, mostly involving microorganisms. After successfully completing this phase, the wastewater could be released into the environment, as the contaminants are kept within biodegradable and safe levels. Typically, Secondary treatment is carried out in three ways:
Biofiltration: This process removes any residual sediment from the wastewater using sand filters, trickling filter or contact filters.
Aeration: This step involves aerating the wastewater and improving the oxygen saturation. Air is pumped into large aeration tanks to stimulate microbial activity to break down dissolved waste. This process can last for several hours to ensure thorough purification.
Oxidation ponds: This process is ideal for warm temperatures, where these large ponds of water use the sunlight, algae and various other microbes to naturally remove the contaminant in open environment.
Step 3: Tertiary Treatment
This stage is the final polishing stage, where the treated water is brought up to better standards. This step targets any remaining dissolved wastes, pathogens or proteins that were not entirely removed during the initial and secondary phases. Based on the requirements, additional filtration or disinfection methods are carried out. Generally, tertiary treatment involves steps like chlorination, UV sterilisation and advanced filtration to make the water potable.
How Valmet’s Solid Measurement Tools Optimise Wastewater Treatment Performance
Valmet solutions have always strived to deliver perfection and established a strong hold in wastewater treatment expertise. They stand out, delivering and bringing crucial solids dewatering, effluent treatment, primary and secondary clarifiers, thickening and processing dewatered solids, which includes thermal heating and biogas plants. Being their trusted partner, Ocean TMS brings expert support and all-around customer service across the Sultanate of Oman.
The following are some of the important wastewater measurements with Valmet.
Total Solids Measurement – TS
Valmet’s TS measurement employs advanced microwave technology to control and manage total solids.
- This measurement helps to achieve complete control over wastewater treatment through real-time and ongoing solid measurements.
- It helps in quick responses to the changing processes and matches with the total solids target levels.
- TS measurements help in saving time as they are dependable, straightforward and maintenance-free processes.
With the latest microwave technology and no-wear components, Valmet TS provide the most reliable and accurate total solids measurement, which suits all wastewater processing methods in industries.
Low Solids Measurement – LS
Valmet LS measurements help in selecting the right polymer type and adequate dosage for sludge dewatering. The following are some of the advantages:
- Valmet LS improves dosing precision and minimises chemical costs by giving live centrate solids info.
- Supports total treatment capacity by guiding the maintenance operators to improve the dewatering process.
- Help choose the best suitable polymer through online, all-inclusive testing.
- Reduces the need for manual sampling and tedious lab analysis by using automated systems.
Determining and measuring solid levels in filtrate or centrate has been challenging since earlier times, as low solid levels generally come with debris, phosphate deposits or foam that can disrupt accuracy. Valmet LS effectively clears these issues, providing stable and reliable measurements.
Dry Solids Measurement- DS
Dry solid measurement from Valmet is specifically designed to treat dried wastewater sludge. Valmet DS measurement is reliable for removing dried sludge. The following are the characteristics of Valmet DS:
- Helps in significant cost-cutting on dry cake and fuel transportation, and maximises the total solids.
- Optimises dewatering processes to improve efficiency, saving a great deal on energy.
- Treats the dry cake via optimised cake solids.
- Great reduction of polymer uses through refining dosage and centrifuge torque.
Valmet’s Dry solids measurement employs safe microwave technology to provide accurate results and precision processes in dewatering control during wastewater treatment.
- High Solids Measurement – HS
Valmets HS uses an advanced microwave technology to measure high solids with precision.
This measurement system offers numerous benefits, which include:
- Valmet HS boost energy use and reduces the need for extra fuel by redefining the drying stage in incineration or biogas plants
- By supporting proper control of chemical dosing and process alterations, the operators can increase solids content and reduce transportation costs.
- Valmet HS delivers steady and accurate consistency readings in difficult industrial processes.
With the right dry-solids data, Valmet simplifies the processes, making it easier to cut chemical use, save on energy and support sustainability, helping maintain proper and consistent process control across various applications.
Sludge Dewatering Optimiser – SDO
Valmet SDO is an advanced wastewater management solution developed to improve sludge dewatering efficiency. It integrates real-time wastewater measurements and changes precision data into practical process improvements, which significantly reduces cost and provides performance benefits. Some of the key benefits are listed below:
- 24/7 optimisation, reducing reliance on manual lab sampling.
- Reduced polymer usage via continuous monitoring and adjusting dosing performances.
- Reduced energy expenses in regard to drying, incineration or sludge transportation.
Backed by a Multivariable Predictive Control (MPC) model, Valmet SDO tracks polymer dosing and centrifuge torque simultaneously, maintaining a consistent sludge mass flow to the centrifuge, ensuring stable and consistent operation.
Samplers
Valmet’s Consistency and High-Consistency Samplers (Valmet Nove and Nove H) are reliable solutions trusted globally in pulp and paper mills, delivering precision and efficiency, dependable samples for lab testing. Important features of these samplers are:
- High repeatability: Specifically curated to maintain consistent and even sampling when flow conditions change or while different operators are present.
- Safe sampling: Provides dependable sample collection in challenging conditions.
- Automated processes: Built-in automation keeps sampling activities intact and easy, ensuring efficiency.
Nove and Nove H are robust in their design and flushing performance, delivering stable, representative samples over a long period of time. These solutions stay unaffected by flow changes and help reduce variability, often caused by manual sampling methods.
How Valmet Improves Wastewater Treatment
Valmet’s wastewater measurement system incorporates robust technologies and crucial solutions to offer ideal wastewater treatment and real-time solid measurement, supporting sludge treatment control and associated processes.
Valmet specialises in redefining sludge treatment management and related processes. With a history of delivering dependable and consistent solutions for wastewater treatment, Valmet solutions cater to both industrial sites and municipal treatment facilities across the globe. The following are the important features that make Valmet solutions impact the wastewater treatment globally:
- Reliability and Precision: Valmet system and control technologies offer accurate and consistent data, ensuring the wastewater treatment processes run smoothly and efficiently at all times.
- Withstanding Challenging Environments: Their solutions are carefully crafted for harsh industrial conditions, and they operate reliably in high-moisture or corrosive environments.
- 24/7, ongoing Monitoring: Valmet solutions provide continuous, around-the-clock monitoring. This proactive approach supports early detection of issues and optimises chemical dosing and overall processes.
- Global assistance: Valmet’s robust worldwide presence enables it to provide technical support, maintenance assistance and strong expertise globally where wastewater facilities operate.
Wastewater Treatment Solutions from Ocean Oman
Ocean TMS is a renowned provider of engineering solutions and specialised equipment across Oman and the GCC. Ocean TMS has supported organisations in oil and gas, marine, petrochemical and numerous engineering sectors. We are an authorised distributor of Valmet in Oman. Renowned for their worldwide leadership in automation systems, process technologies and certified solutions for wastewater treatment and solids measurement, Ocean TMS ensure our clients receive high-quality Valmet products to meet the industry’s operational needs. We also deliver a wide range of condition monitoring services such as vibration analysis, oil analysis, laser shaft alignment, partial discharge (PD) testing and much more.
Partner with Ocean TMS, your reliable Valmet solutions provider in the Sultanate of Oman. Get the benefit from experts and enjoy the dedicated support and expertise. We provide solutions you can trust. Contact us now!
FAQs
1- What is the wastewater treatment process?
Wastewater treatment is the cleaning of used or polluted water so it can be safely released back into the environment or repurposed. This is a meticulous process combining physical, chemical and biological means to remove pollutants, debris, suspended solids and harmful organisms from wastewater.
2- What are the stages of wastewater treatment?
- Preliminary treatment: clearing large debris and suspended solids
- Primary treatment: Letting solids settle and separate from water
- Secondary treatment: Biological processing to break down organic substances using aerobic methods.
- Tertiary treatment: Employing advanced filtration and disinfection to further clear and purify.
- Sludge treatment: managing and processing the solid by-products generated during the wastewater treatment.
3- What are the 4 steps of water treatment?
- Coagulation and flocculation: chemicals will be added during this process to bind impurities.
- Sedimentation: The pollutant clumps are then allowed to settle to the bottom.
- Filtration: Minute and suspended particles are removed.
- Disinfection: Harmful pathogens are removed through UV treatment, chlorination, making the water potable and safe to use.
4- What are common challenges in wastewater treatment plants?
Wastewater plants face issues like fluctuating flow rates, high levels of contamination, process equipment wear and tear, high energy and chemical costs, the need for continuous monitoring and more. Maintaining proper water quality and managing these operational concerns are the main challenges for many facilities.