The volume of freshwater used by process industries represents 25 billion m3 per year in Europe and accounts for 10% of total water consumption. Steel, Paper and Dairy sectors contribute to 36% of industrial water uptake, and 18% of eqCO2 emissions.
The objective of the SpotView project was to develop and demonstrate innovative, sustainable and efficient processes aiming to:
•Recover and recycle valuable substances and energy (heat, biogas) from process water;
•Reuse treated water to reduce discharges;
•Substitute freshwater with alternative water sources.
During the project, 14 technologies for process water separation and treatment were assessed, including ultrafiltration, deionization, disinfection and heat recovery. Water management strategies integrating new technology chains were demonstrated in real industrial environments for the three sectors. The environmental impacts and benefits generated reached the project target. Commercial exploitation is considered a (potential) possibility for most results.
In the dairy industry, 23% of fresh water can be replaced by effluent after aerobic/anaerobic treatment, while producing biogas and reducing waste water. High value proteins and fats can be recovered from cleaning effluent. In the packaging and sanitary paper industry, 20 to 50% of fresh water can be saved by recycling process water and effluent, while recovering heat losses, thus minimizing greenhouse gas emissions by 20%. In steel production, reuse of indirect circuit blowdown reduces freshwater make-up by 25% and desalination technologies reduce the fresh water quantity by 40%.
