Physical and Biological Processes

Waste - waste water - soil

In today's research efforts, the avoidance of waste of any kind is receiving the highest priority. One of the many segments to which CUTEC is committed is the factory or process with zero waste-water discharge. The objective of the endeavour is to constantly recycle and thus re-use the water required for the manufacturing process. In this manner, the fresh-water requirement – with due consideration of inevitable losses – can be minimised. As a rule, however, this approach requires a multitude of treatment steps: For instance, dissolved organic or inorganic compounds must be removed; solids as well as particles must be separated; the occurrence of sludge presents further problems which must be solved. For dealing with these problems, physical and biological processes, as well as advanced oxidation processes (chemically based), are often of special importance.

However, some categories of waste water or solid waste cannot be avoided; one example is sewage with fecal matter. In such cases, it must be ensured that the corresponding treatment processes involve the least possible consumption of resources, on the one hand, and that the water thus treated can then be returned to the natural environment without risk of pollution, on the other hand. This is the only way to prevent progressive concentration of contaminants in bodies of water or in soils, and to protect our environment in the long term.

Within the chain, waste – waste water – soil, CUTEC is actively engaged in the following fields:

Reduction of the waste water / solid waste production and of the associated material flow by means of production-integrated approaches. Treatment and processing of solid, liquid, and gaseous wastes, in order to maximise the material and energetic utilisation of the resulting products. Assessment and prevention of contamination of soils and diffusion of pollutants in underground water bodies

Our team currently comprises eight scientists of its own, four visiting scientists, three technicians, one laboratory assistant, as well as some twenty students.

International projects and cooperation constitute a vital factor in the fields of water and soil conservation. This field is being expanded by the deputy department head, Dr.-Ing. T. Onyeche, who is also manager of international operations at CUTEC. In the course of these activities, special emphasis is placed on services in the form of training programs, support and assistance in exporting environmental technology from Lower Saxony or more generally from Germany, and the exchange of academic personnel, among other features (see the chapter on ”international contacts”).

Another vital factor is the improvement of production processes which also involve or require water as component part. In this case, special attention is paid to the development of new selective separation techniques, such as the combination of membrane separation processes with other processes, for instance, extraction, adsorption, or distillation. Besides the development of closed loops for process water, the improvement of product quality or the development of new products is also receiving increased attention. Examples include the washing-machine and wet-cleaning machine projects described as well as those for the integrated production of valuable substances.