Wastewater Reuse: 4 Innovative Ways to Reuse Wastewater
Using water treatment technology to unlock the potential of wastewater reuse, we hope to bring about a paradigm shift in which wastewater is seen as the valuable resource it actually is.
Being advocates for a circular economy, we consider wastewater to be a valuable resource rather than a liability, something that must simply be discharged. Wastewater reuse – extracting clean water from wastewater and reusing it – has the potential to unlock a whole new world of possibilities that could mitigate our country's water crisis.
Wastewater reuse (also known as water reclamation) is the process of converting wastewater into water that can be reused by removing its contaminants. Physical, chemical, and biological procedures are used to purify the water and produce treated wastewater.
Treated effluent can be reused for various purposes, including agricultural, commercial, domestic, industrial, and urban uses. These range from small- to large-scale applications, from domestic greywater systems to industrial wastewater treatment plants.
In this article, we will unpack four different types of wastewater reuse: Domestic wastewater reuse, sewage water reuse, tertiary treated effluent reuse, and industrial wastewater reuse.
1. Domestic Wastewater Reuse
One of the simplest ways of reusing wastewater is to install a factory-assembled water treatment system that treats greywater, blackwater, or a combination of the two on site. Domestic wastewater treatment produces non-potable water.
Clarus Fusion Wastewater Treatment System
The Clarus Fusion Wastewater Treatment System, locally manufactured by Maskam Water, is a drop-in unit that treats both black and grey water. It is designed for use in decentralised applications where the effluent quality needs to meet or exceed DWS standards. It can be used in small- to medium-sized domestic and commercial applications, for example smallholdings, schools, sports fields, and guesthouses.
In terms of treatment, mechanical screening removes suspended inorganic substances, and biological treatment (anaerobic and aerobic processes) removes organic substances, leaving the water clean and safe for non-potable reuse.
Maskam Water's Greywater System is a durable unit that treats greywater for reuse using biological processes. It is fully assembled and ready to drop in on site. The greywater system guarantees low power consumption and requires minimal maintenance.
This system is ideal for watering gardens, for instance, easily linking up with your existing irrigation system.
2. Sewage Water Reuse
Larger and more complex wastewater treatment projects require custom designs. We design and manufacture wastewater treatment plants that not only treat large volumes of greywater to reuse levels, but also residential or commercial sewage water.
These plants range from standard containerised modules to fully customised wastewater treatment plants. Treatment processes include foam fractionators, screening, anaerobic treatment, aeration, ultrafiltration, granular activated carbon filtration, and disinfection.
The treated effluent is suitable for a variety of reuse applications, including irrigation, toilet flushing, industrial cooling, and car washing.
3. Tertiary Treated Effluent Reuse
Tertiary treated effluent – sewage water treated by a tertiary party like the municipality – is an untapped source of available feed water. At WPS, we custom design containerised water treatment systems to meet clients' specific demands. These systems are designed to cater to the variable inputs associated with tertiary treated effluent. They deliver water of a consistent quality, enabling the clients to maintain their high standard of work for which they are known.
Treatment of tertiary treated effluent include processes like oxidation, pH correction, de-chlorination, screening, ultrafiltration, granular activated carbon filtration, reverse osmosis, and disinfection.
4. Industrial Wastewater Reuse
Industrial effluent can be treated for reuse in various industrial applications. Our engineers design autonomous, tailormade wastewater treatment plants to cater to variable inputs and meet clients’ specific requirements.
A combination of filtration and disinfection technologies is typically employed for industrial wastewater reuse. Treatment processes for industrial wastewater reuse include coagulation, screening, micro filtration, nano filtration, reverse osmosis, and disinfection.
Treated wastewater can be used in many industrial applications, such as processing water, cooling water, recirculating cooling towers, making concrete, or washdown water.
In addition, these industrial-scale wastewater treatment plants can also be installed for urban uses. These include, but are not limited to, irrigating sporting facilities, toilet flushing, street cleaning, fire protection systems, vehicle washing, and dust control.
Reusing water rather than letting it go to waste is one of the best ways in which we can conserve water and ensure water security. If you are interested in investing in water reuse, contact us to discuss your needs.