Flotation Sludge
Worldwide, enormous streams of waste are generated by the meat processing industry. Although the waste water is still heavily contaminated with biological material, it still contains a good proportion of usable fats and proteins which it is worth obtaining on economic grounds. GEA Westfalia Separator offers a sophisticated process which is both ecologically and economically convincing.
Treatment of flotation sludge
Waste water containing fat and protein is precipitated in the flotation unit in the form of flotation sludge which floats towards the top. A skimmer then removes the floating sludge off the surface of the water. The next process stage heats it to around 90 °C. This coagulates the proteins and the fat is released. A 3-phase decanter can now separate the sludge into its fat, solids and water components. The water phase can be used for preheating the product, for the pre-heating stage and on to flotation on the countercurrent principle. It is possible to polish the fat recovered in a separator and to subsequently trade it as technical fat. The waste water, freed of fat and solids, can now be passed to the biological waste water treatment system. Due to the recovery of fat and the reduced amount of sludge to be further treated, there is a dual advantage for 3-phase decanters. If there is no free fat in the waste water, an alternative is to use a clarifier to reduce significantly the quantity of sludge arising.