SUEK - Wastewater treatment of pit water from a coal mine commences operation
The Envochem® wastewater treatment plant has been designed as a two-line system, where each line has a hydraulic performance of 200 m3/h. The pit water produced as a result of coal extraction is contaminated with suspended coal particles, heavy metals and oil products.
Coagulation, hydrophobization of the coal particles and flocculation is carried out in the three flow-through reactors. The subsequent separation of the flocculated solid matter takes place using Flomar flotation plants. The separated sludge from the flotation plant is dewatered using a filter press and then disposed of. As a final purification stage after flotation, the wastewater is cleaned via disc filters and after UV disinfection, it is discharged into the river. A portion of the purified wastewater is reused as process water in production.
EnviroChemie's services in this area cover the entire planning, supply of mechanical and electrical equipment, as well as assembly and commissioning.
The plant commenced operation in September 2013 and meets all official requirements. The main benefits of the plant technology are a high level of operational safety and a large degree of tolerance to changes in wastewater volume and composition. Since the new wastewater treatment plant has been in operation, SUEK no longer needs to treat sludge on a 13-hectare site, which was previously used as a sediment reservoir.
Anatoly A. Meshkov, technical director at SUEK-Kuzbass summarizes the achievement as follows: "The new wastewater treatment plant accomplishes two tasks. Firstly, the new wastewater technology enables water of drinking-water quality to be released into the river. Secondly, a portion of the water can be returned to the mine to be used in the technology process."