Ceramic Membrane Technology to Remove Persistent Solids from Wastewater
Dardanup Butchering Company (DBC), a multi-species abattoir near Picton in Western Australia, produces large volumes of wastewater that must be treated to an acceptable level before it can be reused to irrigate land or sent to sewer.
The site's existing treatment removed phosphorus well but left behind a build-up of chemical sludge that fouled the irrigation pond over a period, causing water-quality problems.
This project set out to test whether new treatment technology could remove residual suspended solids and phosphorus more to the required levels, while also turning the leftover sludge into a useful, reusable product.
The project installed and operated a ceramic membrane filter - a fine barrier that strains solids out of water - and dewatering equipment, then compared it against a simpler gravity-based settling tank (a radial flow settler). Treated water and sludge were sampled regularly and analysed by an accredited laboratory over more than three years.
The project demonstrates that, for many Australian red meat processors, a well-designed settling tank may offer a simpler, more reliable and lower cost alternative to membrane filtration, especially where wastewater quality is highly variable.
