Treatment of vegetable oil refinery wastewater using alumina ceramic membrane: optimization using response surface methodology

• Published in: Journal of cleaner production Vol. 112; pp. 3132 - 3137
• Main Authors: Šereš, Zita, Maravić, Nikola, Takači, Aleksandar, Nikolić, Ivana, Šoronja-Simović, Dragana, Jokić, Aleksandar, Hodur, Cecilia
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier Ltd 20.01.2016
• Subjects: Chemical oxygen demand; Edible oil; Microfiltration; Response surface methodology; Wastewater; Microfiltration; Response surface methodology; Wastewater; Edible oil; Chemical oxygen demand
• ISSN: 0959-6526; 1879-1786
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jclepro.2015.10.070

New regulations in environment protection and increasing market demands for “green” companies are forcing the industry to consider finding new and sustainable methods of wastewater treatment. The valuable information regarding treatment of the wastewater from the edible oil industry is presented in this research. The obtained results confirm a promising application of the third generation membranes, comprised of ceramic material (aluminium oxide), in treatment of wastewater from the edible oil industry. Positive results regarding chemical oxygen demand reduction and turbidity removal were noticed. Permeate flux values were used for process optimization in order to achieve a cost-effective process. Response surface methodology was used for the experimental design. The effects of wastewater temperature, transmembrane pressure, and feed-flow rate on the microfiltration model fit were studied. The experiments showed that microfiltration of this type of wastewater is a convenient technique for a possible large scale industrial application as a secondary step in treating wastewater from the oilseed processing facilities. •Research presents microfiltration of wastewater using alumina ceramic membrane.•Effects of all parameters were evaluated using Response Surface Methodology.•Optimal conditions for maximizing response yields were determined.•Positive effects regarding chemical oxygen demand reduction were noticed.