Improvements in Industrial Liquid Effluent Measurement - Research Paper Example

Directional Research on Improvements in Industrial Liquid Effluent Measurement Address Telephone No E-mail id The aim of this proposal is to put in place suitable systems, for ensuring appropriate technology and cost effective measurement of industrial effluents. This research would be carried out within a selected plant. To begin with, the existing systems would be examined. Simultaneously, a survey of the practices in place, in like industries, would be taken up. Also, the EPA guidelines and recommendations would be studied. Indicative details of the various manufacturers, their credentials, brand image, after sales service effectiveness etc. would be gathered and examined. The next phase would essentially be one of optimization. Various information obtained, would be examined for their correlation, conflict and proper matching. Finally, the resulting set of solutions would ensure systems and procedures - for putting in place safe, dependable and lasting measurement techniques. Additionally, proper instruments would be selected for the given plant. These solutions would facilitate a broader research, in future. Contents Subjects Page No I. Introduction 3 II. Technical Description of Problem 3 a. Methods of testing 4 b. Efficacy of statistical support analysis 4 c. Selection of instruments of measurement 4 III. Proposed solution 5 a. Methods of testing 6 b. Efficacy of statistical support analysis 7 c. Selection of instruments of measurement 9 IV. Concluding Remarks – benefits and advantages of this proposal 10 References 10 Tables 1. Brief description of activities, time & budget 5 2. Recording of sample properties 8 3. Items detected at different wavelengths 9 Charts 1. PERT Chart 6 2. Comparison of permissible & actual values 8 I. Introduction Industrial effluents are a major source of water contamination all over the world. In USA, stringent laws to control effluent discharge from industries are in place. Even then, the pollution levels of various water bodies are unsatisfactory. The National Water Quality Inventory: Report to Congress for the 2002 Reporting Cycle, mentions that of the total assessed miles 45% of streams, 47% of lakes and 32% of bays and estuarine square miles were not clean enough for supporting fishing and swimming. The report goes on to conclude that “excess levels of nutrients, metals (primarily mercury), sediment and organic enrichment”[1] were leading causes of pollution and that industry is a top source of contaminants. If anything, one may expect more stringent measures from the regulatory bodies, in the years to come. With this background in mind, all concerned would be compelled to search for more and more technology and cost effective methods, for controlling effluent discharges. A very important component of the control mechanism is measurement. As such concentrated research, on methods and instruments of measurement, is imperative. It is proposed that the 10 week period would be devoted to research for developing improved practices for data collection & analysis as also identification of proper measuring instruments, to solve the problem of a particular plant. The findings then may be tried out in other plants, to establish their universal applicability – though that would be in the scope of a much broader study in future. II. Technical Description of Problem The problems of measurement of effluent constituents are primarily associated with: Methods of testing Efficacy of statistical support analysis, and Selection of instruments of measurement Let us now examine the details of the problems: a. Methods of testing EPA mentioned methods, for measuring the acute toxicity of effluents, stipulate that, “The selection of the test type will depend on the NPDES permit requirements, the objectives of the test, the available resources, the requirements of the test organisms, and effluent characteristics such as fluctuations in effluent toxicity.” [2] Depending on the above, the types of tests to be employed would be chosen from: STATIC NON-RENEWAL TESTS STATIC-RENEWAL, ACUTE TOXICITY TESTS FLOW-THROUGH TESTS b. Efficacy of statistical support analysis The associated problems would arise from Data Collection Data Review Data Types Data Analysis c. Selection of instruments of measurement Depending on the methods of testing to be employed and types of statistical documents to be prepared, proper selection of instruments would be made. The selected instruments would measure : Physical pollutants - primarily solid concentration, turbidity and temperature. Chemical pollutants– both organic & inorganic compounds using methods e.g. Acidity(pH), Biological Oxygen demand (BOD), Chemical Oxygen demand(COD), nutrients, metals, oil and grease, total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPH) and pesticides. Biological pollutants - plant, animal, and/or microbial indicators. It needs to be established that whether the concerned plant has optimized these, often conflicting, factors or not and whether or not its selection of testing methods, procedures & techniques of record keeping & analysis as also selection of instruments are correct. Once the above complexities are looked at in an organized manner and optimized, the plant would ensure itself of a cost effective and technologically sound pollution measurement system. III. Proposed solution An overview, of the basic activities, estimation of time required and planned expenses, is given in the table & PERT chart shown below: Table - 1 Brief description of activities, time & budget Activity Brief description Estd. Time in week Budget $ X1000 Dependent on A Overall study of the present system followed by the plant 0.50 0.50 B Study of specific methodology followed in sample collection 0.25 0.25 A C Study of specific methodology followed in data analysis 0.25 0.25 A D Study of existing instrumentation details 0.30 0.35 A E Collection of information on practices in similar industries 5.00 4.00 F Solution for improvements in sample collection 2.00 0.75 B,E G Solution for improvements in data analysis 1.50 0.50 C,E H Solution for improvements in instrumentation 3.00 1.25 D,E I Preparation of report & presentation 2.00 1.25 F,G,H Notes: 1. Whenever, information from external sources is to be obtained, it is likely to be relatively more time consuming and costlier. More so, because some travelling would be involved. 2. A provision of $900 has been considered for unforeseen and miscellaneous reasons. 3.Usual plant laboratory facilities available would be sufficient for this research. Chart – 1 PERT CHART Legend: Note: From the PERT chart it is clear that the critical path E-H-I shows that 10 weeks time would be sufficient to execute this proposal and that the critical path includes examination of external agency related and instrumentation related activities. a. Methods of testing I propose that the solution lies in selecting cost-effective and convenient methods, while satisfying the basic guidelines recommended by EPA. The important EPA recommended general administrative requirements are as follows: 1. The document should be correctly classified as a proposed or final permit in the title. 2. The document should contain each of the preamble elements e.g. agency, action, summary, dates, addresses, for further information contact and supplementary information. 3. The SUMMARY should state in a sentence or two what youre doing, why youre doing it, and the intended effect of the action. 4. The pages should be numbered at the top. 5. The document should be double spaced and printed in 12 pitch. 6. All signatures should be followed by a signature block etc.[3] Examination of the permit requirements in hand and the response documents of the plant concerned would be carried out, in the light of the above guidelines. This examination would also involve comparison with the response methodology of other similar plants. The stage is now set for selection of the exact types of tests to be carried out. The decision in this respect would depend on balancing the need for accuracy and cost of study. Static non-renewal test is the cheapest, Static renewal test is moderately costly and Flow through test is the most costly one. However, possibility of dissolved oxygen depletion (DO) due to high chemical oxygen demand (COD) and/or biological oxygen demand (BOD) or ill effects from metabolic wastes from organisms in the test solution would be minimum in flow through test, moderate in static renewal test and the most in static non-renewal test. After giving due consideration to the above conflicting factors and after providing due consideration for the prevailing practices in like industries, a proper decision would be taken. The points to be considered are as follows: Computation of Cost of carrying out each type of study and comparison with similar costs incurred in like industries. Assessment of oxygen depletion possibility in each type of study and comparison with standard published data. b. Efficacy of statistical support analysis I propose that the solution lies in developing an efficient system of data collection, handling and more importantly data analysis, which would enable predictability of the future occurrences and prompt management to take preemptive action. A table would be filled in with sufficient number of grab samples. The table for a typical situation is shown below: Table – 2 Recording of sample properties Sample No Date Time Sample Quality Mg/l Acidity Microorganisms, Dissolved organics etc. Dissolved metals & salts Dissolved metals &metalloids Other items pH Oil & Grease B O D C O D Susp. Solids Sodium Chlori de Ca l c i um Magnecium P otassium Manganese L ea d Mercury Arsenic Zinc Ni c k e l Co p p e r This activity commences with the collection of effluent samples. First the sampling point has to be decided and would be as specified in the NPDES discharge permit (USEPA,1979c). We are interested in samples which are not chlorinated and therefore, care has to be taken that the collection point is before water comes into contact with chlorine. Similarly, other necessary precautions for avoiding contamination/distortion by alien sources, convenience of collection etc. would have to be taken. For each pollutant a graph, as shown below would be drawn. Chart – 2 Comparison of permissible & actual values Q X T X X X Y X X X SAMPLE NO Legend: Line showing EPA limit Line of Regression X X X Represents observed values from samples When the pollutant remains within the permissible limit, there are 3 different possibilities: The purple line closing on the red line. This situation requires more stringent effluent control. The purple line diverging from the red line. Here, cost control is possible since pollutant level may be allowed to increase. The purple line is parallel to the red line. Here, cost control is possible by reducing the gap thus allowing some increase in pollutant level. c. Selection of instruments of measurement I propose that the solution lies in developing a system for optimizing cost effectiveness of various types of measuring instruments available in the market for the same purpose, after scrutinizing various technologies, manufacturers and industry practices. The claims of the leading manufacturers would be examined, in this respect. An overview is presented below from one such manufacturer’s range of products[4]: 1. Applications of Optical Measurement Technology: Various features e.g. absorption, refraction, scattering and coloring associated with light are made use of in this technology. The wavelengths used varies from ultraviolet to infrared. Organic pollutants can also be measured by optical measuring instruments. Table – 3 Items detected at different wavelengths Wavelength(nm)200 400 500 700 1000 2.Applications of Electrochemical Measurement Technology: Various types of sensors e.g. potentiometric, voltammetric and electrical conductivity based are used in this case. 3.Resistivity Converter: Resistivity is a basic index used to check the purity of water. 4.High-sensitivity silica monitor: Detects trace amount of silica ions in ultrapure water. IV. Concluding Remarks This paper identifies an area which is vital for the control of hazardous industrial liquid effluents i.e. measurement of effluents. It then focuses on the crucial areas where improvements can be done and at the same time cost can be saved. NSERC should fund this project, since it offers an inexpensive approach by a qualified individual to solve this problem. There can be other ways of looking at it e.g. improvements in the design of measuring instruments. The methodology proposed in this paper would be both less costly and less time consuming than such an approach. Moreover, the solutions suggested in this paper would actually educate the plant operators in understanding and actually participating in solving the associated problems. Thus the benefit of this research does not only end at improving the systems but actually leaving the plant operators with a sense of participation, with its long lasting benefits to the society at large. References [1] (2007, Oct.).The National Water Quality Inventory: Report to Congress for the 2002 Reporting Cycle – A Profile, USEPA Office of Water EPA 841-F-07-003, pp.1. [Online]. Available: http://www.epa.gov/owow/305b/2002report/factsheet2002305b.pdf [2] (2002,Oct.).Methods for Measuring the Acute Toxicity of Effluents and Receiving Waters to Freshwater and Marine Organisms.(5th Edition). U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Office of Water (4303T)1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20460, pp. 2-3. [Online]. Available: http://water.epa.gov/scitech/swguidance/methods/wet/upload/2007_07_10_methods_wet_disk2_atx.pdf [3] United States Environmental Protection Agency Washington D.C. 20460, Office of Water, pp. 3. [Online].Available: http://www.epa.gov/npdes/pubs/owm0437.pdf [4] K. Sasaki, R. Suzuki and K. Uchimurahttp. COS’s Fundamental Technologies and Product Development.[Online]. Available: http://www.horiba.com/uploads/media/RE06-11-054.pdf Read More