A Study of Car Wash Wastewater Treatment by Cyclo-Flow Filtration

Abstract

With the increase in transportation demand and facilities in this era and the significant improvement in people’s living standards, the annual production and sales of vehicles are steadily increasing. With this, the issues of car wash wastewater treatment and water pollution are becoming more and more serious. Car wash wastewater mainly comprises fine sand, slick oil, suspended solids (SS), and surfactants, and can be quantified as chemical oxygen demand (COD) on a normative basis. This study examines the use of cyclo-flow filtration with high filtrate flux to treat car wash wastewater to solve issue of limited space in metropolitan areas and increase the willingness of the industry to invest in car wash equipment to recover water resources. The average removal rates of SS and COD are about 81% and 43%, respectively. Compared with current technology, the price of recycled water can compensate for operating costs, requiring minimal operating space owing to the single-unit cyclo-flow filtration system.

Electrocoagulation Process as a Consolidated Technology in the Treatment of Industrial Effluents and as a Promising Process in the Treatment of Effluents Generated by Car Washes: A Brief Review

“…Therefore, the treatment of these effluents has become an eminent need on a global scale. 28,29 Was reported that 30 by 2020, there were estimated to be 1.5 billion vehicles on the planet; and, if they were washed just once a month, 1.8 billion tons of wastewater would be generated from the water used in these operations, enough to serve 33 million people and costing $1.8 billion annually. The authors highlight that this volume represents the total consumption of the population of Malaysia, Venezuela, the Republic of Ghana, Oceania (including Australia and New Zealand), or the combined population of Denmark, Norway, Switzerland, Finland, and Iceland.…”

“…In the last two decades, the increase in transport facilities and the improvement of the standard of living of people have driven the acquisition of vehicles and, with this, the vehicle wash activities have increased expressively and, consequently, the volume of effluents generated in this activity has increased expressively. Therefore, the treatment of these effluents has become an eminent need on a global scale. , Was reported that by 2020, there were estimated to be 1.5 billion vehicles on the planet; and, if they were washed just once a month, 1.8 billion tons of wastewater would be generated from the water used in these operations, enough to serve 33 million people and costing $1.8 billion annually. The authors highlight that this volume represents the total consumption of the population of Malaysia, Venezuela, the Republic of Ghana, Oceania (including Australia and New Zealand), or the combined population of Denmark, Norway, Switzerland, Finland, and Iceland.…”

Carwash Oily Wastewater Separated by Ultrafiltration

“…It should be noted that the remaining oil content is small, and standards are usually met, allowing for such pre-treated wastewater to be discharged to the municipal sewage treatment plant. According to the requirements of some countries, a significant portion of the water should be treated and returned to car washing [21,22]. In this case, the application of the UF process is recommended.…”

Effects of Alkaline Cleaning Agents on the Long-Term Performance and Aging of Polyethersulfone Ultrafiltration Membranes Applied for Treatment of Car Wash Wastewater

“…More than 100–200 L of water is used to wash a car, which gives an annual worldwide consumption of millions of cubic meters [ 5 , 8 ]. For this reason, in some countries, legal regulations require that 40–80% of the water should be recovered for washing cars [ 9 , 10 ]. Such possibilities are created by membrane processes [ 8 , 11 , 12 ], which also allow the construction of small installations that can be used in manual car washes.…”