Wastewater Treatment Methods for Effluents from the Confectionery Industry – an Overview

Abstract

Wastewater from the confectionery industry is characterized by daily and seasonal variability of composition and quantity which adversely affects the process of their disposal. Confectionery plants discharge about 300-500 m 3 per month of technological wastewater. Sewage from the confectionery industry belongs to biologically degradable. It is characterized by high values of chemical oxygen demand (COD) and biological oxygen demand (BOD). The article reviews various methods used to treat wastewater from the confectionery industry. Attention was paid to the applicability of a particular method, its advantages and disadvantages and the costs of implementation. The technology of industrial wastewater treatment uses both mechanical and physicochemical methods as well as biological ones. Techniques of sewage treatment usually consist of several stages which use different processes. Low-cost materials such as natural minerals, agricultural waste, industrial waste, biosorbents, and others contribute to the improvement of aerobic sewage conditions. The main weakness of typical sewage treatment plants is their large area, high investment, and exploitation costs. Therefore, a good solution may be the use of the membrane biological reactor which combines the classical technique of activated sludge and filtration on micro-filtering membranes.