Leachate Treatment in China: Technologies and Import Opportunities
LEACHATE TREATMENT IN CHINA: TECHNOLOGIES AND IMPORT OPPORTUNITIES INSIDE INDUSTRIAL INFRASTRUCTURE (ICORP) BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE SERIES | AUTUMN 2015 Authors: Evan Press (New York); Ivan Han (Shanghai)
Installment One: Industry Overview
Leachate Treatment in China: Technologies and Import Opportunities
Inside Industrial Infrastructure (ICORP)
Table of Contents Overview _______________________________________________________________________ 3 Regulatory Overview
3
The Standard for Pollution Control on the Landfill Site of Municipal Solid Waste
3
The Technical Guide for the Municipal Solid Waste Landfill Leachate Treatment
3
Market Trends: A Chess Match between Authorities
3
Policy and Investment _____________________________________________________________ 4 The Importance of Pending Policies
4
Leachate Treatment in China ________________________________________________________ 5 Leachate Treatment Technology in the Chinese Market
5
Bio-Pysical Methods
6
Reinjection
6
Activated Sludge
6
Physical-Chemical Methods
7
Two-Pass Reverse Osmosis
7
Advanced Oxidation Process (AOP)
7
Mechanical Vapor Recompression (MVR)
7
Treatment of Leachate from WTE Incineration Power Plants
7
Opportunities for Foreign MBR Technology Suppliers
7
Treatment of Leachate from LandFills
8
Membrane Bioreactor (MBR) Treatment Applied to Landfill Leachate
8
Two-Pass Reverse Osmosis Applied to Landfill Leachate
8
MVR and DI Applied to Landfill Leachate
8
Page 2
ICORP Business Intelligence Series | Autumn 2015
Leachate Treatment in China: Technologies and Import Opportunities
Inside Industrial Infrastructure (ICORP)
Overview The government is slated to invest roughly USD 22.4bn (CNY 140bn) in the waste treatment industry by 20151 and the leachate industry can expect to surge behind these funds. Landfills are the primary means of waste disposal in China and so leachate treatment and environmental protection are crucial. Landfill leachate is one of the fastest growing environmental concerns in China and across the globe with worldwide waste volumes growing at a faster rate than the global population 2 . As a means to combat the growing concern within China the government is requiring all landfills to be equipped with effective leachate treatment systems.
REGULATORY OVERVIEW The Standard for Pollution Control on the Landfill Site of Municipal Solid Waste In 1997 The Chinese Ministry of Environmental Protection (MEP 中华人民共和国环境保护部) introduced the Standard for Pollution Control on the Landfill Site of Municipal Solid Waste ( 生活垃圾填埋场污染控制标准). This was the country’s first pollution control regulation for landfills. In 2008 the standard was revised. In addition to stricter regulations for landfill sites the MEP includes tighter those emissions and treatment standards in the revision. The Technical Guide for the Municipal Solid Waste Landfill Leachate Treatment In recent years the MEP has faced numerous delays in releasing the Technical Guide for the Municipal Solid Waste Landfill Leachate Treatment (生活垃圾填埋场渗滤液污染防治技术政策). In October 2012 this news service uncovered the initial drafting of the guide which was in the consultation phase at this time and became the first service to publish a dedicated piece on this topic3. Since then numerous delays were announced through May 2015. During this time ICORP released four subsequent publications regarding the policy and the delays4. By the time of the second story (23 May 2013) the policy was reportedly in the draft phase and by the time of the third story (09 January 2014) a draft policy was available for public review on government websites. In the most recent ICORP publication the release date had been pushed into 2016.
MARKET TRENDS: A CHESS MATCH BETWEEN AUTHORITIES Two agencies involved in development and implementing leachate treatment regulations are the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development (MOHURD 中 华 人 民 共 和 国 城 乡 与 住 房 建 设 部) and the Ministry of Environmental Protection (MEP 中华人民共和国环境保护部). The MEP focuses on pollution control while the priorities of MOHURD do not reside with the environment. Typically the MEP is charged with drafting environmental protection regulations for leachate treatment however the status of landfills as government infrastructure gives authority to MOHURD for putting the regulations into effect. This will often hinder the progress of the MEP.
1
Infrastructure in China: Sustaining Quality Growth KPMG International Cooperative 2013 Philippe Moulin at al. “Landfill Leachate Treatment: Review and Opportunity” Journal of Hazardous Materials (March 2008) 3 ICORP Proprietary Content Pending Chinese leachate control policy heralds major opportunities for foreign equipment and technology suppliers 25 October 2012 http://pages.iiicorp.com/rs/530-MPS-094/images/0.0.pdf 4 ICORP Proprietary Content [four opportunities published from 2013 to 2015], http://pages.iiicorp.com/rs/530MPS-094/images/1.1.pdf 2
Page 3
ICORP Business Intelligence Series | Autumn 2015
Leachate Treatment in China: Technologies and Import Opportunities
Inside Industrial Infrastructure (ICORP)
Policy and Investment Policy is the pivot point for Chinese industry as it gives heavy influences to the allocation of investments. This is especially true in industries involving pollution control and waste treatment including leachate. Profits are not naturally affected by leachate treatment (unless negligence will affect the value of the site). Therefore economic sanctions must be introduction and enforced in order to incentivize companies to employ effective leachate treatment practices.
THE IMPORTANCE OF PENDING POLICIES Policies not yet published have shown to have as much influence over the leachate treatment industry as those which already exist. As such foreign suppliers of advanced leachate treatment technologies are advised to follow policy developments and have knowledge of how markets tend to react so as to make sound investments ahead in emerging markets ahead of competitors. The importance of pending policies is exemplified by the Technical Guide for the Municipal Solid Waste Landfill Leachate Treatment (生活垃圾填埋场渗滤液污染防治技术政策). The MEP began drafting the guide in 2012 and made a draft public in 2014. As seen in the graphs below a spike in opportunities also representative of the level of investment in equipment and technologies throughout the supply chain occurred in 2014 correlating with the draft release.
TYPICAL WATER TREATMENTS IN COAL-FIRED POWER PLANTS
Source: ICORP Data This reaction from the industry is in the efforts to avoid economic downfall on the back of forthcoming policy via levied fines or the additional costs and risks of rushing to complete upgrade projects after the fines are in place. This also indicates that the commonly held assumption that Chinese regulations are ineffective and largely unenforced is not held with industry decision makers and investments will be made to government requirements.
Page 4
ICORP Business Intelligence Series | Autumn 2015
Leachate Treatment in China: Technologies and Import Opportunities
Inside Industrial Infrastructure (ICORP)
Leachate Treatment in China Biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) chemical oxygen demand (COD) pH suspended solids (SS) and other properties found at Chinese landfill leachate are described in the table below.
CHINESE LANDFILL LEACHATE PROPERTIES5 Location
COD
BOD
BOD/COD
pH
SS
TKN
NH3-N
Young landfills China Hong Kong
15 700
4 200
0.27
7.7
17 000
7 300
0.43
7.0-8.3
>5 000
3 200
2 630 3 000
13 000
5 000
0.38
6.8-9.1
2 000
11 000
11 000
50 000
22 000
0.44
7.8-9.0
2 000
13 000
13 000
China Mainland
1 900-3 180
3 700-8 890
0.36-0.51
7.4-8.5
China Hong Kong
7 439
1 436
0.19
8.22
China Mainland
5 800
430
0.07
7.6
640-1 800
Middle aged landfills 784
All values in mg/L (excluding BOD/COD and pH) China has adopted three primary approaches to treat its waste which includes over 170 million tons of annual living waste output 6 . The country’s adopted systems include landfill incineration and compost with landfill carrying nearly 70% of the burden.
LEACHATE TREATMENT TECHNOLOGY IN THE CHINESE MARKET Below is a ranking of leachate treatment technologies by frequency of adoption in the Chinese market.
LEACHATE TREATMENT TECHNOLOGY ADOPTION RATE (CHINA) MBR
60%
Biochemical aeration basin
3%
Anoxic/Oxic (A/O)
45%
Immobilized microorganism-anaerobic bio-filter
3%
NF
35%
Multiple ecological pond
3%
RO
31%
High efficient bio-filter
3%
Upflow anaerobic sludge bed/blanket (UASB)
22%
Sterilization
2%
DTRO
14%
High pressure
2%
Up-flow blanket filter (UBF)
10%
UF
1%
Anaerobic baffled reactor (ABR)
7%
Oxidation ditch
1%
Contact oxidation
7%
Coagulation and sedimentation
1%
Moving bed biofilm reactor (MBBR)
4%
Cyclic activated sludge system (CASS)
1%
Biological aerated filter (BAF)
4%
Activated carbon filtration
1%
Oxidation pond
3%
Artificial wetland
1%
5
Philippe Moulin at al. “Landfill Leachate Treatment: Review and Opportunity ” Journal of Hazardous Materials (March 2008) 6 As of 2013 Page 5
ICORP Business Intelligence Series | Autumn 2015
Leachate Treatment in China: Technologies and Import Opportunities
Inside Industrial Infrastructure (ICORP)
Leachate treatment approaches in China comprise primarily of biological-physical methods and physical-chemical methods. Biological-physical methods mainly adopt microorganisms for biochemical degradation with subsequent filtration via membranes. Physical-chemical methods use membranes for filtration first with subsequent evaporation. The most widely used filtration technology in biological-physical method and physical-chemical methods are the membrane bio-reactor (MBR) and two pass reverse osmosis (RO) respectively.
BIO-PYSICAL METHODS Reinjection Reinjection is amongst the oldest and most common method used in China for landfill leachate treatment. Through the reinjection of leachate directly into the waste mass decomposition and therefore gas production are accelerated. Some leachate volume is converted to landfill gas reducing the amount of liquid needing further treatment. Despite its advantageous the Chinese recognize a downfall of this method in that it can substantially increase concentrations of contaminants creating a more difficult waste to treat. Activated Sludge Membrane Bioreactor (MBR) MBR treatment is the combination of a membrane process such as microfiltration (MF) or ultrafiltration (UF) with a suspended growth bioreactor. MBR treatment is widely used for wastewater treatment in China including for that of leachate. Effluents from the MBR processes alone will fail to meet the requirements in national standard GB16889-2008 because a COD in the leachate of 300 to 500mg/L cannot be degraded. Thus the output water must go through a further post-treatment polishing via nanofiltration (NF) or RO. For landfill leachate the bioreactor often adopts post-denitrification and two-stage nitrification. For incinerator leachate the bioreactor tends to adopt anaerobic nitrification and denitrification in solution to a high concentration of SS and BOD. The membrane units in an MBR system can be categorized in accordance to their placement as inside style or outside style and in accordance to membrane type as flat-plate MF hollow fiber UF and tubular UF. A flat-plate MF system is set inside a tubular UF is set outside and the hollow fiber UF can be set either inside or outside in accordance with the technical requirements. Traditional activated sludge method Traditional activated sludge treatment requires a large physical footprint and is inclusive of an oxidation ditch sequencing batch reactor (SBR) and other components. Problems with this method can result from NH3-N content and high electroconductibility which can form when leachate remains in landfills for a period greater than three years. These properties may kill microorganism used in activated sludge technology and therefore ammonia stripping pre-treatment and pH adjustment are required as pretreatment. Even with the proper pretreatment output water from traditional activated sludge processes required NF RO activated carbon adsorption and/or deep oxidation as post-treatment to meet requirements stipulated in national standard GB16889-2008.
Page 6
ICORP Business Intelligence Series | Autumn 2015
Leachate Treatment in China: Technologies and Import Opportunities
Inside Industrial Infrastructure (ICORP)
PHYSICAL-CHEMICAL METHODS Two-Pass Reverse Osmosis Two pass reverse osmosis technology are categorized as disc tube reverse osmosis (DTRO) or spacer tube reverse osmosis (STRO) both of which are patented technologies from German-based Rochem. Both are widely used in landfill leachate treatment particularly DTRO which is commonly adopted in north China. Research shows the effectiveness of DTRO and STRO systems with a silting density index (SDI) of approximately 20 compared to that of conventional RO systems which is lower than 5. Another attractive feature of DTRO and STRO technologies is the easily operated mechatronics systems with auto programmable logic controllers (PLCs). The life span of a DTRO one pass and two pass membrane is three years and five years respectively. The disadvantage of the system comes with its cost which can be three times that of a conventional RO system. Rochem sold the DTRO patent to US-based Pall Corporation in the 1980s. In 2002 Pall Corporation’s China branch introduced DTRO technology into the domestic leachate treatment market. Rochem remains as the owner of the STRO patent and authorized agent rights to Chinese firms in 2010. Advanced Oxidation Process (AOP) AOP achieves roughly 60% to 70% COD removal in leachate. However this does not allow effluents to meet applicable standards. Therefore AOP is sometimes used as a pretreatment ahead of biological treatments improving the latter’s efficiency. AOP is generally not used on its own. Mechanical Vapor Recompression (MVR) The MVR process is automatically operated and regardless of the climate and water quality and entails less land resources than other methods. As such MVR is a popular leachate treatment method in China. MVR is a physical separation method which separates the leachate into a majority component of clear liquid and a minority component of turbid liquid. It is in the turbid liquid that much of the pollutants remain. However the clear liquid is not qualified with the COD and NH3-N standards in GB16889-2008. De-ionization (DI) treatments can bring the liquid to within the standards.
TREATMENT OF LEACHATE FROM WTE INCINERATION POWER PLANTS MBR plus membrane filtration is the most frequently used technology in the treatment of leachate generated at waste-to-energy (WTE) incineration facilities. Leachate BOD from incineration plants tends to be high enough that anaerobic nitrification and denitrification pre-treatments are required for MBR process. After the MBR process filtration can be difficult for domestic firms regardless of filter size or system. The two-pass RO method falls short due to its inability to handle the high contents of SS and BOD in the leachate. Opportunities for Foreign MBR Technology Suppliers Construction adjustment and operation is complex. MBR systems are highly sensitive to temperature microorganism activity concentrations and other parameters. Therefore monitoring and operation by experienced personnel is integral. Numerous Chinese companies claim expertise in MBR technology however the claims are often unfounded. This presents an opportunity for foreign firms with experience and expertise to supply systems and provide support at Chinese facilities. Considering the cost of equipment chemicals and other devices the leachate treatment cost is around USD 8.2 (CNY 50) per ton.
Page 7
ICORP Business Intelligence Series | Autumn 2015
Leachate Treatment in China: Technologies and Import Opportunities
Inside Industrial Infrastructure (ICORP)
TREATMENT OF LEACHATE FROM LANDFILLS Compared with landfills overseas landfills in China are larger in size which creates greater leachate volumes than seen elsewhere in many parts of the world. Leachate in a large landfill can reach 1 000 to 2 000 tons per day. Different from leachate at incineration plants leachate at landfills has to be discharged in a timely manner in order not to affect the biological and chemical conditions of the site including for the safety of equipment and personnel. As such its complicated nature results not only from the contents of the landfill waste itself but also from aging wastes buried over time. Leachate in landfill often contains low concentrated BOD and SS with high concentrations of NH3-N. Membrane Bioreactor (MBR) Treatment Applied to Landfill Leachate China used to adopt wastewater treatment technologies used in wastewater treatment plants to treat landfill leachate. However these technologies which include oxidation ditch SBR and others this approach led to tens of failed cases due to the NH3-N concentration and electroconductibility and the low efficiency of the leachate biochemistry. In response the MBR plus membrane process was introduced which does not require the same preanaerobic treatments required to treat leachate from incinerators. Two-Pass Reverse Osmosis Applied to Landfill Leachate Besides MBR method two pass RO (DTRO STRO) is widely used to treat landfill leachate in China which is due to easy operation and stability of the process. Unlike MBR two pass RO does not require temperature control aeration sludge treatment equipment and C-N-P adjustment in dosing. The operation cost of leachate treatment is less than USD 6.6 (CNY 40) per ton and does not require experienced personnel. DTRO is now frequently used in leachate treatment of small landfill with daily leachate treatment capacity 200 tons. In the larger landfills DTRO is adopted to improve MBR method so as to make more output water qualified. STRO is newer in the market with adoption at less than 10 sites. MVR and DI Applied to Landfill Leachate MVR plus DI is a rare technology on trial at a handful of landfills throughout China. There is no concrete evidence of success at this time and more studies are needed. Expert opinions indicate this method only meets leachate treatment needs at small landfills with treatment capacities less than 100 ton/d. MVR plus DI may have a prospective future in concentrate treatment after MBR and two pass RO processes.
Page 8
ICORP Business Intelligence Series | Autumn 2015
Leachate Treatment in China: Technologies and Import Opportunities
Inside Industrial Infrastructure (ICORP)
About ICORP Inside Industrial Infrastructure Inc. (ICORP) was founded by Charlie Welsh, who has over two decades experience in the global M&A capital markets and business news and intelligence fields. ICORP’s commercial headquarters were established in New York in July 2014, after two years of existence as part of The Mergermarket Group, which Charlie co-founded. Its Shanghai-based subsidiary was registered in October 2014, closely followed by a Mumbaibased subsidiary in March 2015. Latin American and broader Southeast Asian coverage is currently being expanded thereby providing companies and financiers with the only truly global emerging infrastructure intelligence product.
For Corporate Customers ICORP gives suppliers and manufacturers the ability to identify opportunities in the energy, water and waste, environmental and industrial technology sectors in Asia and Latin America. This information is invaluable to North American, Japanese and European companies who design, build and supply advanced equipment.
For Credit Investors ICORP’s sourcing and intelligence platform identifies early and growth stage equity opportunities and delivers direct access to unique regional- and sector-focused asset-based transaction flow before it hits the public tender
Inside Industrial Infrastructure Inc. (ICORP) www.iiicorp.com | +1 646 722 2691| [email protected] New York • Shanghai • Mumbai
Copyright © 2015 Inside Industrial Infrastructure Inc. (ICORP), all rights reserved
Page 9
ICORP Business Intelligence Series | Autumn 2015
Installment One: Industry Overview
Leachate Treatment in China: Technologies and Import Opportunities
Inside Industrial Infrastructure (ICORP)
Table of Contents Overview _______________________________________________________________________ 3 Regulatory Overview
3
The Standard for Pollution Control on the Landfill Site of Municipal Solid Waste
3
The Technical Guide for the Municipal Solid Waste Landfill Leachate Treatment
3
Market Trends: A Chess Match between Authorities
3
Policy and Investment _____________________________________________________________ 4 The Importance of Pending Policies
4
Leachate Treatment in China ________________________________________________________ 5 Leachate Treatment Technology in the Chinese Market
5
Bio-Pysical Methods
6
Reinjection
6
Activated Sludge
6
Physical-Chemical Methods
7
Two-Pass Reverse Osmosis
7
Advanced Oxidation Process (AOP)
7
Mechanical Vapor Recompression (MVR)
7
Treatment of Leachate from WTE Incineration Power Plants
7
Opportunities for Foreign MBR Technology Suppliers
7
Treatment of Leachate from LandFills
8
Membrane Bioreactor (MBR) Treatment Applied to Landfill Leachate
8
Two-Pass Reverse Osmosis Applied to Landfill Leachate
8
MVR and DI Applied to Landfill Leachate
8
Page 2
ICORP Business Intelligence Series | Autumn 2015
Leachate Treatment in China: Technologies and Import Opportunities
Inside Industrial Infrastructure (ICORP)
Overview The government is slated to invest roughly USD 22.4bn (CNY 140bn) in the waste treatment industry by 20151 and the leachate industry can expect to surge behind these funds. Landfills are the primary means of waste disposal in China and so leachate treatment and environmental protection are crucial. Landfill leachate is one of the fastest growing environmental concerns in China and across the globe with worldwide waste volumes growing at a faster rate than the global population 2 . As a means to combat the growing concern within China the government is requiring all landfills to be equipped with effective leachate treatment systems.
REGULATORY OVERVIEW The Standard for Pollution Control on the Landfill Site of Municipal Solid Waste In 1997 The Chinese Ministry of Environmental Protection (MEP 中华人民共和国环境保护部) introduced the Standard for Pollution Control on the Landfill Site of Municipal Solid Waste ( 生活垃圾填埋场污染控制标准). This was the country’s first pollution control regulation for landfills. In 2008 the standard was revised. In addition to stricter regulations for landfill sites the MEP includes tighter those emissions and treatment standards in the revision. The Technical Guide for the Municipal Solid Waste Landfill Leachate Treatment In recent years the MEP has faced numerous delays in releasing the Technical Guide for the Municipal Solid Waste Landfill Leachate Treatment (生活垃圾填埋场渗滤液污染防治技术政策). In October 2012 this news service uncovered the initial drafting of the guide which was in the consultation phase at this time and became the first service to publish a dedicated piece on this topic3. Since then numerous delays were announced through May 2015. During this time ICORP released four subsequent publications regarding the policy and the delays4. By the time of the second story (23 May 2013) the policy was reportedly in the draft phase and by the time of the third story (09 January 2014) a draft policy was available for public review on government websites. In the most recent ICORP publication the release date had been pushed into 2016.
MARKET TRENDS: A CHESS MATCH BETWEEN AUTHORITIES Two agencies involved in development and implementing leachate treatment regulations are the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development (MOHURD 中 华 人 民 共 和 国 城 乡 与 住 房 建 设 部) and the Ministry of Environmental Protection (MEP 中华人民共和国环境保护部). The MEP focuses on pollution control while the priorities of MOHURD do not reside with the environment. Typically the MEP is charged with drafting environmental protection regulations for leachate treatment however the status of landfills as government infrastructure gives authority to MOHURD for putting the regulations into effect. This will often hinder the progress of the MEP.
1
Infrastructure in China: Sustaining Quality Growth KPMG International Cooperative 2013 Philippe Moulin at al. “Landfill Leachate Treatment: Review and Opportunity” Journal of Hazardous Materials (March 2008) 3 ICORP Proprietary Content Pending Chinese leachate control policy heralds major opportunities for foreign equipment and technology suppliers 25 October 2012 http://pages.iiicorp.com/rs/530-MPS-094/images/0.0.pdf 4 ICORP Proprietary Content [four opportunities published from 2013 to 2015], http://pages.iiicorp.com/rs/530MPS-094/images/1.1.pdf 2
Page 3
ICORP Business Intelligence Series | Autumn 2015
Leachate Treatment in China: Technologies and Import Opportunities
Inside Industrial Infrastructure (ICORP)
Policy and Investment Policy is the pivot point for Chinese industry as it gives heavy influences to the allocation of investments. This is especially true in industries involving pollution control and waste treatment including leachate. Profits are not naturally affected by leachate treatment (unless negligence will affect the value of the site). Therefore economic sanctions must be introduction and enforced in order to incentivize companies to employ effective leachate treatment practices.
THE IMPORTANCE OF PENDING POLICIES Policies not yet published have shown to have as much influence over the leachate treatment industry as those which already exist. As such foreign suppliers of advanced leachate treatment technologies are advised to follow policy developments and have knowledge of how markets tend to react so as to make sound investments ahead in emerging markets ahead of competitors. The importance of pending policies is exemplified by the Technical Guide for the Municipal Solid Waste Landfill Leachate Treatment (生活垃圾填埋场渗滤液污染防治技术政策). The MEP began drafting the guide in 2012 and made a draft public in 2014. As seen in the graphs below a spike in opportunities also representative of the level of investment in equipment and technologies throughout the supply chain occurred in 2014 correlating with the draft release.
TYPICAL WATER TREATMENTS IN COAL-FIRED POWER PLANTS
Source: ICORP Data This reaction from the industry is in the efforts to avoid economic downfall on the back of forthcoming policy via levied fines or the additional costs and risks of rushing to complete upgrade projects after the fines are in place. This also indicates that the commonly held assumption that Chinese regulations are ineffective and largely unenforced is not held with industry decision makers and investments will be made to government requirements.
Page 4
ICORP Business Intelligence Series | Autumn 2015
Leachate Treatment in China: Technologies and Import Opportunities
Inside Industrial Infrastructure (ICORP)
Leachate Treatment in China Biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) chemical oxygen demand (COD) pH suspended solids (SS) and other properties found at Chinese landfill leachate are described in the table below.
CHINESE LANDFILL LEACHATE PROPERTIES5 Location
COD
BOD
BOD/COD
pH
SS
TKN
NH3-N
Young landfills China Hong Kong
15 700
4 200
0.27
7.7
17 000
7 300
0.43
7.0-8.3
>5 000
3 200
2 630 3 000
13 000
5 000
0.38
6.8-9.1
2 000
11 000
11 000
50 000
22 000
0.44
7.8-9.0
2 000
13 000
13 000
China Mainland
1 900-3 180
3 700-8 890
0.36-0.51
7.4-8.5
China Hong Kong
7 439
1 436
0.19
8.22
China Mainland
5 800
430
0.07
7.6
640-1 800
Middle aged landfills 784
All values in mg/L (excluding BOD/COD and pH) China has adopted three primary approaches to treat its waste which includes over 170 million tons of annual living waste output 6 . The country’s adopted systems include landfill incineration and compost with landfill carrying nearly 70% of the burden.
LEACHATE TREATMENT TECHNOLOGY IN THE CHINESE MARKET Below is a ranking of leachate treatment technologies by frequency of adoption in the Chinese market.
LEACHATE TREATMENT TECHNOLOGY ADOPTION RATE (CHINA) MBR
60%
Biochemical aeration basin
3%
Anoxic/Oxic (A/O)
45%
Immobilized microorganism-anaerobic bio-filter
3%
NF
35%
Multiple ecological pond
3%
RO
31%
High efficient bio-filter
3%
Upflow anaerobic sludge bed/blanket (UASB)
22%
Sterilization
2%
DTRO
14%
High pressure
2%
Up-flow blanket filter (UBF)
10%
UF
1%
Anaerobic baffled reactor (ABR)
7%
Oxidation ditch
1%
Contact oxidation
7%
Coagulation and sedimentation
1%
Moving bed biofilm reactor (MBBR)
4%
Cyclic activated sludge system (CASS)
1%
Biological aerated filter (BAF)
4%
Activated carbon filtration
1%
Oxidation pond
3%
Artificial wetland
1%
5
Philippe Moulin at al. “Landfill Leachate Treatment: Review and Opportunity ” Journal of Hazardous Materials (March 2008) 6 As of 2013 Page 5
ICORP Business Intelligence Series | Autumn 2015
Leachate Treatment in China: Technologies and Import Opportunities
Inside Industrial Infrastructure (ICORP)
Leachate treatment approaches in China comprise primarily of biological-physical methods and physical-chemical methods. Biological-physical methods mainly adopt microorganisms for biochemical degradation with subsequent filtration via membranes. Physical-chemical methods use membranes for filtration first with subsequent evaporation. The most widely used filtration technology in biological-physical method and physical-chemical methods are the membrane bio-reactor (MBR) and two pass reverse osmosis (RO) respectively.
BIO-PYSICAL METHODS Reinjection Reinjection is amongst the oldest and most common method used in China for landfill leachate treatment. Through the reinjection of leachate directly into the waste mass decomposition and therefore gas production are accelerated. Some leachate volume is converted to landfill gas reducing the amount of liquid needing further treatment. Despite its advantageous the Chinese recognize a downfall of this method in that it can substantially increase concentrations of contaminants creating a more difficult waste to treat. Activated Sludge Membrane Bioreactor (MBR) MBR treatment is the combination of a membrane process such as microfiltration (MF) or ultrafiltration (UF) with a suspended growth bioreactor. MBR treatment is widely used for wastewater treatment in China including for that of leachate. Effluents from the MBR processes alone will fail to meet the requirements in national standard GB16889-2008 because a COD in the leachate of 300 to 500mg/L cannot be degraded. Thus the output water must go through a further post-treatment polishing via nanofiltration (NF) or RO. For landfill leachate the bioreactor often adopts post-denitrification and two-stage nitrification. For incinerator leachate the bioreactor tends to adopt anaerobic nitrification and denitrification in solution to a high concentration of SS and BOD. The membrane units in an MBR system can be categorized in accordance to their placement as inside style or outside style and in accordance to membrane type as flat-plate MF hollow fiber UF and tubular UF. A flat-plate MF system is set inside a tubular UF is set outside and the hollow fiber UF can be set either inside or outside in accordance with the technical requirements. Traditional activated sludge method Traditional activated sludge treatment requires a large physical footprint and is inclusive of an oxidation ditch sequencing batch reactor (SBR) and other components. Problems with this method can result from NH3-N content and high electroconductibility which can form when leachate remains in landfills for a period greater than three years. These properties may kill microorganism used in activated sludge technology and therefore ammonia stripping pre-treatment and pH adjustment are required as pretreatment. Even with the proper pretreatment output water from traditional activated sludge processes required NF RO activated carbon adsorption and/or deep oxidation as post-treatment to meet requirements stipulated in national standard GB16889-2008.
Page 6
ICORP Business Intelligence Series | Autumn 2015
Leachate Treatment in China: Technologies and Import Opportunities
Inside Industrial Infrastructure (ICORP)
PHYSICAL-CHEMICAL METHODS Two-Pass Reverse Osmosis Two pass reverse osmosis technology are categorized as disc tube reverse osmosis (DTRO) or spacer tube reverse osmosis (STRO) both of which are patented technologies from German-based Rochem. Both are widely used in landfill leachate treatment particularly DTRO which is commonly adopted in north China. Research shows the effectiveness of DTRO and STRO systems with a silting density index (SDI) of approximately 20 compared to that of conventional RO systems which is lower than 5. Another attractive feature of DTRO and STRO technologies is the easily operated mechatronics systems with auto programmable logic controllers (PLCs). The life span of a DTRO one pass and two pass membrane is three years and five years respectively. The disadvantage of the system comes with its cost which can be three times that of a conventional RO system. Rochem sold the DTRO patent to US-based Pall Corporation in the 1980s. In 2002 Pall Corporation’s China branch introduced DTRO technology into the domestic leachate treatment market. Rochem remains as the owner of the STRO patent and authorized agent rights to Chinese firms in 2010. Advanced Oxidation Process (AOP) AOP achieves roughly 60% to 70% COD removal in leachate. However this does not allow effluents to meet applicable standards. Therefore AOP is sometimes used as a pretreatment ahead of biological treatments improving the latter’s efficiency. AOP is generally not used on its own. Mechanical Vapor Recompression (MVR) The MVR process is automatically operated and regardless of the climate and water quality and entails less land resources than other methods. As such MVR is a popular leachate treatment method in China. MVR is a physical separation method which separates the leachate into a majority component of clear liquid and a minority component of turbid liquid. It is in the turbid liquid that much of the pollutants remain. However the clear liquid is not qualified with the COD and NH3-N standards in GB16889-2008. De-ionization (DI) treatments can bring the liquid to within the standards.
TREATMENT OF LEACHATE FROM WTE INCINERATION POWER PLANTS MBR plus membrane filtration is the most frequently used technology in the treatment of leachate generated at waste-to-energy (WTE) incineration facilities. Leachate BOD from incineration plants tends to be high enough that anaerobic nitrification and denitrification pre-treatments are required for MBR process. After the MBR process filtration can be difficult for domestic firms regardless of filter size or system. The two-pass RO method falls short due to its inability to handle the high contents of SS and BOD in the leachate. Opportunities for Foreign MBR Technology Suppliers Construction adjustment and operation is complex. MBR systems are highly sensitive to temperature microorganism activity concentrations and other parameters. Therefore monitoring and operation by experienced personnel is integral. Numerous Chinese companies claim expertise in MBR technology however the claims are often unfounded. This presents an opportunity for foreign firms with experience and expertise to supply systems and provide support at Chinese facilities. Considering the cost of equipment chemicals and other devices the leachate treatment cost is around USD 8.2 (CNY 50) per ton.
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ICORP Business Intelligence Series | Autumn 2015
Leachate Treatment in China: Technologies and Import Opportunities
Inside Industrial Infrastructure (ICORP)
TREATMENT OF LEACHATE FROM LANDFILLS Compared with landfills overseas landfills in China are larger in size which creates greater leachate volumes than seen elsewhere in many parts of the world. Leachate in a large landfill can reach 1 000 to 2 000 tons per day. Different from leachate at incineration plants leachate at landfills has to be discharged in a timely manner in order not to affect the biological and chemical conditions of the site including for the safety of equipment and personnel. As such its complicated nature results not only from the contents of the landfill waste itself but also from aging wastes buried over time. Leachate in landfill often contains low concentrated BOD and SS with high concentrations of NH3-N. Membrane Bioreactor (MBR) Treatment Applied to Landfill Leachate China used to adopt wastewater treatment technologies used in wastewater treatment plants to treat landfill leachate. However these technologies which include oxidation ditch SBR and others this approach led to tens of failed cases due to the NH3-N concentration and electroconductibility and the low efficiency of the leachate biochemistry. In response the MBR plus membrane process was introduced which does not require the same preanaerobic treatments required to treat leachate from incinerators. Two-Pass Reverse Osmosis Applied to Landfill Leachate Besides MBR method two pass RO (DTRO STRO) is widely used to treat landfill leachate in China which is due to easy operation and stability of the process. Unlike MBR two pass RO does not require temperature control aeration sludge treatment equipment and C-N-P adjustment in dosing. The operation cost of leachate treatment is less than USD 6.6 (CNY 40) per ton and does not require experienced personnel. DTRO is now frequently used in leachate treatment of small landfill with daily leachate treatment capacity 200 tons. In the larger landfills DTRO is adopted to improve MBR method so as to make more output water qualified. STRO is newer in the market with adoption at less than 10 sites. MVR and DI Applied to Landfill Leachate MVR plus DI is a rare technology on trial at a handful of landfills throughout China. There is no concrete evidence of success at this time and more studies are needed. Expert opinions indicate this method only meets leachate treatment needs at small landfills with treatment capacities less than 100 ton/d. MVR plus DI may have a prospective future in concentrate treatment after MBR and two pass RO processes.
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ICORP Business Intelligence Series | Autumn 2015
Leachate Treatment in China: Technologies and Import Opportunities
Inside Industrial Infrastructure (ICORP)
About ICORP Inside Industrial Infrastructure Inc. (ICORP) was founded by Charlie Welsh, who has over two decades experience in the global M&A capital markets and business news and intelligence fields. ICORP’s commercial headquarters were established in New York in July 2014, after two years of existence as part of The Mergermarket Group, which Charlie co-founded. Its Shanghai-based subsidiary was registered in October 2014, closely followed by a Mumbaibased subsidiary in March 2015. Latin American and broader Southeast Asian coverage is currently being expanded thereby providing companies and financiers with the only truly global emerging infrastructure intelligence product.
For Corporate Customers ICORP gives suppliers and manufacturers the ability to identify opportunities in the energy, water and waste, environmental and industrial technology sectors in Asia and Latin America. This information is invaluable to North American, Japanese and European companies who design, build and supply advanced equipment.
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ICORP Business Intelligence Series | Autumn 2015
