Reducing Wastewater Treatment Burden at St. Joe Container Corporation with Belt Oil Skimming Technology
Improved Oil Separation, Lower Disposal Costs, and Increased Water Reuse Capability
Container and packaging manufacturers use large volumes of water throughout their entire production process. When oils and lubricants enter wastewater streams, they can reduce treatment efficiency, increase disposal costs, and make water recycling difficult.
The Problem: St. Joe Container Corp, a paper mill and converter in College Park, GA, produces roughly 100 tons of corrugated boxes every day. Skip Hogue, maintenance manager at St. Joe, noticed excessive oil in the wastewater discharge from boxboard operations. The oil originated from rolls and bearings on corrugating machines before making its way into the plant’s drainage system, which included a 3-stage collection pit with several weir skimming systems and an underperforming belt skimmer. Because wastewater eventually flowed into the city’s sewage lines, oil contamination was a serious issue.
Furthermore, St. Joe’s skimmed oil is collected and picked up by an oil recycling company, who does not charge for pickup unless there’s a significant amount of sludge in the oil that requires pretreatment before it can be processed. Hogue was concerned about the pickups being an additional expense because “cardboard scrap and starch from the production process ends up in the plant’s drainage water.”
The Challenge: Oil Contamination Increasing Wastewater Treatment Demands
- Oil contamination reducing wastewater quality
- Increased treatment requirements before water could be reused or discharged
- Rising wastewater handling and oil disposal costs
- Greater maintenance demands on treatment equipment
- Need to improve operational efficiency and control costs
The Solution and Measurable Results: Abanaki Model 4 Oil Grabber Improves Wastewater Performance
To address these challenges, St. Joe Container Corp. installed an Abanaki Model 4 Oil Grabber Belt Oil Skimmer. Hogue made the decision to purchase an optional decanter with the skimmer, because it has an additional screen to remove sludge and provides the final separation stage St. Joe needed to stop paying for waste oil pickup. In Hogue’s own words, “since installing the Abanaki unit, we haven’t had to pay to have our waste oil hauled away, and College Park sewage treatment officials are happy with the quality of our water discharge.” He added that the unit has been running successfully for months with minimal attention.
The Model 4 removes floating oil continuously from wastewater surfaces using a belt-and-wiper design that separates oil with minimal water pickup. By removing contamination at the source, the skimmer and decanter helped improve wastewater and waste oil quality before additional treatment or reuse.
Operational improvements and results included:
- Continuous removal of floating oil and hydrocarbons
- Improved wastewater quality before downstream treatment
- Reduced loading on wastewater treatment equipment
- Lower maintenance requirements compared to manual removal methods
- Improved water reuse opportunities within the facility
- Long term, reliable operation with minimal operator attention required
Performance benefits:
- Oil removal rates up to 20 gallons per hour using the Model 4 Oil Grabber
- Potential reduction of oil content to less than 5 ppm, depending on operating conditions
Previously Published in Pollution Engineering
