Zero Liquid Discharge Optimization at ArcelorMittal’s Plant

Transforming ZLD for a major steel producer 

Africa’s largest steel producer, ArcelorMittal South Africa, needed to mitigate operational inefficiencies associated with the reverse osmosis (RO) portion of its Zero Liquid Discharge (ZLD) plant at its Vanderbijlpark manufacturing facility.

Working with Veolia Water Technologies, DuPont Water Solutions recommended a two-stage approach incorporating its latest generation, fouling-resistant RO membrane technology to help improve the reliability of the system and reduce the need for costly shutdowns and cleaning.

The solution uses FilmTec™ Fortilife™ CR100 membranes for the first stage, followed by FilmTec™ ECO PRO-400 membranes for the second stage, and these were installed in tandem with similar products from a competitor. The results were then analyzed after one year when it was shown that DuPont Water Solutions’ technologies provided significant savings over the alternatives.

Despite dynamic feedwater qualities – averaging more than 6000 µS/cm and high TOC – the FilmTec™ membranes proved capable of withstanding fluctuations. Both the FilmTec™ Fortilife™ and FilmTec™ ECO technologies reduced cleaning frequency requirements and increased water recovery while improving energy efficiency.

Find out more about how DuPont’s high-performance technology has improved the reliability of operations and transformed total water costs for ArcelorMittal South Africa.