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Responding to the Environmental

Challenge

Pakistan's Sugar
Industry
www.cpp.org.pk/etpibrchr/brochure-sugar.pdf
Profile
The Environmental Challenge
Technologies of Change
Recommendations for Pakistan's Sugar Sector

Profile
At the time of Pakistan's independence in 1947 there were only two sugar mills in the country with
a total production of 7,932 tons during the season of 1947-48. Today there are 75 sugar mills in
the country and has produced 2.4 million metric tons sugar during the year 1997-98.

Apart from the four mills located in the North West Frontier Province which are based on sugar
beet, all others use sugar cane as the raw material. Most of the mills are situated in agricultural
areas, close to sugarcane fields, from where raw material is procured.

A number of chemicals including lime, sulphur, phosphoric acid, bleaching powder, poly-
electrolyte, floatation aid, and decolourant, are used in sugar making process. The quantity of
these chemicals varies from mill to mill due to different type of processes.

The majority of the mills in Pakistan use the Defecation-Remelt-Phosphitation (DRP; 24 mills),
Defecation-Remelt-Carbonation (DRC; 21 mills), and Defecation-Remelt-Carbonation and
Sulphitation (DRCS; 11 mills) processes. Seven of the 75 sugar mills in Pakistan also produce
industrial alcohol from molasses, a by-product of sugar manufacturing process.

The Environmental Challenge


The environmental challenge for the local sugar mills is associated with liquid waste, gaseous
emission and solid waste. Noise pollution though local in nature is also a great challenge. There
are three major departments in sugar manufacturing: mill house, process house and boiler house.
For the production of industrial alcohol the distillery stage is added. Table 1 presents the main
input of each stage and the important wastes and by-products that emerge from it.

Table 1: Wastes Produced During Sugar Production


Process Stage Main Wastes and By-products
Inputs

Mill House Sugarcane


• Wastewater containing suspended solids and oil content.
• Washing from floor cleaning containing sugar.
• Bagasse.

Process House Sugar Juice


• Filter cake.
• Washing of different components such as evaporator, juice heater,
vacuum pan, clarifiers, etc., generate aggressive effluents with high
BOD5, COD and TDS concentrations.

• Molasses.

Boiler House Bagasse and


Furnace oil
• Fly ash.

• Smoke.

• Flue gasses.
• Wastewater from scrubbers.

Cooling Pond Water and


Chemicals • Wastewater.

Distillery Molasses
• Wastewater (stillage) containing very high BOD5, COD and suspended
solids.

Solid Waste: Two types of solid wastes are produced during the manufacture of sugar. Bagasse
is produced in the mill house in a quantity of about 30% of the crushed cane. The bagasse
contains 50% moisture. Press mud or filter cake is produced in vacuum filters and press filters.
The mud is produced in a range of 3-8 % of the crushed cane, depending on the nature of sugar
manufacturing process. The mud contains nearly three quarters of moisture. On dry basis mud
contains about 70% organic matter and about 29% minerals.

Press mud is usually used by nearby farmers as manure although in some cases its application
as manure is preceded by biocomposting. Bagasse is used as fuel for boilers. It is estimated that
70% of the power requirements of sugar mills is fulfilled in this way. Bagasse is also used for
chip-board and paper manufacture.

Air Emissions: The major source of air pollution in sugar mills relates to boiler emissions. Boilers
are operated under three different conditions: fuel oil only, bagasse only, mixed fuel (fuel oil and
bagasse). The choice of fuel source significantly changes the emissions mix. Sulphitation process
in sugar refining is also responsible for generating SOx gases. Environmental audits of selected
sugar mills suggests that, for most part, air emissions from the sugar sector are below the
stipulated National Environmental Quality Standards (NEQS) under any of the three fuel
conditions. Most of the sugar mills' are equipped with dust collectors or cyclones to capture the
particulate matter. However, continuous attention of the mills is required for efficient utilization of
these installations. The data highlights some important points regarding air emissions from sugar
mills:

• Hydrogen sulfide, sulfur dioxide, oxides of nitrogen and trace metals are well under the
NEQS.
• Although carbon monoxide levels are generally under the NEQS, significant room for
improvement remains and the mills should carefully monitor their own emission levels.
• The variation in the data for particulate matter is very high. Individual mills should have
their particulate matter emissions profile studied in order to comply with the national
standards.
• In boilers that use fuel oil, smoke levels are at or above NEQS limits.
• Bagasse combustion also produces ash and fly ash. Flue gas contains 4500mg/m3 of fly
ash on an average. This is a visual nuisance as well as a health concern. These
problems are particularly high in boilers not equipped with scrubbing or cyclone systems.

Wastewater: The waste water analysis suggests a very high pollution level as compared to the
limits stipulated in the NEQS on all important parameters. They are particularly severe in the case
of wastewater from distilleries. For example, the national COD (Chemical Oxygen Demand)
standard is 150mg/l, whereas even the lowest observed level was over 1000mg/l and the
observed level for the distillery was higher than 100,000mg/l. The situation is equally drastic for
pH value, biological oxygen demand (BOD5 ) and total suspended solids (TSS).

The general practice is to use large unlined lagoons - built without proper engineering and
environmental care - for wastewater storage. This can cause groundwater contamination and is
particularly dangerous in areas where groundwater is used for drinking purposes. The stored
water is then fed into the irrigation streams.

Other Health Risks: Bagasse dust, fly ash and high noise levels (reaching up to 109 dB) are
particular health irritants in sugar mills. Excessive exposure to fly ash and bagasse dust may
cause irritation to eyes, asthma, and other respiratory diseases including bagassosis (a lung
disease caused by inhalation of bagasse dust). Dust prone areas, including cane preperation and
the boiler house, should be carefully monitored. Nuisance dust levels should be controlled
properly. Dermititis or skin disease is a major health complaint resulting from chemical burns, and
contact with lime and sugar. Toxic gasses including sulfur dioxide, caustic fumes, are released at
various stages of the process and are health hazards.

Technologies of Change
Various measures can be taken to address the environmental challenges faced by sugar mills
and distilleries in Pakistan. The most immediate of these relate to waste reduction at source (Box
1). The technologies and methods for air and noise-pollution control in sugar mills are given in
Box 2. Significant room exists for in-house improvement in local sugar mills. The absence of good
housekeeping practices is the basic reason for higher levels of pollution.

Box 1: Waste Reduction at Source: In-house Improvement


Flow measurement (through flow meters) and monitoring at inlet and outlet of each consumer unit at the mill for better water
management practices.

Use of optimum imbibition rate to save energy in terms of steam consumption and to reduce organic and hydraulic load from the
process house.

Dry cleaning of mill floors with bagasse

Efficient operation of evaporators will reduce waste disposal problems and enhance sugar recovery. Overloading of evaporators
and vacuum pans, boiling at excessive rates, operating them at incorrect liquid levels, and variation of vacuum lead to a loss of
sugar through condenser water. Improper design of these units?particularly the entrainment separator?may result in irregular
boiling and splashing.

Recycling of cooling and condenser water

The simple measure of controlling spillover of molasses can very significantly reduce the organic pollution content of the
wastewater stream.

Segregation of oil from other effluent will allow for the recovery and reuse of lubricating oil and reduce soil contamination when
wastewater is applied for irrigation.
Controlling the mixing of filter mud with wastewater can very significantly reduce the organic and inorganic pollution content of
wastewater stream.

Routine inspection of units?particularly pumps, conveyors, pipes and other vessels.

Routine inspection of units-particularly pumps, conveyers, pipes and other vessels.

Reducing water used for floor sweeping and washing by recovering water from various mill processes and reusing it for cleaning
purposes.

Detaining filter cloth washing in a holding tank for a short time before being allowed to mix with other effluents from the mill will
reduce the contamination in the wastewater stream.

Installation of circular mist eliminators or demisters constructed of stainless steel or monel in the multiple-effect evaporators can
eliminate sugar entry in the condenser water.

Bagasse management is of paramount importance in establishing overall energy efficien cy in the mill. Steam and power
generation and reduction in fuel oil consumption are largely dependent on an adequate supply and efficient utilization of
bagasse. Benefits will also result from ensuring that maximum moisture has been removed before bagasse is used in the boiler.

As far as air emissions are concerned the first step should be to set up a system of regular monitoring of stack emissions with
periodic boiler tune-ups. This can considerably increase boiler efficiency and minimize emissions.

Box 2: Air and Noise Pollution Control


Air Pollution Control for Noise Pollution Control Methods
Particulate Matter including Fly
Ash

• Settling Chamber • Sound reduction at source, e. g, silencers, design of fans etc.

• Cyclones • Interrupting the path of the sound. e.g., Sound barrier

• Wet Collectors • Protecting the recipient, e.g. Ear muffs, plug


• Electrostatic precipitator

• Gas Scrubber

The most important environmental challenge faced by sugar mills and distilleries in Pakistan
relates to wastewater. Table 2 presents details about the major technologies that could be used
to treat wastewater from sugar mills and distilleries.

Table 2: Brief Review of Wastewater Treatment Technologies


Solutions Technical Characteristics Operational Characteristics

Lagoons • Anerobic lagoons are deep earthen basins • BOD5 loading kg/m3/d ?least efficient
used for high strength organic wastewater with
high solid concentration. • BOD5 removal efficiency ? 85 -90 %

• Facultative lagoons are earthen basins filled • Energy requirement for aeration kwh/kg BOD
with screened or primary effluent in which treated ? moderately efficient
stabilization of waste is brought about by a • Hydraulic detention time?very h igh
combination of aerobic, anaerobic and facultative
bacteria. • Mechanical complexity ? l o w
• Aerobic lagoons are l arge, shallow earthen • Reactor resilience for power failure and shock
basins used for treatment of wastewater by loads ? moderate to high
natural processes involving both algae and
• By-product ? nil
bacteria.
• On-site environmental impacts - soil infiltration
• Maturation ponds are low rate stabilization and aerosoles dispersion
ponds usually designed to provide for secondary
effluent polishing and seasonal nitrification. • Land requirement ? large

• Man power requirement ? skilled


• Frequency of repair & maintenance -medium

Trickling • Wastewater flows from top to bottom, • BOD5 loading kg/m3/d ?least efficient
Filters dispersed over filter material (stones, lava or
plastic) during which soluble compounds are • BOD5 removal efficiency ? 85 -90 %
removed and, to a lesser extent, solids are taken • Energy requirement for aeration kwh/kg BOD
up into the biofilm adhered to the carrier treated ? most efficient (natural ventilation)
material. • Hydraulic detention time?most efficient
(recicrulation is required)
• Mechanical complexity ? l o w

• Reactor resilience for power failure and shock


loads ? moderate
• By-product ? nil

• On-site environmental impacts - insects


• Land requirement --- small

• Man power requirement ? skilled


• Frequency of repair & maintenance -low

Upflow • The basic idea of this system is that the flocs • BOD5 loading kg/m3/d ?very efficient
Anaerobic of anaerobic bacteria will tend to settle under
gravity, when applying a moderate up -flow • BOD5 removal efficiency ? 80 -90 %
Sludge velocity of water. In this way no separate • Energy requirement for aeration kwh/kg BOD
sedimentation tank is necessary.
Blanket treated ? most efficient (only for pumping)

(UASB) • The wastewater passes the reactor from the • Hydraulic detention time?most efficient
bottom to top. To guarantee sufficient contact
Reactor between the incoming wastewater and the • Mechanical complexity ? l o w
bacteria in the sludge layer the wastewater is fed
evenly over the bottom of the reactor. Further • Reactor resilience for power failure and shock
mixing is brought about by the production of the loads ? moderate
gas. • By-product ? bio -gas
• The organic compounds are consumed by
• On-site environmental impacts - nil
anaerobic bacteria during passage of wastewater
through the sludge layer and produces bio-gas. • Land requirement --- small
• Man power requirement ? highly skilled

• Frequency of repair & maintenance -low

Activated • Many variations of activated sludge treatment • BOD5 loading kg/m3/d ?very efficient
Sludge exist, depending on load characteristics.
Sequential Batch Reactor most appropriate for • BOD5 removal efficiency ? 85 - 95 %
Treatment high organic pollution loads. Most successfully • Energy requirement for aeration kwh/kg BOD
(Sequential applied if hourly flow is low. treated ? least efficient

Batch • System consists only of aeration tank • Hydraulic detention time?moderately efficient

Reactor) (operated as fill and draw system) and


mechanical surface aerators. Aeration and
• Mechanical complexity ? high
sedimentation takes place in the same reactor on • Reactor resilience for power failure ? low and
the following cyclical principle: feeding and for shock loads ? moderate
aeration of the reactor during a certain period,
switch off of the aeration, followed by settling of • By-product ? nil

the sludge and discharge of the effluent. • On-site environmental impacts - aerosol
dispersion and noise
• Land requirement --- moderate

• Man power requirement ? highly skilled


• Frequency of repair & maintenance - very high

Lagoons, due to a large land area requirement, odour problem, possible groundwater
contamination may not be a preferable solution. Trickling filter due to low efficiency is also not
recommended for local sugar mills in general. However, with low pollution load this option can
also be investigated. Activated sludge system requires enourmous amount of energy for aeration,
hence, O & M cost is very high for this option. USAB system for ttreatment of highly concentrated
wastewater from agriculture industries is increasingly popular and wastewater from sugar mills
and distilleries can be treated for significant reduction in pollution levels. Methane gas produced
in USAB system cab be used as an energy source.

Recommendations for Pakistan's Sugar Sector


Wastewater is the most important environmental challenge facing Pakistan's sugar sub-sector.
This area requires major focus and calls for immediate attention and investment. It is
reccomended that in-house improvements towards waste minimization at source be undertaken
immediately. This has the potential to reduce the pollutant as well as the hydraulic load to a level
where end-of-pipe treatment technologies maybe then be able to bring it down further to levels
near, or below, the NEQS. Such measures are also likely to result in net savings for the mill in the
long-run. A strategy for waste water treatment is presented in Box 3.

The pollution loads recorded in wastewater suggests that extremely high removal efficiencies will
have to be achieved for NEQS compliance. This translates to larger and more expensive
treatment systems.

• up to 98-99% removal in sugar mills and 99.9% removal in distilleries for COD;
• up to 97-98.5% in sugar mills and 99.9% in distilleries for BOD5 ; and
• up to 99% in distilleries for TSS.

Good housekeeping steps suggested in Box 1 would significantly reduce both the pollution and
the hydraulic loads and can also reduce the total cost of the treatment systems. However, at
present, the environmental data obtained during environmental survey has been considered for
cost estimation for the end of pipe treatment system.

Box 3: A Strategy for Wastewater Management


Reduction
Improve filter press to prevent juice leakages. This will significantly reduce sugar content in the effluent. Reduce juice vapors
from seeping into condenser cooling water by improving evaporator and pans. This will I mprove the functions of the condenser.

Set up a pit for collecting juice-contaminated water to reduce sugar content in washing and cleaning water.

Collected water can then be used as maceration of sugarcane milling process.

Monitor and follow-up the quality and quantity of pollution sources to prevent additional polluting effluent.
Recycling
Separate the clean warm water from the contaminated stream for reuse. After cooling down by cooling towers about 90% tail
water can be recovered, the remaining 10% can be discharged and replaced by fresh water. After removal of grease and oil,
cooled mill water can be recycled for reuse.

Regeneration
Precipitation and filtration of flue gas washing water will regenerate it into a colorless and transparent state. This regenerated
clean water can be reused in the flue gas washing system.

Box 4: End-of-pipe Treatment in Sugar Mills


A review of treatment technologies is given in Table 2

Combination of lagoons in sequence (anaerobic, facultative and maturation)


Preliminary design and costing of this option?for a mill generating 6,000 - 7,000 m 3/day of wastewater containing 2,000 - 3,000
mg/l BOD5?suggests that to achieve of 90% removal efficiency the lagoons system would require a total surface area of 120
hectares, a total volume of 1.5 million cubic meters, and a total retention time of 216 days. The exorbitant level of retention time,
land requirement and high cost of lining make this option inadvisable for local sugar mills. However, unlined lagoons, though
pose serious threat to ground water quality, can also be taken int o consideration after careful analysis of environmental condition
around the mill.

Combined treatment system comprising of a UASB Reactor and an Activated Sludge


System
When used alone, the activated sludge system has a high operational cost because of the energy required for aeration.
Combining it with a UASB Reactor significantly reduces this cost. The UASB Reactor can remove about 80-90% BOD5; in
addition, a by-product of the process is methane which can then be used as a source of energy for the boiler. After passing
through the UASB Reactor, the effluent can be passed through the Activated Sludge System for treatment of remaining BOD5.
The combined system will achieve the same pollutant removal efficiency as the Activated Sludge System but at lower cost. This
combined system will bring the present BOD5 and suspended solids level near or below
the NEQS.

Preliminary cost calculations for such a combined system designed for sugar mills generating wastewater in a quantity of 3,500-
6,500 m3/day, containing BOD5 in a range of 1,000-5,000 mg/l and COD in range of 1,800-19,000 mg/l suggest that the total
cost of the treatment plant would be in the range of Rupees 20-90 Million. Such a system would requi re around 1,500-3,000
square meters of land and its annual operation and maintenance expenditure would be approximately 10% of its total cost. With
in-house improvement USAB reactor as single treatment system can be applied.

USAB TREATMENT SYSTEM FOR SUGAR MILLS' WASTEWATER


Box 5: End-of-pipe Treatment for Distillery's Wastewater
Two options are identified for end-of-pipe treatment of wastewater from distilleries attached to sugar mills in Pakistan. As in the
case of effluent from sugar mills, the first option is to place a combination of lagoons in sequence (anaerobic, facultative and
maturation). This option is totally outside the realm of those feasible for distilleries. Designed for a hydraulic load of 200-300 m3
/day containing 60,000 mg/l BOD5, and 110,000 mg/l COD, such a set of lagoons would require 60 hectares of land, 700,000
cubic meters of volume, and a very long retention time for 90% removal efficiency.

Given the higher organic load in wastewater from distilleries, the second option is a combined treatment system that comprises
of a UASB Reactor and a Sequential Batch Reactor (Activated Sludge System). Such a combi ned system can achieve about 98-
99% overall removal efficiency with a reduced cost of operations. The process of combination would be similar to that described
in Box 3 . Preliminary design for the level of contamination encountered in the audited distillery suggests that although such a
system would dramatically reduce the organic load in the effluent it would still be considerably higher than the NEQS limits for
COD and BOD5. Despite this limitation, this combined system is recommended for effluent treatment in Pakistan's distilleries of
industrial alcohol, because such a system would drastically reduce the environmental stress being placed by distillery
wastewater.

Such a combined system designed for the above mentioned characteristics of distillery effluent would require an investment in
the range of Rs. 46-58 million. Operation and maintenance expenditure would be approximately 10% of its total cost. Land
requirement would be around 2,500 square meters. Two to four years pay-back period is envisaged by utilization of methane,
which will be generated from this system.

Composting
Composting of filter mud-cake with additional moistening with stillage could be an attractive alternative solution to handle both
the waste and to produce valueable by-product (fertilizer). Various alternatives can be applied: (1) window composting with
natural aeration; (2) static pile composting with forced aeration; and (3) USAB-treatment of stillage and windrow or static pile
composting with forced aeration.

USAB AND CBR COMBINED TREATMENT SYSTEM FOR DISTILLERY?S


WASTEWATER

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