High Permeate Recovery for Concentrate Reduction by Integrated Membrane Process in Textile Effluent

The textile dyeing industry consumes a significant amount of high-quality water for processing, which stresses water resources. In recent decades, technologies have been developed to recover water from wastewater. This study describes the high recovery (greater than 92%) of reusable water from an industrial-scale hosiery dye-water recovery facility, consisting of three stages of reverse osmosis and ultrafiltration. The effluent was pre-treated before the membrane process was performed to prevent biofouling. The process performance results in the generation of a consistent water quality that is required for dyeing operations. An average feed flux of 15 l/m²h was maintained in the reverse osmosis membrane by regular chemical dosing and cleaning. The integrated membrane process achieved a permeate with a pH of 6.5 and total dissolved solids (TDS) of 160 mg/l, with no other contaminants, which is of sufficient quality for reuse in the cotton hosiery dyeing process.