Treatment of starch-rich wastewater using fly ash-based low-cost tubular ceramic membrane

Implementation of fly ash-based ceramic tubular membranes in starch wastewater treatment can be considered as a cost-effective approach towards treating huge quantities of wastewater generated in starch industries. The membrane used in this work possesses excellent chemical and mechanical stabilities and has average pore size of 0.133 mu m and porosity of (40.17 +/- 1.04)%. The permeate produced by treating wastewater from all three starch sources, namely corn, wheat, and rice, was absolutely free of total suspended solids and turbidity and contained slight chemical oxygen demand, which is under permissible limit for discharge into natural water bodies as prescribed by Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), India. Besides, the experiments conducted revealed that along with applied pressure, cross-flow velocity and size of starch granules can also play pivotal roles in determining the extent of flux decline. Moreover, the estimated cost of the fabricated membrane is 250.00 USD/m(2), signifying that the membrane has affordability for being implemented in starch processing industries of all scale.

Automated summary

The implementation of fly ash-based ceramic tubular membranes in starch wastewater treatment is an effective and affordable approach for treating large quantities of wastewater produced in starch industries. The membrane used in this study demonstrates excellent chemical and mechanical stability, and is capable of treating wastewater from various starch sources. The estimated cost of the membrane indicates its feasibility for implementation in starch processing industries.