Project Details

Project Delivery

Project Results

Discussion

Situation

A mining camp in Mali has been operating its own wastewater treatment plant for several years to effectively clean the 15 cubic metres of wastewater produced daily from mining and camp operations. This wastewater, which flows together in a collection basin, contains a variety of contaminants, including fine mine dust, grease, oils, soaps and other everyday waste from employees. To speed up the settling of the primary sludge in the collection basin, the operators use chemical additives. These bind the undissolved particles and facilitate their sedimentation. However, as this chemical treatment is cost-intensive, the company was looking for a more efficient and economical solution for wastewater treatment.

Problem

The project confronted the PPU with two major challenges: Firstly, different types of wastewater flow together in the collection basin, making effective sedimentation difficult, including heavy mineral particles and organic impurities. Secondly, there was a desire to continue using the existing system and seamlessly integrate the new solution. The new treatment plant therefore had to fulfil high efficiency standards and be easily integrated into the existing wastewater treatment system.

Solution

The ideal solution for the mining camp in Mali was the ClearFox® lamella clarifier, which was installed in a mobile sea container. The decisive advantage of this containerised wastewater treatment plant is its flexibility and ease of transport. Thanks to the use of standardised ISO sea containers, the system can be delivered anywhere in the world by lorry or container ship and is available for use within a few weeks.

The ClearFox® lamella clarifier is a physical sedimentation process in which the particles collect in the lower part of the tank and a suspended solids-free zone forms in the upper part.

The wastewater with the particles first flows into a lower tank, which changes the direction of flow of the water upwards. The inclined lamellae are located above the tank. As the undissolved particles are heavier than water, the flow force of the water and the sinking force of the particles cancel each other out. As a result, the particles move sideways towards the lamellae, where they settle and slide downwards.

The higher the water rises in the lamella clarifier, the freer it is of undissolved particles. There is an overflow weir in the upper part of the container, which allows the wastewater to flow out of the container.

The ClearFox® lamella clarifier is one of the most efficient sedimentation solutions on the market and has been specially designed for industrial wastewater treatment such as mining wastewater. Each system is intensively tested by PPU Umwelttechnik GmbH before delivery to ensure reliable and high-performance functionality. This high efficiency and ease of use convinced the mining company to opt for the ClearFox® solution. The lamella clarifier has been successfully in operation in Mali since August 2024 and has been ensuring clean and cost-efficient wastewater treatment in the mining camp ever since.