Water Reuse: A Smart Approach to Water Scarcity

Facing stricter water regulations and growing demand, industries and municipalities need reliable reuse solutions. PPU Umwelttechnik GmbH offers cutting-edge technologies such as ClearFox® Fixed Bed Biological Reactor (FBBR) and ClearFox® DiOx (advanced electrical oxidation), designed for efficient, adaptable, and high-performance wastewater recycling.

This article explores key challenges in water reuse and presents a successful deployment in Iraq’s oil fields, where our mobile, on-site solutions helped lower water transport costs and comply with stringent environmental regulations.

Turning Wastewater into a Resource

Freshwater is becoming more scarce due to population growth, urbanization, and climate change. This creates serious risks for public health, farming, and economies. By 2050, global water demand could rise by over 50%, even though billions already face shortages. Since agriculture uses about 70% of all freshwater, recycling and reusing water is key to protecting food supplies and reducing pressure on limited resources.

Water reuse can cut energy use, pollution, and costs by up to 40% for cities and industries. It helps communities better cope with drought and climate impacts. While less than 1% of Earth’s water is accessible, most wastewater still goes untreated. Today, advanced technologies like biological reactors and oxidation processes make safe, high-quality water reuse possible.

Containerized Treatment: The Key to Flexible Water Reuse

At the core of water reuse technology is the treatment process, which ensures wastewater is purified to a safe and usable standard. This process typically involves a combination of:

Biological treatment

The ClearFox® Fixed Bed Biological Reactor (FBBR) is a reliable wastewater treatment technology for municipal and industrial wastewater, ideal for producing high-quality recycled water. Treating 10 to 5,000 m³/day, it efficiently removes organic matter, nitrogen, and phosphorus to meet water reuse standards.

By leveraging natural microbial processes, FBBR reduces environmental impact and delivers water safe for non-potable reuse, making it a cost-effective solution for sustainable water management.

Advantages of ClearFox® FBBR:

• Efficient removal of BOD, COD, TSS, NH₄-N, and phosphorus
• Low investment and operating costs with fast, plug-and-play installation
• Compact, corrosion-resistant design that handles fluctuating flows and is easily expandable
• Chemical-free operation with no odour and high pollutant removal efficiency

Solid-liquid separation

ClearFox® Lamella Clarifier efficiently remove solids from raw wastewater, producing clear effluent suitable for reuse. Occupying up to 80% less space than traditional settling tanks, a single 40-foot unit can treat up to 120 m³/h while meeting turbidity and TSS standards.

Its simple, chemical-free design allows operation as standalone units or within complete treatment systems. With overflow rates 2–4 times higher than conventional clarifiers, they deliver faster, more efficient processing – ideal for sustainable water recycling.

Tertiary modules

Tertiary treatment plays a critical role in preparing wastewater for safe reuse by removing specific pollutants and pathogens. A key method is ClearFox® DiOx technology – an advanced electrochemical oxidation technology that uses diamond-doped electrodes to break down persistent and hard-to-treat contaminants. It effectively targets PFAS, inert COD, heavy metals, BTEX, dyes, dioxins, and other complex substances.

Benefits of ClearFox® Wastewater Treatment for Water Reuse and Sustainability:

• Modular, fully automated systems are pre-installed in ISO containers and can be customized to meet specific project requirements or regulatory standards.
• Engineered for reliable operation in any climate zone, these mobile systems deliver high-efficiency performance at every stage of the water reuse process.
• Minimal planning and construction required – no special infrastructure needed, just a solid foundation for container placement.
• Integrated energy-saving mode reduces operational costs and improves overall system efficiency.
• Designed for wastewater, sludge treatment, and industrial reuse, our systems work at any scale – even in off-grid or remote areas without sewage infrastructure.

ClearFox® containerised solution for wastewater treatment in Iraq

Iraq’s expanding oil fields, often located in remote areas, generate significant wastewater from worker camps. At one site facing severe water shortages, water had to be transported over long distances, resulting in high costs. To reduce demand, the client needed an on-site solution to treat and reuse wastewater. With stricter regulations in place, treatment systems are now mandatory at all drilling sites. The remote location required a mobile, easy-to-deploy system with minimal on-site construction.

The perfect solution was the ClearFox® containerized wastewater treatment plant, featuring advanced FBBR technology, all housed within easily transportable 20-foot and 40-foot ISO sea containers.

The 40-foot unit contained four chambers: a buffer tank and three fixed-bed reactors with progressively larger growth areas (100, 150, and 200 m²/m³), designed to maximize biological treatment efficiency.

The compact 20-foot unit featured a ClearFox® lamella clarifier with an integrated control system that efficiently separates sludge and purifies the water.

Thanks to the modular container system, the customer only needed to connect the modules to the onsite piping and provide power. The treated wastewater is then reused for irrigation, helping to protect groundwater resources over the long term.