Thursday, January 23, 2025

Commissioning of the pilot plant for membrane distillation at the BFI water technology center

A pilot plant for membrane distillation from EvCon was put into operation at the BFI Water Technology Center on 22.01.2025. This technology can be powered by low-temperature waste heat (60-85°C). As a result, the previously unused energy potential in the steelworks could be used for water recovery.

With a conductivity of <1µS/cm, the distillate is by far of better quality than with conventional single-stage treatment processes and can be used to produce hydrogen after further treatment. This means that the water and energy cycle in the production of green steel can be closed a little further.

The pilot plant for membrane distillation is being used for this purpose in two ongoing EU research projects: Zhyron (GA 101138276) and Cornerstone (GA 101138504). Zhyron is concerned with the dezincification and reduction of ferrous dusts and sludges using hydrogen in a thermal batch process. BFI takes care of wastewater treatment from the process. As part of Cornerstone, waste heat, fresh water and recyclable materials are recovered from process water streams from the steel, paper and chemical industries. As part of Cornerstone, BFI is responsible for optimizing the gas scrubbing water cycle of a direct reduction plant.

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Com­mis­sion­ing of the pilot plant for mem­brane dis­til­la­tion at the BFI water tech­no­logy cen­ter