Fate of Toxic and Nonconventional Pollutants in Wastewater Treatment Systems Within the Pulp, Paper, and Paperboard Industry

摘要

Field studies were undertaken to determine the fate of toxic and nonconventional pollutants present in the wastewaters discharged from the pulp, paper, and paperboard industry. A sampling and analysis program was conducted at two deink mills and a groundwood fine paper mill. Each mill employed a wastewater treatment system which included primary clarification, high rate biological treatment, secondary clarification, and combined primary/secondary sludge dewatering. Through a sampling program of primary clarifier influent, biological treatment effluent, air emissions above the aeration tanks, and dewatered sludge solids, it was the objective of the study to complete a mass balance of the pollutants under study. Analysis of primary clarifier influent samples was by both GC and GC/MS techniques; analysis of the remaining samples was GC method alone. In general, 50 percent of the mass of each pollutant found in the mill's raw wastewaters were accounted for in the program. The accountability of the volatile organic pollutants ranged from 27 to 55 percent. The accountability of semi-volatile pollutants ranged from 6 to 933 percent with three pollutants accounted for in excess of 100 percent.