Technical and Economic Comparison of Conventional Wastewater Treatment Systems in the Sugar Industries in Iran

Iran’s location in an arid and water scarce area characterized by qualititative and quantitative degradation in its water resources makes strict planning imperative for reduced water consumption and wastewater treatment and reuse, especially in the industry sector. The technical and economic evaluation of various industrial treatment processes is a key factor in the success of such schemes in the face of the effects of climate variety, high wastewater treatment costs, and environmental factors on selecting a most suitable alternative for industrial wastewater treatment. The situation is even more critical in the case of the sugar industry as the largest pollutant source and especially because more than 90% of its facilities are located on plains with a negative water balance. Reviewing wastewater problems associated with the Iranian sugar facilities, this paper will attempt to perform an economic assessment and a comparison of conventional anaerobic-aerobic processes under various conditions in order to identify the best aleternative and to determine the most important environmental and cost factors affecting the selection of a desirable alternative. For this purpose, six combined treatment systems are selected and their construction and operation costs and detailed uniform annual cost sensitivity analysis based on the most important parameters are presented. Finally, two different combined wastewater treatment systems of UASB + facultative lagoons and UASB + trickling filters will be introduced as the best treatment processes for Iranian conditions.