The Feasibility of Wastewater Recycling from Sterilization Unit Facilities in Alzahra Educational Hospital Affiliated to Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Iran

Water shortage, especially fresh water, is mandated recycling it in different facilities. Therefore, the aim of this study was to assess the feasibility of recycling wastewater from the sterilization facility units in Alzahra training clinical hospital affiliated to Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Iran, in order to reuse in the water feeder boilers of the hospital.
In this cross-sectional study, 28 samples of feed water and sterilization units autoclaves effluents were evaluated regarding the microbiological, heterotrophic plate count (HPC) and chemical parameters, total hardness, electrical conductivity, total dissolved solids, pH, turbidity, temperature, and dissolved oxygen (DO).
Findings: The average results of the measurement of various parameters in feed water and sterilization units effluents were obtained total hardness of 85.0, and 16.5 mg/l, electrical conductivity of 270.0 and 235.9 µS/cm, total dissolved solids of 146.4 and 137.8 mg/l, pH of 7.2, and 7.1, turbidity of 0.61, and 3.08 NTU, temperature of 22.98, and 73.35°C, heterotrophic plate count of 8.45, and 16.6 cfu/ml, and dissolved oxygen 7.76, and 3.8 mg/l, respectively.
The results showed that the quality of effluent from the central sterilization unit facilities of the Alzahra hospital was acceptable in terms of water quality guidelines and just by doing a series of actions, such as physical connection of the sterilization unit outlet pipe to the feeding water pipe and by pH adjustment, it can be used repeatedly as sterilization unit feed water. In this case, it is expected to a significant decrease occurs in water consumption of the medical unit. It is suggested due to the drought conditions and water shortage that this method is also used for other affiliated hospitals.