Our work in this sector is relatively new, but already we're starting to make an impression! As well as working with specific clients, we're also in talks to open up a new route for recovery of oily solid wastes from refineries and elsewhere in an effort to reduce reliance on incineration as wastes with a TOC (Total Organic Carbon) content greater than 6% are forced out of landfill.
Bitumen waste steered away from landfill and converted into fuel
A large manufacturer of bitumen products, derived from oil refining, had historically relied on a physico-chemical treatment option for one of its bulk liquid bitumen wastestreams. The waste was mixed in open pits with dry, absorbent soild wastes before being finally discarded to landfill.
With the ban on mixing wastes in open pits (often called "sham treatment") looming, the client needed to find an alternative.
With four months to go, and having identified that the waste had an inherent calorific value, Remsol was able to establish this wastestream into a recovery option that now sees it being blended into Secondary Liquid Fuel for use in powering cement kilns.
This move has helped the client to reduce its reliance on landfill disposal, improve its environmental performance, avoid disruption to its operations and save money too - the average costs per 25 tonne load have fallen by £2,600 or 45%
Damaged tank residues removed effortlessly
A subsidiary of a large, multinational petro-chemical company in the North West of England had experienced a problem with some of its finished product in a storage tank.
This resulted in around 4 tonnes of a very heavy, sticky and viscous material clogging the bottom of the tank - which needed to be inspected for damage before being returned to service - and a client eager to move this waste as quickly as possible but afraid that its nature would necessitate man-entry into the large diameter tank to manually dig-out the contents.
Having assessed the problem, Remsol devised an alternative approach that saw heat applied to the product in the tank over several days to warm it to around 90 degrees Celsius.
This made the waste product mobile enough to be removed from the tank using an insulated vacuum-loaded road tanker fitted with steam heating coils.
Despite some early fears about the validity of this approach, the task was completed effortlessly and all of the problem residues were removed from the tank without the need for specialist confined-space entry and manual removal. The work took less than 6 hours to complete, offering a substantial saving over the likely costs of digging-out the residues.
Yet more evidence of Remsol's expert know-how and unorthodox yet practical approach to problem-solving.
Reuse of "dirty" wastewater
A company that specialises in the synthesis of crop protection products benefitted from Remsol's unique approach to problem solving when faced with mounting disposal costs for a bulk liquid wastestream comprised mainly of water with some low-flashpoint solvents.
For several years, the waste has been incinerated but in the last 5 years costs had doubled.
After studying the processes giving rise to the waste, Remsol identified that it was possible to split the waste into two separate streams: a good quality mixed solvent waste suitable for recycling into Secondary Liquid Fuels and an aqueous waste made-up of 90% water and 10% dissolved inorganic matter.
The separation was made, and the waste producer benefitted from an initial 25% saving per annum. The solvent is recycled and the "dirty" water is used in the restoration of a disused landfill site where historic deposits of aggregates are being extracted from the ground and "washed" to remove traces of biodegradable waste. The aggregates will eventually be used to manufacture non-structural concrete products.