Pollutants of Textile Wastewater and Their Effects on Environment

By

Prof. Dr. Engr. Md Mahbubul Haque

Introduction
Lot of textile processing industries was established to cater the RMG sector of Bangladesh.

Most of the installed factories are spinning, weaving, denims, knitting and knit dyeing, garments and garment washing plants. Some of these plants generate huge amount of wastewater, which find their way into the environment. These wastewaters are polluted and may cause various types of consequences and complicacies.

Many factories have already installed Effluent Treatment Plants (ETP). Lot of ETPs are in various stages of their commissioning /operation.

Setting up of ETP does not and will not always ensure a safe environment.
It is a collective and social responsibility to monitor and ensure clean environment. In order to make it a collective issue it will be necessary to make awareness about the harmfulness of environmental pollution. It is also important to know the characteristics of effluent generated by various types of textile processes and plants.

Outlet Effluent Characteristics-Bangladesh Standard

Sl. No. Water quality Unit parameters Standard value for discharging into * Inland river 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 PH BOD COD TSS TDS Oil & Grease Color ---mg/L mg/L mg/L mg/L mg/L Co-pt unit
0C

6-9 <50.0 <200.0 <150.0 <2100 < 10 <150

On land for irrigation 6-9 < 100 < 400 <200 < 2,100 < 10 <150

Temperature

<300C

< 30 0C

Table 1: Characteristics of wastewater of textile wet processing plants.

Name of the factory Type of the factory /plant Concentration of pollutants present in the wastewater BOD mg/L 3 300 COD mg/L 1 Ahsan Composite 2 Knit dyeing 4 437 TD S mg/ L 5 221 0 TSS mg/L 6 82 Oil & Grease mg/L 7 ND* Colour Co-pt. 8 ND Temp 0C 9 ND

PH

10 9.39

Reedisha Knitex Ltd.

Fakhruddin Textile Mills Ltd Grameen knitwear Southeast

Knit dyeing
Knit dyeing Knit dyeing Knit dyeing

300
450 600 450

449
1000 1200 1000

338 0
350 0 350 0

3118
100 1000 100

ND
ND 10 ---

ND
Dark Dark Dark

ND
ND ND ND

9.01
9-11 10 11

Epyllion Knit Ltd.

Aboni Textiles Ltd. Greenland garments ltd. Ha-Meem Denim Jamuna Denim Ltd Partex denims

Knit dyeing
Knit dyeing Knit dyeing Denim Denim Denim

450
350 450 850 640 1300

1400
1050 1000 2150 1312 2456

350 0
350 0 450 0 363 3 532 0

200
200 100 350 305 900

60
40 ND 20 --ND

600
140 Dark <1000 1380 7620

60
35 ND 35 --ND

9
11 6-9 9 11 ND

Table-2: Characteristics generated by various textile processs

Effect of pH of the effluent

Table 3: Comparison of pH with Bangladesh standard.
Name of the factory Type of the factory /plant pH Standard value for discharging into Inland river On land for irrigation 6

Ahsan Composite
Southeast Ha-Meem Denim Jamuna denim

Knit dyeing
Knit dyeing Denim Denim

9.39
11 9 11

6-9
6-9 6-9 6-9

6-9
6-9 6-9 6-9

Various standards suggest that pH greater than 9.5 or less than 4.5 are unsuitable for most aquatic organisms.

Effect of pH on aquatic life

All submerged plants and animals, are constantly removing dissolved oxygen from the water and excreting carbon dioxide during normal respiration.

During daylight hours all plants, which include all algal forms, actively involve in photosynthesis.
Young fish and immature stages of aquatic insects are extremely sensitive to pH levels out side (5 8) and may die beyond these pH values. High pH levels like (9-14) can harm fish by denaturing cellular membranes. Rapid changes in pH are stressful to fish and should be avoided. Changing the pH by more than 3 units per day is known to stress fish.

Biochemical Oxygen demand (BOD):

The amount of Dissolved oxygen (DO) required to degrade organic matters of certain wastewater is regarded as Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD). It is measured as ppm or mg/l Microorganisms such as bacteria are responsible for decomposing organic waste. When organic matter such as dead plants, leaves, grass clippings, cellulose components, manure, sewage, organic waste like dyes, fats and oils, or even food waste is present in a body of water, the bacteria will begin the process of breaking down this waste. In degrading the organic waste, the bacteria rob the available dissolved oxygen necessary to survive by the other aquatic organisms like fishes and aquatic insects.

BOD (Contd) The higher the organic waste the higher will be the number of bacteria to degrade. Higher will be the oxygen consumption. Under this circumstance there will be an additional demand for dissolved oxygen (DO). This additional demand for DO is regarded as BOD. As the waste is consumed gradually or dispersed through the water, BOD levels will begin to decline.
Table 3: Comparison of (BOD) with Bangladesh standard.
Name of the factory Type of the factory /plant
2 Knit dyeing Knit dyeing

1 Ahsan Composite Reedisha Knitex Ltd.

BO D mg/ L3
300 300

Standard value for discharging into

Inland river (mg/L) 4 <50.0 <50.0 On land for irrigation (mg/L) 6 <100 <100

Ha-Meem Denim
Partex denims

Denim
Denim

850
1300

<50.0
<50.0

<100
<100

BOD (Cont..) The presence of Nitrogen and phosphates in a body of water can also contribute to high BOD levels. Nitrates and phosphates are plant nutrients and can cause plant life and algae to grow quickly. When plants grow quickly, they also die quickly. This contributes to the organic waste in the water, which is then decomposed by bacteria. This also results in a high BOD level. The temperature of the water can also contribute to high BOD levels. Warmer water usually will have a higher BOD level than colder water. As water temperature increases, the rate of photosynthesis by algae and other plant life in the water also increases. Therefore, increased water temperatures will speed up bacterial decomposition and result in higher BOD levels.

Table-4: Sizing ingredients used for various types of denim fabrics

Quality
7R,9K 7Rs 12Rs + K 20Rs 10Rs 30 Rs + K

Water (Litre) 410

400 400 380 400 380

Starch (Kg) 40
40 40 40 40 40

PVA (Kg) 7
7 8 10 10 10

Size CA (Kg) 6
7 7 7 7 7

Wax (Kg) 4
5 4 5 4 5

BOD and DO (Dissolved oxygen)

The amounts of oxygen present in a certain amount of water in dissolved state are known as Dissolved Oxygen or simply DO.
DO is normally expressed as mg/l, and varies from 0 to 18 mg/l

In most cases of normal waters, DO lies between 7-9 mg/l.

Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD):

The organic compounds of the textile dyes and auxiliaries may be oxidized by means of the dissolved oxygen present in the water
As a result the level of DO falls and there will be demand for oxygen, which is termed as Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD). COD accounts for all oxidisable organic compounds while, BOD refers to only biodegradable organics. Table 5: Comparison of COD with Bangladesh standard.
Name of the factory Type of the factory /plant 2 Knit dyeing Knit dyeing Denim Denim COD Mg/L 3 437 449 2150 2456 Standard value for discharging into Inland river (mg/L) 4 <200.0 <200.0 <200.0 <200.0 On land for irrigation (mg/L) 6 < 400 < 400 < 400 < 400

1 Ahsan Composite Reedisha Knitex Ltd. Ha-Meem Denim Partex denims

Table 9: COD of some selected dyes

Dye

Structure
Anthraquinone Anthraquinone Phtalocynanine Anthraquinone Oxazine (MFT) Formazan (FCP) -----

COD (g O2)/g of dye

1600 1800 700 1500 650 800 650

Vat Blue 4 Vat green 1 Direct Blue 199 Disperse Blue 56 Reactive Blue 204 Reactive Blue-209 Sulfur

Total suspended Solids (TSS):

TSS is mainly organic in nature, is visible and can be removed from the wastewater by physical/ mechanical means e.g. screening and sedimentation. The pore size of the filter paper is very important in estimating the TSS, the nominal pore size 1.58 micro metre.
Table 6: Comparison of TSS with Bangladesh standard.
Name of the factory Type of the factory /plant 2 Knit dyeing Knit dyeing Denim TSS
Mg/l

Standard value for discharging into Inland river (mg/l) On land for irrigation (mg/l) 6 <200 <200 <200

1 Ahsan Composite Reedisha Knitex Ltd. Ha-Meem Denim

3 82 3118 350

4 <150 <150 <150

Total Dissolved Solids (TDS):

TDS -is the sum total of all of the dissolved things in a given body of water.
Hardness, alkalinity, cyanuric acid, potassium, chlorides and sodium, bromides, sulfates, silicates, and all manner of organic compounds. Textile effluent inherits TDS from dyes, chemicals and auxiliaries that are used in processing.

Table 7: Comparison of TDS with Bangladesh standard.

Name of the factory Type of the factory /plant 2 Knit dyeing Knit dyeing Denim Denim TDS Mg/L Standard value for discharging into Inland river (mg/L) 4 <2100 <2100 <2100 <2100 On land for irrigation (mg/L) 6 <2100 <2100 <2100 <2100

1 Ahsan Composite Reedisha Knitex Ltd. Ha-Meem Denim Partex denims

3 2210 3380 5320

Dyes and the Environment:

Dyes are present in the effluent at concentrations of 10 mg/l to 50 mg/l with 1 mg/l being visible to the naked eye.
Photochemical reactions may be important, as dyes are good absorbers of solar energy. Aquatic plants will not be able to produce food by the process of photosynthesis. As a result their life will be endangered.

Table-8: Comparison of Color point with Bangladesh standard.

Name of the factory Type of the factory /plant 2 Knit dyeing Knit dyeing Colour Co.pt Standard value for discharging into Inland river (Co.pt) 4 <150 <150 On land for irrigation (Co.pt) 6 <150 <150

1 Grameen knitwear Southeast

3 Dark Dark

Ha-Meem Denim
Partex denims

Denim
Denim

1000
7620

<150
<150

<150
<150

Table 5: Typical fixation of various dyes (Source-www.e-textile.org)

Effect of temperature on Environment:

Temperature controls the rate of metabolic and reproductive activities, and determines which aquatic species can survive. Different aquatic species require different quantity of DO to survive in the water. Temperature inversely affects the rate of transfer of gaseous oxygen into dissolved oxygen. At higher temperature the metabolic rate of aquatic plants and animals increases producing an increase in oxygen demand. Related International regulations classifies water, as "Class 1 Cold Water Aquatic Life" max. temp. 20C, as "Class 2 Warm Water Aquatic Life" max temp. 30C. Generally, a max. 3 C increase over a minimum of a 4-hr period, lasting 12 hrs maximum, is deemed acceptable.

(Contd) Effect of temperature

Respiration rates can increase by 10% or more per 1 C temperature rise.

Increase in temp. of textile wastewater reduces oxygen availability, and increases oxygen demand.

The onsite test shows that effluent temperature is around 50-600C which is quite harmful for aquatic species.

Oil and greases

The term oil and grease, as commonly used, includes the fat, oils, waxes, and other related constituents found in wastewater.
Oils and fats are mainly due to the sizing process and also as oils and grease comes in contact with the fabric during processing. Small amount oils is found in the cellulose fibres. Oils and fats form a layer at the top surface of the wastewater. As a result the oxygen cannot come in contact with the water and becomes difficult to increase DO level.

OIL & Grease

Research show that oil is toxic to fish. In greater quantities, it limits oxygen transfer, hindering biological activity.
Oils and grease affect respiration of fish by adhering to the gills, it adhere to and destroy algae and plankton. Feeding and reproduction of water life are affected by oils and fat. Table 7: Comparison of oil and grease with Bangladesh standard.
Name of the factory Type of the factory /plant Oil and grease (mg/l) 3 10 60 20 ND Standard value for discharging

Inland river (mg/L)

4 < 10 < 10 < 10 < 10

1 Grameen knitwear Epyllion Knit Ltd. Ha-Meem Denim Partex denims

2 Knit dyeing Knit dyeing Denim Denim

On land for irrigation 6

< 10 < 10 < 10 < 10

CONCLUSION/SUGGESTIONS
Proper management of wastewater will reduce the overall volume of effluent. All the factories should install and run ETP.

Setting up industries far away from the crowded greater Dhaka will at least reduce the pollution burden on the Dhaka dwellers to some extent. Starch based sizes should be replaced with synthetic sizes. Government should reduce or exempt the tariffs and taxes on the synthetic sizes.
Reconstitution of processed effluent should be examined.

CONCLUSION/SUGGESTIONS (Contd._)
Attempt should be made to expand woven sector. Woven account for less m:l ratio, less energy higher profit. In knit the m:l ratio is nearly 1:200.

Selection of dyes, chemicals and auxiliaries that generate lower pollutants will reduce ultimate pollution load.
Like many developed countries, Government can offer free water and wastewater test facilities. Environment is also violated by slaughtering houses, sweet manufacturers, bakeries, poultry farms etc.

Research is necessary to study the effect and toxicity of various dyes, chemicals and auxiliaries used in our country.
Research is also necessary to reduce the operating cost of the existing plants.