POLYMERIZATION AND DYEING WASTEWATER CHARACTERISTICS
AND THEIR TREATABILITY
P. Y. Yang, Associate Professor
Department of Agricultural Engineering
University of Hawaii at Manoa
Honolulu, Hawaii 96822
M. B. Pescod, Professor
Department of Civil Engineering
University of Newcastle upon Tyne
Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom
INTRODUCTION
The factory of the Asia Fiber Co. Ltd. in Bangpoomai, Thailand, incorporated a nylon
filament and fabric manufacturing process together with dyeing and finishing facilities.
Different sections of the plant were included:   polymerization, fiber making, knitting, dyeing and garment making.   Major sources of wastewater discharged from the factory are as
follows:
1. polymerization plant -    polymerization process
- extraction (washing)
- cooling
2. dyeing plant - dyeing process and washing
3. water treatment plant        - back washing
- regeneration
- rinsing
4. domestic sewage -    wash water from a dormitory housing approximately
700 people and canteen discharges
Before the present study started, wastes were discharged into three ponds which, together with a chemical coagulation unit process, formed the basis of treatment before discharge of effluent to a nearby canal.   Domestic sewage was discharged untreated into the
nearby canal.   Figure 1 shows the layout of the factory, the wastewater discharge lines
and the three ponds.   Such treatment facilities failed to produce an effluent quality which
would meet the effluent standards of the Ministry of Industry of Thailand.
The present study was proposed to determine the flows and characteristics of the various wastewater streams, to study their treatability and to recommend suitable alternatives
for treatment incorporating those parts of the existing systems which could be used.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Wastewater Flow Measurement, Sampling and Analysis
The factory normally operated three shifts per day, seven days a week, except for the
dyeing plant, which only operated one shift per day and six days a week.   Major wastewater streams originated in the dyeing and polymerization plant sections of the factory,
while relatively minor waste flows were released from the water treatment plant and
canteen.
A 90   triangular weir and a rectangular weir were installed to measure the flow rates
of the polymerization plant wastewater and the dyeing section wastewater, respectively.
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