Wastewater treatment from potato processing industry using Moringa Oleifera-based coagulant

Abstract

Potato is the third most important food crop on the planet. The potato processing industry produces a variety of food products and has high effluent generation with high organic load and solids content. These must be treated before being disposed of in water bodies. One of the options for treatment of industrial effluents widely studied in the literature is the use of natural coagulants. In this context, this work aims to evaluate the efficiency of effluent treatment of a potato processing industry in Brazil through the use of coagulants based on Moringa Oleifera. Five flocculation essays (Jar Essay) were performed, evaluating the use of Moringa Oleifera both in direct use (flour crushed) and in saline solution, for different coagulant mass and volume values. Turbidity removal rates close to 93% were obtained when using Moringa Oleifera in saline as a coagulant, which is the most efficient use of Moringa seeds compared to their direct use. BOD (Biochemical Oxygen Demand) removal was also high, with values around 90%. The Moringa planting area required for effluent treatment of the studied industry is 1.14 ha. The obtained results allowed the identification of the optimal coagulant dosages to be used and demonstrate the feasibility of using Moringa Oleifera to treat potato processing effluent.