As part of this evaluation, Swedish Hydro Solutions was commissioned to conduct a bench study during October and November to identify suitable treatment technologies. The bench study led to the development of a pilot plant, which was delivered in the second week of January. The full-scale plant will now be tested until March to evaluate how effectively it reduces PFAS emissions and other pollutants from the energy company. This test period is a crucial step in finding a sustainable solution to reduce the company’s environmental impact and the ongoing costs associated with leachate treatment.

– In recent years, we have built substantial experience in projects aimed at reducing PFAS-contaminated water while developing a deep understanding of various practical solutions. This has enabled us to offer a wide range of tailored methods depending on the PFAS composition in the water and other contamination challenges, says Carl-William Kalholm, Sales and Marketing Manager at Swedish Hydro Solutions.

– For more challenging water with a high presence of so-called short-chain PFAS, we use multiple filtration steps to optimize the total project cost, with the core being lead-lag filters with ion exchangers, Carl-William adds.

Pilot facility with multi-stage filtration

To identify the most suitable treatment technique for the energy company's needs, a bench study was conducted where selected techniques were tested in a laboratory environment. The study resulted in a plant design for the pilot project, which includes the following technologies:

• 10-foot technical container for sedimentation/flocculation
• Flocculation mixer with a 4 m³ capacity, including the possibility for pH adjustment
• Lamella separator with a surface area of 40 m²
• 20-foot filtration container with multi-stage filtration, including zeolite, activated carbon, and ion exchange filtration