From excessive chrome, coolant, and nickel to complete compliance and recovery
Inovar turned a non-functional ETP into a reliable, sustainable system for the Automobile Industry.
Inovar’s Approach - Segregate. Optimize. Recover
Inovar redesigned the treatment flow and optimized chemical dosing for balanced, efficient performance.
Effluent segregation: Each stream acidic, alkaline, coolant, and heavy-metal was diverted for targeted treatment.
Internal effluent reuse: Acidic wastewater (pH 2–3) was used to treat chrome, while alkaline wastewater was used to adjust pH for nickel removal.
Existing biology, DAF integrated: DAF was added upstream to remove emulsion coolant and stabilize BOD/COD loads.
Stabilized for recovery: The ETP was stabilized and optimized, enabling effective treatment through UF and RO systems for water reuse.
The Breakthrough -Compliance with Minimal operational cost
- Removal of chrome and nickel from wastewater with optimized chemical use.
- OPEX dropped by 70% through lower chemical consumption.
- Membrane fouling intervals extended from weekly to eight to ten months, improving uptime.
- Built on what was already on site: existing infrastructure retained, with the addition DAF and ultrafiltration (UF)
- Treated water was made suitable for reuse inline with the compliance
What Set It Apart
The solution wasn’t about adding more, it was about rethinking the flow.
- Internal effluents were repurposed as process reagents, reducing the need for purchased chemicals.
- Segregating acidic, alkaline, coolant, and heavy metal streams prevented shock loading across units.
- Targeted pH corrections stabilized biological treatment and improved separation.
- Fixing the process proved more effective than end-of-pipe overcorrections.
Impact Beyond the Plant
- The case demonstrated that complex electroplating effluents can be effectively managed through proper process design and optimization, eliminating the need for major system upgrades.
- The plant achieved 100% compliance for utility reuse in line with regulatory norms.
- Membrane fouling intervals extended from weekly to eight to ten months, improving uptime.
- The approach lowered reliance on purchased chemicals and reduced operational strain.
The Challenge
An automobile industry’s Effluent Treatment Plant (ETP) was struggling to meet environmental compliance. The issues were piling up:
- Presence of heavy metals: Hexavalent chromium (~50–100 ppm) and nickel.
- Coolant contamination:High levels of coolant residues caused process instability and hindered wastewater treatability and separation efficiency.
- Process inefficiency: Acidic, alkaline, coolant and heavy metal streams were all mixed,reduced process effectiveness.
- Operational and OPEX burden: Excessive chemical dosing, unstable pH, frequent membrane fouling, and a non-functional tertiary ZLD led to high operating costs and dependence on external disposal agencies.