Feasibility Study for the Separation of Solid Particles from High-Pressure Water Jet Process Water with a Hydrocyclone

Abstract

On the tunneling site Perjen (Tyrol, Austria) thin concrete layers are removed by water jet cutting from the wall inside the tunnel. In this process, a daily volume of 5-10 m³ of wastewater is produced which is stored temporarily on-site and periodically taken away by a waste disposal company. In order to reduce disposal costs the reduction of the wastewater volume by mechanical treatment is required. Therefore, a hydrocyclone was tested on-site for evaluation purpose. The particle concentration in the underflow of the hydrocyclone is 32 % (average) higher than the inlet particle concentration, whereas the overflow concentration is 28 % (average) smaller than the inlet particle concentration. In conclusion, particle separation by a hydrocyclone is partly possible for the present wastewater.