Maximize reliability and reduce chemical costs by up to 90% with membranes built for leachate treatment.
No two leachate streams are the same, which complicates treatment and management options. The landfill’s geography and climate, age, sources of waste, and time of year can all cause significant variation in the ratio and concentration of organic and inorganic pollutants present.
Landfill operators that are considering leachate treatment for discharge compliance and to avoid offsite hauling need robust solutions that are reliable when handling leachate of variable quality. Membrane technologies are an important option, but conventional membranes struggle with organic fouling, leading to:
- High operating costs
- Frequent downtime and maintenance
- High chemical and water usage
- Short membrane life
ZwitterCo’s fouling resistant membranes offer solutions for both leachate pre-treatment and polishing before discharge, providing reliable treatment and the lowest total cost of leachate management.
Fouling resistant membranes built for oil & grease and high BOD/COD levels in leachate
reduce operating costs
- Lower chemical, water, and energy costs
- Reduced downtime
reliability in high-fouling environments
- Highest operational limits for TOC, COD, and O&G
- Pre-treatment solutions for high-strength leachate
achieve discharge compliance
- Minimize or eliminate hauling with direct filtration
- Meet environmental discharge standards in polished effluent
Direct substitution with conventional membranes
- BWRO and High Pressure RO replacement options
- No changes to underlying equipment or operating principles
Leachate Treatment Solutions
Are you an existing membrane user looking to reduce costs and increase uptime?
Are you considering a membrane solution for pre-treatment or robust filtration?
Elevation membranes for leachate:
Membranes with the Highest Resistance to Organic Fouling
Membranes Built with ZwitterShield™
Shorten cleaning duration and extend time between cleaning cycles
Clean with simple chemicals instead of expensive, formulated cleaners
Save money with reduced membrane operating costs
Enable Treatment and Reuse of the Toughest Wastewater and Process Streams
Membranes Built with ZwitterCore™
Reliable pre-treatment regardless of variable leachate composition
Capable of handling extreme levels of FOG and other organics
Compact, fast to implement, and no risk of biological upsets
WATCH
Access our Exclusive Webinar
We invite you to access our exclusive webinar where experts at ZwitterCo and our customers discuss the latest advancements in reverse osmosis membrane solutions for landfill leachate treatment.
Watch a featured clip to get a preview of the discussion, or access the full webinar on demand.
reduce operating costs
Less cleaning. Less downtime.
With fouling resistant membranes, landfill operators can reduce costs through multiple operating mechanisms, including:
- Switching from formulated cleaners to generic chemicals
- Less downtime and higher system productivity
- Less cleaning means less water and energy during CIP
- Less wear & tear from cleaning yields longer membrane life
By switching to Elevation High Pressure RO, which only uses generic caustic and acid during CIP, one landfill operator eliminated formulated cleaners and reduced their chemical OPEX by 95%.
Reliability in high-fouling environments
Stability in shifting streams.
By changing from conventional reverse osmosis to ZwitterCo’s Elevation RO membranes, landfill operators can increase the limits and tolerance for TOC, O&G, and COD and the membranes will be more adaptive to changes in leachate composition.
For high strength leachate that needs more robust pre-treatment, ZwitterCo’s Expedition SF membranes remove contaminants larger than 1 nanometer, can handle up to 5% FOG, and can be cleaned with chlorine, maximizing treatment efficiency and producing ideal feedwater for downstream RO.
achieve discharge compliance
Cleaner water. Lower risk.
Our Elevation BWRO and High Pressure RO membranes achieve industry-standard removal of Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) and other trace contaminants needed to meet environmental discharge standards. These membranes are ideal for the first-pass of a multi-pass RO system where the fouling risk is the most severe, allowing final polishing steps to operate at maximum efficiency.
Expedition SF can provide peace of mind with RO pre-treatment if you are implementing a filtration solution and must comply with a new or pending discharge permit. Combined SF + RO solutions maximize reliability, deliver the highest quality effluent prior to discharge, and minimize concentrate volumes.
“Overall, we’re thrilled with how things are going. Less chemicals, longer run times, and an easier process for our team – it’s been a win all around”
Serpol, France
Direct substitution with conventional membranes
Retrofit ready.
ZwitterCo Elevation membranes are built to standard-dimension spiral wound configurations with common feed spacer sizes, including 34-mil and 50-mil options. No equipment modification is required for retrofit your existing or planned leachate treatment system with ZwitterCo’s membranes.
- Active membrane area
- Element size and feed-spacer thickness
- Pressure requirements
- Separation characteristics
CASE STUDY
HIGH REJECTION BWRO
Learn how a landfill cut cleaning costs and membrane replacements with Elevation membranes
At a landfill leachate treatment facility in France, severe organic fouling led to daily cleanings and membrane replacements every 2–3 months, driving up OPEX and downtime. By switching to ZwitterCo Elevation High Rejection BWRO membranes, the operator achieved:
~50% reduction in cleaning cost per m³
43% reduction in cleaning water usage
65% decrease in membrane replacement frequency
CASE STUDY
LOW ENERGY BWRO
Learn how a U.S. based powerplant reduced RO cleaning frequency by over 70% with ZwitterCo
More uptime due to less cleaning
Consistently high permeate flow
Just 2 cleanings per year vs. 7 for conventional membranes
CASE STUDY
HIGH PRESSURE RO
See how a biorefinery achieved discharge compliance despite high feed variability with Elevation Membranes.
Stable permeate quality under wide feed variability
Reduced chloride load ahead of biological treatment
High recovery maintained across conductivity swings
CASE STUDY
HIGH PRESSURE RO
Learn how a landfill reduced cleaning costs by 96% by eliminating formulated cleaners with Elevation Membranes.
Cleaning with commodity cleaners only
96% reduction in cleaning chemical cost
No irreversible fouling; full recovery after each clean
Mott Case Study
Speak with our engineers to discover ways that ZwitterCo can support positive changes at your plant. With our help, you can reduce your hauling and avoid heavy OPEX spend on plant expansion.
