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Achieving sustainable water reuse in mining through integrated membrane solutions             

To address the challenge of mine water reuse and meet stringent national environmental regulations, a major mining company in China implemented a Zero Liquid Discharge (ZLD) system integrating ultrafiltration (UF) and reverse osmosis (RO) technologies. The project was designed to achieve complete wastewater recycling while significantly reducing discharge and freshwater demand.

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The customer

The customer is a global mining group engaged in the exploration and extraction of metals including copper, gold, zinc, lithium, silver, and molybdenum.

Committed to sustainable development, the company aims to minimize environmental impact while maintaining high production efficiency.

The challenge

Mine effluent from the site contained high total dissolved solids (TDS > 20,000 mg/L), mainly chlorides, along with high hardness and sulfate concentrations.

These factors posed a high risk of scaling and fouling, making reliable membrane performance critical. The design needed to ensure a high recovery rate while minimizing the load on downstream thermal processes.

The solution

The treatment system included five parallel RO trains, each with three stages and equipped with booster pumps at every stage.

Using MICRODYN SWRO elements the design achieved:

  • Nominal NaCl rejection: 99.75%.
  • High fouling resistance: thanks to the wide 34 mil feed spacer.
  • Optimized cleaning and pressure performance for long-term reliability.

Combined with upstream ultrafiltration, the RO system effectively removed suspended solids and organic matter before desalination.

Highlights

Since commissioning in 2022, the combined UF and RO system has been operating reliably, producing high-quality permeate suitable for reuse in both industrial and irrigation applications. The project has helped the mining site close the water loop, significantly reducing both environmental impact and operational costs.
 
Through the integrated membrane solution, the plant has:
 
  • Achieved permeate TDS below 1,000 mg/L, supporting reuse compliance.
  • Recovered over 75% of treated water, equal to more than 18,000 m³ per day.
  • Reduced freshwater intake and lowered wastewater disposal volumes.
  • Contributed to stable, long-term ZLD performance under challenging feedwater conditions.