Wastewater treatment plants and air pollution control systems in graphic arts and packaging
The main sources of pollution that can be found in the graphic arts industry are the liquid waste from cleaning printing tools and VOC emissions.
Condorchem Enviro Solutions offers comprehensive solutions for wastewater treatment, air emissions control, and waste valorization for the graphic arts industries. These solutions are essential to mitigate the environmental impact of this industry and comply with current environmental regulations.
Wastewater
- Washing water, which comes from cleaning printing equipment and machinery. This water may contain residues of inks, solvents, and other chemicals.
- In processes that use photographic plates, wastewater contains chemicals used in the development and fixing of images.
- Water-soluble ink residues and solvents used in cleaning rollers and other parts of the printing machines.
- Rinse water used in surface treatment processes, such as anodizing and varnishing.
Air Emissions
- Volatile organic compounds (VOCs), which mainly come from solvent-based inks and cleaning products used in the industry.
- Suspended particles generated during printing and finishing processes, especially when cutting and handling paper and cardboard.
- Combustion gases are less common and are only produced when boilers or generators using fossil fuels are used. In this case, emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2), carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen oxides (NOx), and sulfur dioxide (SO2) are generated.
- Odors associated with the use of inks and solvents, which can be annoying and, in some cases, harmful.
Processes that generate wastewater and air pollution in graphic arts and packaging
The production processes that are likely to generate liquid waste and atmospheric emissions in the graphic arts and packaging sector are as follows:
- Offset printing.
- Flexography.
- Serigraphy.
- Rotogravure.
- Gravure.
- Reprographics.
