TREATING WASTEWATER MORE ECOLOGICALLY

In civil engineering projects, processing fresh concrete in aquifer layers generates alkaline wastewater that must be neutralized before it can be discharged to sewers or surface waters. Carbon dioxide provides an eco-friendly and economical means of performing this task.

Traditional neutralization methods use aggressive mineral acids such as hydrochloric or sulfuric acid. The use of carbon dioxide offers a number of significant advantages over those traditional methods: it does not generate any corrosive or environmentally harmful salts, provides for more precise neutralization, and carries no risk of over-acidification. Moreover, its operating and investment costs are lower, because it eliminates the need for expensive acid storage facilities and the associated safety measures.