New System for Recycling Water and Generating Power

21/08/07 To further optimize production processes in both ecological and financial terms, WILD is investing in cleaning and recycling water and generating power. At the company headquarters in Heidelberg-Eppelheim, Germany, a system is being built that produces biogas and converts this into power.

Environmentally-friendly operation is a foundation of WILD’s principles. In addition, WILD has possessed an environmental management system certified in accordance with ISO 14001 since 1996. The company’s goal is to set up processes in an efficient manner to ensure maximum conservation of resources and environmental protection.

With the expansion of the Eppelheim site over the past few years and the increased capacity, more and more processed water accrues; therefore, WILD is constructing a new system for recycling water and generating power. In the new center for processed water recycling, the organic substances contained in the water, such as fruit components and sugar, can be used to generate power, and a proportion of the water can be reused. This helps the public water treatment facilities, allowing WILD to use the energy contained in the water to produce power and heat; therefore, saving resources. Furthermore, the new system will enable the company to close any process loops.

The core component of the processed water treatment system is an anaerobic reactor that uses special bacteria to convert substances contained in the processed water into methane gas. This produces around 3,600 cubic meters of valuable biogas daily, which is then used in a gas engine with an attached generator (a combined heat and power plant) to produce power. The outstanding features of the system are its extremely low energy consumption and its space-saving construction. In addition, very little sludge is produced.

WILD hopes to commission the system, which will cost around five million euros, in 2008.