Korea Water Technology
Cost Effective and Eco-friendly Sludge Treatment

Korea Water Technology (KWT) is pioneering the development of drum-type electro-osmosis sludge dehydrators, a technology that uses the electro-osmosis phenomenon to efficiently reduce the volume and weight of wastewater sludge cakes in a fast, efficient, and eco-friendly way.

The conventional equipment used for sludge dehydration has limitations. Even after the dehydration process, the water content is only reduced to approximately 80 percent due to the inherent characteristics of the sludge to retain water. KWT’s groundbreaking technology, on the other hand, employs a secondary dehydration process based on the principle of electro-osmosis, making it more efficient and powerful than traditional methods of relying on pressure differentials to dehydrate sludge cake.

“Our machine can reduce the water content of sludge cake from around 80 percent to approximately 60 percent. When combined with other drying methods, our machine facilitates even lower water content. With reduced water content, the sludge cake becomes more amenable to eco-friendly treatment,” says Sejeong Jeon, CEO of KWT.

The electro-osmosis sludge dehydrator serves as a remarkable success story for countries where environmental regulations are rapidly tightening and aiming to enhance their sludge treatment processes while keeping costs in check. In many of these countries, tighter regulations have led to the need for more eco-friendly treatments, which is putting pressure on new equipment investment and higher processing costs. The most common method of eco-friendly treatment is the use of traditional thermal dryers, which are expensive to invest and operate, and above all, significantly increase carbon emission.

This is where KWT’s technology comes into play, providing a compelling alternative. Compared to traditional thermal dryers, KWT’s solution offers many advantages, including significantly lower investment and operating costs, reduced energy consumption, smaller space requirements, and decreased reliance on human labor. Another notable advantage clients immediately notice is the significant reduction in carbon emissions. Incinerating sludge cake with high water content typically leads to higher emissions. With KWT’s technology, carbon emissions are often reduced by half or even one-third. These unique benefits position the technology as an ideal choice for countries becoming more eco-friendly seeking sustainable and efficient sludge treatment methods.

A case in point is when a client from Turkiye sought KWT’s help to reduce the water content of their sludge cake. The client was using a solar dryer, which took 30 days to completely dry the sludge cake.

After pre-treatment with KWT’s electro-osmosis sludge dehydrator, the solar dryer was able to remove 65 percent of water from the sludge in just a few minutes. The entire drying process was reduced to three days. This increased the client’s sludge treatment capacity by ten times, with reduced labor cost.

As another example, when a Korean food production company installed KWT’s electro-osmosis dehydration system, they could reduce annual sludge emissions by 50 percent and total waste emission by 13 percent.

KWT proudly manufactures its machines in Busan, Korea, and is currently in the process of setting up a second factory in China. All manufacturing techniques are developed in-house, showcasing the company’s strong expertise. With a commitment of over 14 years to their technology development, KWT has established a successful track record of selling their products in various countries, including Korea, Japan, China, and East Europe. This extensive experience further highlights the effectiveness and reliability of their technology.

KWT has a strategic plan for further development and expansion of its technology. The company is conducting studies to apply its technology to other industrial sectors, leveraging the uniqueness and adaptability of its electro-osmosis technology. One such area is the production of unique cathode materials. This market offers substantial opportunities due to its size and alignment with eco-friendly technologies, making it an ideal match for KWT’s innovative approach. This forward-thinking approach paves the way for a promising future for the company.