Oil-water separation "black technology": coarse-grained coalescence technology, which makes small oil droplets "clump together" and float!

In industrial production scenarios, oily wastewater treatment has long been a persistent environmental challenge. Especially the tiny, dispersed oil droplets, which traditional filtration and sedimentation methods struggle to achieve efficient oil-water separation, while direct discharge causes serious environmental pollution. These longstanding pain points have plagued industrial operators—until the advent of coarse-grained coalescence technology, a "physical magic" that is rapidly emerging as a goldilocks standard for oily wastewater remediation.

Overview of coarse-grained coalescence technology:

Coarse-grained coalescence technology is a cutting-edge, high-efficiency oil-water separation method that leverages specialized functional materials to physically adsorb and agglomerate micro-oil droplets, promoting their fusion into oil globules. This technology does not rely on chemical reagents：it achieves separation through the inherent affinity of materials, combining environmental friendliness with cost advantages, ultimately achieving a balance between ecological compliance and economic feasibility.

Two core working principles:

1. Collision-coalescence: Oil droplets collide with each other when passing through coalescing materials, merging smaller droplets into larger ones, increasing floating speed.

2. Wetting-aggregation: The material surface possesses oleophilic and hydrophobic properties, making it easier for oil droplets to adhere and fuse, forming larger oil beads that then rapidly rise and separate.

These two mechanisms work together to allow previously difficult-to-handle tiny oil droplets to gradually "grow," ultimately achieving successful separation.

Introduction to coarse-grained coalescence materials：

According to different materials, common coarse-grained filter cartridges are divided into two categories, which can be flexibly selected for different water quality and precision requirements:

1. Stainless steel wire mesh filter cartridges

Stainless steel wire mesh filter cartridges are woven from extremely fine wires using a special circular weaving technique. Their outer surface undergoes an oleophilic treatment, significantly enhancing their oil-capturing ability. These filter cartridges can effectively capture oil droplets larger than 20 microns and are widely used in the pretreatment of oily wastewater in general industrial processes. Its robust structural design ensures excellent durability and a long service life, even under high load and continuous operation conditions.

2.Polymer material coalescing filter cartridges

Polymer coalescing filter cartridges are made from oleophilic/hydrophobic or hydrophilic/oleophobic porous polymer materials through a folding and assembly process. Compared to stainless steel filter cartridges, they have a more precise structure and more uniform pores, enabling them to capture oil droplets larger than 10 micrometers. Their separation efficiency and precision are significantly improved, making them suitable for applications with high requirements for effluent quality.

Supporting equipment: The coalescer of W-shaped corrugated plate

In addition to the filter element,the coalescer of W-shaped corrugated plate is also an important component of this technology system. It is made of stainless steel plates through special pressing and assembly, and has multiple functions such as uniform water distribution, extending the water flow path, and shortening the oil droplet floating distance, which significantly improves the probability of oil droplet collision and aggregation, and accelerates the oil-water separation process.

Practical Application Scenarios

Coarse-grained coalescence technology is currently widely used in multiple industrial sectors, with typical applications including:

Petrochemical industry: treating refining and oilfield re-injection water;

Machinery manufacturing and processing: oil-water separation of coolant and cutting fluid wastewater;

Marine oily wastewater: bilge water and ballast water treatment;

Food industry: pretreatment of animal and vegetable oily wastewater;

Steel and metallurgical industries: oil pollution control in circulating water systems.

Especially in our WYS-XX type oil-water separator, the combination of coarse-grained coalescing filter cartridges and the coalescer of W-shaped corrugated plate forms the core processing unit of the equipment（Oil content in treated effluent ≤50mg/L）. This configuration delivers exceptional separation performance and operational stability, meeting the most demanding industrial requirements.

Conclusion

Coarse-grained coalescence technology, with its significant advantages of high efficiency, environmental friendliness, ease of maintenance, and wide applicability, is gradually becoming the mainstream technology in the field of industrial oil-water separation. Whether it's stainless steel wire mesh or polymer materials, they are all quietly playing a magical role in "making small oil droplets larger before separation."

If you are seeking an efficient, reliable, and environmentally compliant solution for treating oily wastewater, coarse-grained coalescence technology deserves your further attention and evaluation.