Targeting the fine sand: Grit Trap GritWolf® passes first endurance test in Texas

In the southernmost part of Texas, not far from the Mexican border and directly on the Gulf of Mexico, lies the headland of South Padre Island. This place is made for holidays, with sun, sand and sea. From February to October, streams of tourists roll there on the fine sandy beach and enjoy the waves and the warmth, which is about 40°C during the day. As there is also a high humidity of over 90%, the best place to spend the day is in the sea or at the pool.

The exposed location of South Padre Island has of course also its disadvantage. Many people take a shower several times a day and flush the adherent fine sand with an average grain size of 100 µm into the sewerage system. After a short time, the fine sand then reaches the sewage treatment plant, which has no sand trap installed and therefore struggles with problems again and again due to sand deposits in the biological stage.

These circumstances were ideal for our HUBER Grit Trap GritWolf® to prove its efficiency in the separation of fine sand down to a grain size of 75 µm in a test run.

The design of the GritWolf® grit trap sets new standards in this respect, because a short aerated chamber, in which floating material is drifting to the surface, is followed by a connected unaerated area with lamella separator. The floating matter is removed discontinuously by a proven paddle. The fine sands continuously separated in the lamella separator collect at the bottom of the machine and are transported towards the suction pump by a type of time-controlled horizontal conveyors that has proven 1,000 times over.

In South Padre Island, the GritWolf® was fed with 15 - 50 l/s as the inflow varied over the day. Temporarily, fine sand with a grain size of 100 - 200 µm was additionally added to the natural fine sand feed at an inflow of approx. 40 l/s in order to further verify the new test method for grit traps (see Korrespondenz Abwasser, 2018(65); No. 7; 607-611). The samples taken at the outlet of the GritWolf® clearly confirmed that more than 95% of the sand grains ≥ 100 µm were safely retained. For the upcoming tender the HUBER GritWolf® grit trap has fully convinced the operator.

If your wastewater treatment plant is also plagued by fine sand, then our HUBER GritWolf® is the right solution for you. Of course, we can also upgrade your existing grit trap with our GritWolf® technology, so that operating problems caused by fine sand become a thing of the past.