top of page
Search

Case Study: VOLGA-80 Ultrafiltration Membranes Delivering Robust and Reliable Performance at Sakthi Group for Sugar Plant Water Treatment

Introduction

The sugar industry generates process water streams with high turbidity, suspended solids, colloidal silica, and organic load due to cane washing, juice processing, and ancillary operations. Effective treatment of this water is essential to protect downstream Reverse Osmosis (RO) systems, ensure stable plant operations, and control operating costs.

At Sakthi Sugars Pvt. Ltd., Coimbatore, the process water quality posed significant challenges to the existing ultrafiltration system. To achieve consistent pretreatment performance and long-term reliability, Sakthi Group partnered with Theway Membranes to implement VOLGA-80 Ultrafiltration (UF) Membranes. This case study highlights the durability, efficiency, and proven performance of VOLGA-80 UF membranes in a demanding sugar plant application.


The Challenge

Process water in sugar plants is highly variable and difficult to treat due to seasonal fluctuations and organic contamination. At Sakthi Sugars, the following challenges were identified:

  • High Turbidity & Suspended Solids: Feed water turbidity reached up to 40 NTU, with TSS up to 50 ppm, creating high fouling potential.

  • Colloidal Silica Presence: Fine colloidal particles adversely affected conventional UF membrane performance.

  • High Organic Load: Organic matter typical of sugar industry wastewater increased fouling and cleaning frequency.

  • Frequent UF Performance Issues: Existing UF membranes experienced rapid flux decline and higher maintenance demand.

  • Need for Direct Replacement: The plant required a UF solution that could directly replace existing membranes without system modification.

Ensuring stable UF performance under these demanding feed water conditions was critical to protect the downstream RO system.


The Solution: VOLGA-80 Ultrafiltration Membranes

After detailed technical evaluation, VOLGA-80 UF Membranes from Theway Membranes were selected as a direct replacement for the existing UF system, offering improved durability and fouling resistance.

Key Features of VOLGA-80 UF Membranes

  • Advanced Ultrafiltration Technology: Efficient removal of suspended solids, colloidal silica, and organic contaminants.

  • Consistent Low Turbidity Permeate: Produces high-quality water suitable for RO pretreatment.

  • High Fouling Resistance: Designed to handle variable and high-load sugar process water.

  • Direct Replacement Design: Exact replacement for KOCH TARGA II-100-72 UF membranes, enabling easy retrofit.

  • Cost-Effective Operation: Long membrane life with reduced cleaning frequency.


Deployment at Sakthi Group, Coimbatore

The VOLGA-80 UF system was commissioned in 2025 at Sakthi Sugars Pvt. Ltd., Coimbatore, as part of the RO pretreatment system. The system treats process water with an installed capacity of 0.5 MLD, ensuring stable and reliable RO feed quality.

Key Deployment Details

  • Location: Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu

  • Industry Segment: Sugar Plant

  • Technology: VOLGA-80 – Ultrafiltration

  • Source Water: Process Water

  • User Application: Pretreatment of RO Water

  • Capacity: 0.5 MLD

  • Commissioning: 2025

  • Replacement: KOCH TARGA II-100-72 UF membranes


Results and Impact

Field validation of VOLGA-80 Ultrafiltration Membranes at Sakthi Sugars demonstrated excellent and stable performance under challenging feed water conditions.

Key Results Achieved

  • Consistent Permeate Quality:

    • Turbidity: < 0.1 NTU

    • Suspended Solids: < 1 ppm

    • SDI: < 3Achieved consistently over the last 9 months, even with feed turbidity up to 40 NTU, TSS up to 50 ppm, and SDI > 6.

  • Stable Long-Term Operation:VOLGA-80 membranes maintained permeability and recovery without flux decline.

  • No Membrane Replacement Required:No UF module replacement required over 6+ months of continuous operation.

  • Improved RO Protection:High-quality UF permeate ensured reliable and stable RO system performance.

  • Reduced O&M Costs:Lower fouling tendency and reduced chemical cleaning frequency resulted in cost savings.


Conclusion

The successful deployment of VOLGA-80 Ultrafiltration Membranes at Sakthi Sugars Pvt. Ltd. demonstrates Theway Membranes’ capability to deliver robust, reliable, and cost-effective UF solutions for sugar industry applications. The system consistently handled high turbidity, suspended solids, colloidal silica, and organic load while delivering excellent permeate quality for RO pretreatment.

By adopting VOLGA-80 UF membranes as a direct replacement, Sakthi Group achieved enhanced system reliability, reduced maintenance requirements, extended membrane life, and improved overall water treatment performance—reinforcing the value of advanced ultrafiltration technology in sugar plant operations.


For More Details:

Via LinkedIn:


Via Facebook :


Via Twitter :


CONTACT

29, Yadaval Street

SIDCO Indl. Estate,

Chennai 600098

Tamil Nadu, India


E-mail


Get a quote

+91 44 48502060/

+91 73974 98660


                                                  Thanks for visiting our Site & Blog

                                                                                 - Team Theway Membranes


 
 
 
bottom of page