David Grant

David Grant

DavidGrant2

PhD. Candidate

Contact Details
+61-2-9385-6915
david.grant@student.unsw.edu.au

Room 808, Chemical Sciences Bldg
The University of New South Wales
Sydney, 2052, Australia

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Education

  • Bachelor of Engineering (Chemical Engineering) (Hons 1), University of New South Wales, 2009.

Research Project

Research Project Title: Use of ceramic membrane for water reuse and energy recovery in broiler abattoirs

With world populations increasing at an exponential rate coupled with a continued emphasis to employ techniques in industry that are socially and environmentally responsible, it is prudent to question whether or not current operations within broiler abattoirs are operating in the most economically and environmentally efficient manner.

Australian Broiler abattoirs use a large volume of water per day (on average 21.8 Litres per bird, with 44 ML on average used per day in Australian broiler abattoirs). Some plants are located in areas where water supply is scarce and with the cost of water and water treatment increasing, the opportunity exists for water treatment to be employed directly within the plant. In-house water treatment would make available to the plant reduced water supply and discharge costs & reduced power and gascoal consumption due to direct energy recovery gained from recycling water with a useful calorific value. It will also allow plants to take advantage of economies of scale where a plant’s production is limited by water supply or discharge limits.

The project aims to assess the membrane performance characteristics and analyse water quality for water sourced from a number of unit operations within the abattoir, including the Scald Tank and the Spin Chiller, with relevance for compliance with NSW and Australian Food Authority requirements for recycling water for use a food processing application. A pilot plant has been constructed and is currently in an abattoir in NSW processing water directly from the scald tank. Data from this plant will be used to quantify the economic, environmental and social impact of implementing this technology as a water treatment system for broiler abattoirs.

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