Veolia Water Solutions & Technologies (Saint Maurice, France; http://www.veoliawaterst.com) has been awarded the supply of a large-scale evaporation and crystallization plant by Iberpotash, S.A., a business unit of ICL Fertilizers. Iberpotash produces potash fertilizers from sylvinite mining from deposits located near Suria, in the Barcelona province of Spain.
The plant, to be completed in 2014, will recover and purify high-quality sodium chloride and potassium chloride from byproduct salts resulting from the production of fertilizer. Utilizing HPD evaporation and crystallization technology from Veolia, Iberpotash will expand production capabilities to include 750,000 tons/yr of chemical and food-grade salts, as well as recover up to 50,000 tons/yr of white potash from the process. More importantly, the new plant provides a sustainable method of operation with a significant reduction in environmental footprint as production increases.
Designed as a closed-loop system, no liquid waste is generated from the process with a surplus of condensate available for re-use. Leachate from byproduct salt storage is also captured and processed in the system, preventing the egress of brine into the surrounding environment. Veolia Water Solutions & Technologies will provide the salt and potash recovery plant on a design-build project basis. This includes the design and supply of major process equipment, ancillary systems, detailed engineering, and construction management.
Iberpotash is a producer and supplier of potash fertilizers for agriculture and industry uses. Iberpotash produces over one million tons of red potash for fertilizers from two mines in Catalonia, Spain. These mines represent Europe’s most important potash resources, conveniently located near the major potash consumption areas of the European Union.