Water use and treatment in industries: Cleaner water as the essence of life
Water is the cornerstone of every industrial and agricultural value chain. Globally, agriculture creates the lion's share of water consumption, accounting for approximately 70 percent of water use, followed by industry at around 20 percent (source: bpb). However, in North America and Europe, industrial water use can reach as high as 50 percent, and in Western Europe it even surpasses 70 percent. Alongside industrial production and agricultural irrigation, the growing demand for clean energy continues to drive the need for freshwater higher. As a result, effective water treatment has become a crucial factor for fostering sustainable, competitive, and resource-efficient production processes across various industries.
Water use within industry: A source of security and productivity
In industrial settings, water plays a crucial role in countless processes. The quality of water required varies significantly depending on the industry and application, ranging from the need to remove all microorganisms and specific ions to achieving near-perfect particle-free purity.
Process water
High-quality process water is essential for industrial production. It determines the reliability and durability of machinery, the efficiency of operations, and ultimately the growth of the business. When it comes to process water, it’s about more than just technology – it’s about ensuring smooth workflows, safe products, and sustainable success.
Key applications include:
- Cooling water: Cooling towers and heat exchangers use water to effectively dissipate heat, ensuring the uninterrupted operation of machinery and systems.
- Cleaning water: Removing contaminants from products, tools, and equipment is vital for quality assurance – for example, in automotive production.
- Water for the food and beverage industries: Strict quality standards apply here, as water often serves not only as a process medium but also as a key ingredient in the final product.
- Production water: Used as a reaction medium, for dilution, heat transfer, or even as a direct component of the end product. For example, in metalworking, water hardness is carefully managed to optimize conditions, while in the chemical industry, impurities that could disrupt catalysts are removed.
- Boiler and steam generator water: Clean boiler water is critical wherever steam is required, such as in power plants or chemical facilities.
Industrial wastewater treatment and water recycling
Over the past decade, the recycling and reuse of process water and wastewater has gained significant traction, driven by increasing water demand and global water scarcity. Today, efficient water circular economies are key to sustainable production and resource conservation.
Industrial wastewater is far from uniform. Depending on the industry and application, it may contain a wide variety of contaminants, including:
- Heavy metals from metal processing industries
- Oils and fats from cleaning and production processes
- Pharmaceutical residues from drug manufacturing
- Organic substances, microorganisms, and chemicals from a diverse range of industrial activities
This diversity presents significant challenges for water treatment systems, placing high demands on technology and innovation.
Ultrapure water
Ultrapure water, also known as highly purified water (HPW), is water that has been purified to an exceptionally high standard. For many sensitive applications, such purity is non-negotiable, as even the smallest variations in conductivity and impurities can disrupt processes, compromise product quality, or impact patient health in critical environments such as hospitals.
Typical applications for ultrapure water include:
- Hospitals: For thoroughly cleaning and disinfecting surgical instruments, ensuring the highest possible hygiene standards.
- Pharmaceutical industry: As a key component in drug production, requiring absolute purity to meet strict quality regulations.
- Electronics industry: For manufacturing computer chips and semiconductors, where even microscopic particles or ions can cause defects.
The quality of water directly impacts production processes and equipment performance, making reliable water treatment a cornerstone of industrial success.
Water use in industry: Core applications in original equipment manufacturing
In original equipment (OE) manufacturing, precision, reliability, and efficiency are paramount. Water plays a central role in countless industries:
- Cleaning and degreasing components: Before further processing, components must be free from grease, oil, and other residues. Aqueous cleaning systems, combined with fully demineralized water and specialized cleaning agents, ensure residue-free drying and prevent quality issues in subsequent steps.
- Cooling processes in metalworking: Emulsions made of water and oil dissipate heat and provide lubrication, protecting machinery and ensuring precision in the final product.
- Painting and surface treatment: Soft, demineralized water prevents residues on surfaces and ensures even coatings. After painting, paint particles are removed from wastewater, allowing the water to be recycled.
- Leakage and functionality testing: Water with precisely defined parameters is critical for reliable and reproducible results in leak and functionality tests.
The impact of water quality on industrial production processes
When water quality becomes a weak link, the entire production process can suffer. Even slight variations in conductivity or dissolved ions can compromise product quality, increase waste rates, and reduce energy efficiency. Equipment wears out faster, processes stall, and competitors gain the edge. Investing in high-performance water filtration systems ensures smooth operations and provides a significant market advantage:
Case studies from the OE industry
Automotive production
Water is essential across nearly all areas of automotive manufacturing – from body painting and cooling machinery to cleaning vehicle parts and treating exhaust emissions. Some companies save up to 500,000 cubic meters of freshwater annually through innovative water treatment and recycling systems (source: Porsche Holding). To reduce freshwater consumption and sustainably lower operational costs, the following processes are commonly used:
- Chemical-physical treatment: Neutralization of alkaline and acidic components, as well as the removal of heavy metals.
- Biological treatment: Decomposition of organic contaminants using microorganisms.
- Enhanced biological treatment by membrane filtration: Employing membrane bioreactors (MBR) as BIO-CEL to eliminate bacteria and viruses and to reduce footprint up to 40%.
- UF Membranes for e-coating Spira-Cel: Finishers choose electrocoating to provide their products with a durable, lasting coating. UF filtration helps to keep the highest quality standards, decrease wastewater by recycling.
- Reverse osmosis with Microdyn RO: Removing dissolved salts and other micro-pollutants.
Electronics industry
In semiconductor manufacturing, ultrapure water with extremely low conductivity is indispensable. It must be virtually free of particles, ions, organic substances, and microorganisms. This ultrapure water is used throughout various production stages, such as wafer cleaning. The quality of this water has a direct impact on product quality and manufacturing yield. Water treatment in this industry typically involves multi-stage systems, including pre-treatment, filtration, and reverse osmosis:
- Pre-treatment: Removal of coarse contaminants through mechanical filters and flocculation.
- Filtration: Using sand, activated carbon, or membrane filters to eliminate fine particles, organic substances, and microorganisms.
- Reverse osmosis with Microdyn RO: Removing dissolved salts and organic compounds.
Modern industrial water treatment solutions by MANN-HUMMEL
The rising demand for water in industry, stricter environmental regulations, and the shift towards resource conservation all present significant challenges for businesses. MANN+HUMMEL addresses these needs with a wide range of innovative filtration technologies that ensure efficient, reliable, and future-ready water treatment solutions. Customers and partners worldwide rely on these and many other solutions for clean water:
- Ultrafiltration (UF): Modules like SpiraSep, iSep, PureUltra, Aquadyn, and Ultradyn effectively remove bacteria, viruses, and particles. They are highly flexible, reducing the need for pre-treatment, operational costs, and space requirements.
- Membrane bioreactors (MBR): BIO-CEL MBR combines biological treatment with membrane filtration, enabling the recovery of high-quality, reusable water at a footprint up to 40% lower than conventional.
- Reverse osmosis (RO) and nanofiltration (NF): Remove dissolved salts, organic substances, and micro-pollutants – ideal for ultrapure water in semiconductor, pharmaceutical, and food industries.
- Digital monitoring solutions: Smart systems like Streametric enable predictive maintenance and ensure consistently high water quality and process reliability. Additionally, the AquaPro design software simplifies the design of reverse osmosis (RO) and nanofiltration (NF) systems with its intuitive interface. The software simulates various operational configurations, provides reliable results through automatic updates, and summarizes data in an exportable final report for easy analysis.
As a world-renowned filtration company with over 80 years of experience, MANN+HUMMEL supports industries with products tailored to a diverse range of applications. Here are a few examples:
In the healthcare and pharmaceutical sectors, ultrapure water is vital – both as a cleaning agent and as a key component in medications. In applications such as dialysis and injectable drugs, water for injection (WFI) is required, as it adheres to stricter regulations compared to highly purified water (HPW). To ensure maximum product and patient safety, all endotoxins, microorganisms, and viruses must be reliably eliminated.
- MANN+HUMMEL offers specialized reverse osmosis and ultrafiltration systems designed for sensitive pharmaceutical processes.
- TurboClean RO and ULTRADYN ultrafiltration systems deliver pathogen-free filtration that’s fully compliant with USP88 standards.
- These systems make it possible to produce water for injection (WFI) purposes without relying on energy-intensive distillation processes.
- The result: enhanced safety, improved energy efficiency, and flexible production processes.
In the semiconductor and electronics industries, ultrapure water is essential for cleaning processes. Even the tiniest particles or dissolved impurities can cause defects or failures in microchips.
- MANN+HUMMEL offers advanced technologies such as TurboClean RO elements and ULTRADYN UF modules, consistently delivering the highest standards of ultrapure water.
- Our ultrafiltration products reliably remove particles and organic substances.
- The result: maximum process reliability and optimal production yields.
In energy production – such as power plants or steam turbines – ultrapure water is the foundation of safe and efficient operations. At the same time, turbines and related equipment must be fully protected from harmful particles and moisture.
- Our comprehensive portfolio includes highly effective air filtration systems for power generation, such as the Airpanel Pro H2O Duo.
- This high-performance filter removes salt, dust, sand, water, and fine particles from intake air.
- Particularly useful in coastal areas and offshore platforms, it ensures optimal conditions in combustion chambers and eliminates the need for additional coalescence stages.
- The result: clean air, reduced corrosion, extended equipment life, and improved energy efficiency.
In metalworking, processes such as grinding or machining generate heat and oil mist, which must be removed to ensure the safety of both machines and workers.
- Oil mist separators from MANN+HUMMEL efficiently remove oil particles from the air, either mechanically (ScandMist) or electrostatically (TriMist).
- Mechanical separators use physical barriers to capture particles. Electrostatic systems rely on electrical charges to separate particles from the air.
- Additionally, EDM filters clean used oil by removing metal dust and chips, allowing the oil to be recycled back into the machine.
- The result: extended machine lifespans, improved efficiency, and a safe, clean working environment.
Industrial wastewater management faces the challenge of needing to remove a wide range of contaminants, such as heavy metals, fats, oils, and pharmaceutical residues, while also recovering water for subsequent processes.
- Reverse osmosis (RO) and ultrafiltration (UF) are key technologies for treating cooling tower blowdown and boiler feedwater.
- SpiraSep™ 1060 UF modules from MANN+HUMMEL feature a vacuum-driven, submerged, backwashable, spiral-wound membrane design, making them ideal for heavily contaminated water and wastewater streams. For certain industrial waste applications, the cost-effective Pure Ultra solution may also be a suitable alternative.
- For smaller applications, the iSep 500 UF module, equipped with its own tank, offers a flexible and space-saving solution that performs consistently reliably, even during peak loads.
- These modules reduce the need for pre-treatment, while also lowering costs and saving space.
- Following ultrafiltration with SpiraSep or iSep, additional treatment using reverse osmosis or nanofiltration can be applied to achieve the highest water quality.
In addition to industrial filtration, MANN+HUMMEL applies innovative membrane technologies for municipal water treatment, removing micro-contaminants, pathogens, microplastics, and pharmaceutical residues. The focus is always on cost efficiency, ease of operation and maintenance, as well as top-tier filtration performance to ensure safe and reliable solutions for communities.
- The BIO-CEL L+ series was designed for large-scale membrane bioreactors in both municipal and industrial applications.
- The BIO-CEL M+ membrane module is specifically tailored for mid-size plants and containerized systems.
- BIO-CEL Easy offers a plug-and-play system for easy installation – ideal for hotels, shopping centers, or office buildings.
- After membrane filtration, the water can be further treated and reused through reverse osmosis systems.
- These solutions make it possible to upgrade conventional wastewater treatment plants to a fourth or fifth purification stage with minimal effort and minimal space requirement significantly improving water quality.
Water is the most important raw material in the food and beverage industry – over 90 percent of products include it. Water quality directly impacts taste, color, shelf life, and overall product safety.
- MANN+HUMMEL utilizes ultrafiltration, nanofiltration, and reverse osmosis to remove suspended solids, dissolved substances, metals, organic materials, and bacteria.
- Our patented TurboClean shell design offers up to 22% energy savings and provides the strongest sanitary elements available.
- Membranes are also used for tasks like de-alcoholizing wine or beer and clarifying juices and vinegar.
- In dairies, membrane elements separate fats, clarify cheese brine, concentrate proteins, and demineralize whey products.
- This ensures that final products meet the highest quality standards while optimizing production processes for efficiency, safety, and sustainability.
Water treatment and consumption: A bright future for industry
The future of water use and treatment in industry lies in combining innovative membrane technologies, digital monitoring, and circular economies. Companies are increasingly adopting Minimum-Liquid-Discharge (MLD) or Zero-Liquid-Discharge (ZLD) systems to nearly eliminate wastewater and recover valuable resources. Whether in food production, construction, automotives, e-mobility, or airports, integrating water reuse systems makes industries, transport, and agriculture more independent, reduces water consumption, and actively contributes to environmental protection.
MANN+HUMMEL continues to develop solutions that reduce water consumption, operational costs, and environmental impact while enhancing process reliability – for businesses, industries and municipalities. With modular and scalable systems, as well as a comprehensive portfolio of tailored filtration technologies, we are a trusted partner for sustainable and future-proof water treatment across numerous industries.
Contact us now to learn more about our tailored filtration solutions for water treatment!
