Industry

Vacuum pumps for environmental technology and wastewater

In environmental technology, vacuum keeps wastewater moving, circulates gases and extracts soil air: vacuum sewerage conveys wastewater to the vacuum station without a gradient, blowers supply air for the treatment stages, and vacuum pumps circulate biogas in the digester or draw vapours out of storage tanks. Below you can see which series the manufacturers themselves name for these tasks – 595 models from 5 manufacturers.

Compare 595 modelsSee the applications

  • 595Models
  • 56Series
  • 5Manufacturers
  • 7Applications
Basins and pipes of a sewage treatment plant
Basins and pipes of a sewage treatment plant

In short

Environmental and wastewater: vacuum pumps – the key facts

  • Vacuum sewerageAccording to Atlas Copco, the vacuum conveys the wastewater to the vacuum station without a gradient – at 250–400 mbar, with GHS VSD+ and DZS A as an alternative to the gravity system.
  • AerationBusch names MINK, SAMOS and TYR for aeration tanks, grit chambers, diffusers, SBR and moving bed reactors; Elmo Rietschle names blowers for supplying the activated sludge with oxygen.
  • Dust and mixturesFor dust-intensive applications, Becker names oil-free pumps with a large filter area: VTLF/VXLF with 244–570 m³/h at 200–250 mbar, BCV with 275–600 m³/h at 150–200 mbar. When mixtures of gas, liquid and solids are extracted, a separator protects the pump, according to Becker.
  • BiogasFor circulating biogas in the digester, Busch names DOLPHIN, MINK, SAMOS and SECO, and R5 and COBRA for upgrading by pressure swing adsorption; Elmo Rietschle names compressors for mixing digester gas and collecting landfill gas.

Applications

Environmental and wastewater: what vacuum pumps are used for

For each application: what the vacuum does and which series the manufacturers name for it. The information comes from the manufacturers’ own pages.

Vacuum sewerage

In vacuum sewerage, the vacuum conveys the wastewater to the vacuum station without a gradient – according to Atlas Copco at 250–400 mbar, with GHS VSD+ and DZS A as an alternative to the gravity system. Busch names MINK, R5, SECO and TYR, also for vacuum supply and disposal systems in trains and ships; Leybold lists NOVADRY for vacuum toilets, and Becker names vacuum for vacuum sewerage as a use case.

More on Vacuum sewerage →

Aeration of sewage treatment plants and aquaculture

Air supplies the bacteria in the aeration tank with oxygen, circulates the water in the grit chamber and backwashes clogged filters. Busch names MINK, SAMOS and TYR for this – for activated sludge, SBR cycles, moving bed reactors, diffuser grids, wastewater ponds and rearing tanks, in which overpressure supplies the oxygen; in the membrane bioreactor, the vacuum pump draws the wastewater through the membrane. Elmo Rietschle names blowers for supplying the activated sludge with oxygen, and Becker names the aeration of sewage treatment plants and aquaculture as a use case.

  • BuschMINK, SAMOS, TYR, DOLPHIN
  • Elmo Rietschlenames blowers for supplying the activated sludge with oxygen, without a series
  • Beckernames aeration, grit chambers and backwashing only as use cases

Biogas, landfill gas and digester gas

Busch names DOLPHIN, MINK, SAMOS and SECO for circulating biogas in the digester, R5 and COBRA for upgrading by pressure swing adsorption and MINK for membrane upgrading. Elmo Rietschle names compressors for mixing and compressing digester gas in the fermenter and for collecting and compressing landfill gas. Leybold lists CLAWVAC and NOVADRY for biogas production, and Pfeiffer Vacuum lists biogas handling in its product finder – both without a closer description.

More on Biogas, landfill gas and digester gas →

Gas and vapour recovery

Busch names COBRA, DOLPHIN and R5 for extracting vapours from storage tanks, DOLPHIN and MINK for extracting and compressing waste gas and flare gas, and MINK for exhaust gas recovery. According to Busch, in fuel cells MINK returns 20–70% of the hydrogen inflow to the stack. Pfeiffer Vacuum lists exhaust gas recovery and recirculation in its product finder without naming a pump series.

More on Gas and vapour recovery →

Soil remediation (soil vapour extraction)

Elmo Rietschle names soil gas extraction for the remediation of contaminated soils without naming a series. Leybold lists CLAWVAC and NOVADRY for soil remediation, and Becker names air sparging as a use case on its environmental industry page.

  • Elmo Rietschledescribes soil gas extraction without a series
  • LeyboldNOVADRY, CLAWVAC
  • Beckernames air sparging only as a use case

More on Soil remediation (soil vapour extraction) →

Extraction of dust, chips and liquids

Becker describes the extraction of mixtures of gas, liquid and solids, in which a separator protects the pump, and names VT/VX, KVT/KVX, VTLF/VXLF and BCV, among others, for it. For dust-intensive applications, Becker names oil-free pumps with a large filter area against wood dust: VTLF/VXLF with 244–570 m³/h at 200–250 mbar and BCV with 275–600 m³/h at 150–200 mbar, each also as a VARIAIR version. Becker names waste recycling and air pollution control for the BCP series, and industrial vacuum cleaners and solder fume extraction as further use cases.

More on Extraction of dust, chips and liquids →

Pneumatic conveying

According to Becker, in pneumatic conveying a pressure difference in pipelines moves powder, granules, semi-finished and finished goods. On its environmental page, Becker names the conveying of wastewater and air-liquid mixtures as a use case without describing it in more detail; for pneumatic conveying as a whole, Becker names VT/VX, KVT/KVX, VTLF/VXLF, BCV, BCP, SV, VASF, KDT and DTLF, among others.

More on Pneumatic conveying →

Manufacturers and series

Environmental and wastewater: 5 manufacturers, 56 series

Listed are the series the manufacturer itself names for this industry. “Show only …” sets the filter of the product overview.

Pfeiffer Vacuum names the industry without naming a series for it.

Product overview

Environmental and wastewater: all 595 models compared

Use the filters on the left to narrow the selection – by manufacturer, technology and the models’ key figures, for 50 or 60 Hz.

Atlas Copco DBD series 6 models

DBD 90Pumping speed 91 m³/h 50 Hz110 m³/h 60 HzUltimate pressure 650 – 700 mbarRated motor power 1.1 – 1.5 kW 50 Hz1.3 – 1.7 kW 60 HzVariants 2
DBD 180Pumping speed 181 m³/h 50 Hz218 m³/h 60 HzUltimate pressure 550 – 600 mbarRated motor power 3 – 4 kW 50 Hz3.5 kW 60 HzVariants 2
DBD 240Pumping speed 236 m³/h 50 Hz285 m³/h 60 HzUltimate pressure 550 – 600 mbarRated motor power 4 – 5.5 kW 50 Hz4.8 – 6.5 kW 60 HzVariants 2
DBD 310Pumping speed 310 m³/h 50 Hz374 m³/h 60 HzUltimate pressure 600 mbarRated motor power 5.5 kW 50 Hz6.5 kW 60 HzVariants 1
DBD 390Pumping speed 390 m³/h 50 Hz466 m³/h 60 HzUltimate pressure 600 mbarRated motor power 7.5 kW 50 Hz9 kW 60 HzVariants 1
DBD 430Pumping speed 430 m³/h 50 Hz519 m³/h 60 HzUltimate pressure 600 mbarRated motor power 7.5 kW 50 Hz9 – 11 kW 60 HzVariants 2

Atlas Copco DBDt series 17 models

DBDt 70Pumping speed 65 m³/h 50 Hz76 m³/h 60 HzUltimate pressure 560 mbarRated motor power 1.5 kW 50 Hz1.75 kW 60 HzVariants 1
DBDt 110Pumping speed 110 m³/h 50 Hz130 m³/h 60 HzUltimate pressure 800 mbarRated motor power 0.85 kW 50 Hz0.95 kW 60 HzVariants 1
DBDt 120Pumping speed 120 m³/h 50 Hz145 m³/h 60 HzUltimate pressure 500 – 760 mbarRated motor power 1.1 – 4 kW 50 Hz1.3 – 4.6 kW 60 HzVariants 2
DBDt 140Pumping speed 139 m³/h 50 Hz168 m³/h 60 HzUltimate pressure 700 mbarRated motor power 2.2 kW 50 Hz2.6 kW 60 HzVariants 1
DBDt 150Pumping speed 150 m³/h 50 Hz180 m³/h 60 HzUltimate pressure 670 mbarRated motor power 2.2 kW 50 Hz2.55 kW 60 HzVariants 1
DBDt 170Pumping speed 165 m³/h 50 Hz195 m³/h 60 HzUltimate pressure 480 mbarRated motor power 5.5 kW 50 Hz6.3 kW 60 HzVariants 1
DBDt 210Pumping speed 215 m³/h 50 Hz259 m³/h 60 HzUltimate pressure 600 – 650 mbarRated motor power 3 – 4 kW 50 Hz3.5 – 4.8 kW 60 HzVariants 2
DBDt 230Pumping speed 230 m³/h 50 Hz275 m³/h 60 HzUltimate pressure 610 – 660 mbarRated motor power 3 – 4 kW 50 Hz3.45 – 4.6 kW 60 HzVariants 2
DBDt 310Pumping speed 312 m³/h 50 Hz376 m³/h 60 HzUltimate pressure 600 – 750 mbarRated motor power 4 – 5.5 kW 50 Hz4.8 – 9 kW 60 HzVariants 3
DBDt 320Pumping speed 320 m³/h 50 Hz380 m³/h 60 HzUltimate pressure 580 mbarRated motor power 5.5 kW 50 Hz6.3 kW 60 HzVariants 1
DBDt 420Pumping speed 416 m³/h 50 Hz502 m³/h 60 HzUltimate pressure 600 – 650 mbarRated motor power 5.5 – 7.5 kW 50 Hz6.5 – 9 kW 60 HzVariants 2
DBDt 520Pumping speed 518 – 520 m³/h 50 Hz620 – 625 m³/h 60 HzUltimate pressure 570 – 650 mbarRated motor power 7.5 – 11 kW 50 Hz8.6 – 12.6 kW 60 HzVariants 4
DBDt 660Pumping speed 657 m³/h 50 Hz793 m³/h 60 HzUltimate pressure 550 – 650 mbarRated motor power 11 – 15 kW 50 Hz13 – 17 kW 60 HzVariants 2
DBDt 800Pumping speed 804 m³/h 50 Hz970 m³/h 60 HzUltimate pressure 550 – 700 mbarRated motor power 11 – 15 kW 50 Hz13 – 22 kW 60 HzVariants 3
DBDt 900Pumping speed 903 m³/h 50 Hz1,089 m³/h 60 HzUltimate pressure 600 – 650 mbarRated motor power 15 – 18.5 kW 50 Hz17 – 22 kW 60 HzVariants 2
DBDt 1010Pumping speed 1,007 m³/h 50 Hz1,216 m³/h 60 HzUltimate pressure 600 – 700 mbarRated motor power 18.5 – 22 kW 50 Hz22 – 26 kW 60 HzVariants 2
DBDt 1110Pumping speed 1,110 m³/h 50 Hz1,310 m³/h 60 HzUltimate pressure 560 – 700 mbarRated motor power 12.5 – 20 kW 50 Hz14.5 – 23 kW 60 HzVariants 2

Atlas Copco DBS series 29 models

DBS 70Pumping speed 74 m³/h 50 Hz89 m³/h 60 HzUltimate pressure 850 – 900 mbarRated motor power 0.37 – 0.55 kW 50 Hz0.42 – 0.65 kW 60 HzVariants 2

Atlas Copco DBSt series 12 models

Atlas Copco DZS series 8 models

Atlas Copco GHS VSD+ series 21 models

Atlas Copco GVS VSD+ series 4 models

Becker BCV series 7 models

Becker DVT series 4 models

Becker KVT series 4 models

Becker KVX series 4 models

Becker O series 6 models

Becker RBP series 3 models

Becker SV series 16 models

Becker T series 6 models

Becker U4 series 6 models

Becker U series 8 models

Becker VADS series 3 models

Becker VASF series 6 models

Becker VTLF series 6 models

Becker VT series 7 models

Becker VXLF series 5 models

Becker VX series 4 models

Busch COBRA Industry series 36 models

Busch DOLPHIN series 70 models

Busch MINK series 32 models

Busch R5 series 58 models

Busch SAMOS series 31 models

Busch SECO series 10 models

Busch TYR series 16 models

Elmo Rietschle C-KLR series 2 models

Elmo Rietschle C-VLR series 7 models

Elmo Rietschle C-VLU series 4 models

Elmo Rietschle G-BH1 series 25 models

Elmo Rietschle G-BH2 series 9 models

Elmo Rietschle G-BH7 series 15 models

Elmo Rietschle G-BH9 series 1 model

Elmo Rietschle G-BH100 series 1 model

Elmo Rietschle L-BL2 series 7 models

Elmo Rietschle L-BV2 series 4 models

Elmo Rietschle L-BV3 series 1 model

Elmo Rietschle L-BV5 series 5 models

Elmo Rietschle L-BV7 series 4 models

Elmo Rietschle S-SVT series 11 models

Elmo Rietschle S-VSI series 1 model

Elmo Rietschle V-KTR series 4 models

Elmo Rietschle V-VCA/VCE series 2 models

Elmo Rietschle V-VCB series 2 models

Elmo Rietschle V-VCS series 13 models

Elmo Rietschle V-VCX series 7 models

Elmo Rietschle V-VGD series 2 models

Elmo Rietschle V-VTN series 3 models

Elmo Rietschle V-VTR series 2 models

Leybold CLAWVAC series 5 models

Leybold DRYVAC series 9 models

Leybold NOVADRY series 4 models

Model comparison

Models a manufacturer no longer carries in its current range are listed in its “Outdated models” section.

Selection

Environmental and wastewater: choosing a vacuum pump

What the manufacturers highlight for use in this industry.

Vacuum or overpressure?

Many tasks in sewage treatment plants need air, not vacuum: according to Busch, blowers and compressors supply the air for the treatment stages, and in rearing tanks overpressure introduces the oxygen. Vacuum is needed for vacuum sewerage (Atlas Copco: 250–400 mbar) and for the membrane bioreactor, in which the pump draws the wastewater through the membrane. Becker, too, assigns many of its environmental examples to its compressors.

Dust, moisture and mixtures

What the pump draws in determines the type: according to Becker, a separator protects the pump when mixtures of gas, liquid and solids are extracted. For dust-intensive applications, Becker names oil-free pumps with a large filter area (VTLF, VXLF, BCV) at 150–250 mbar.

Gas instead of air

Anyone conveying biogas, landfill gas or vapours is not moving clean air. Busch names DOLPHIN, MINK, SAMOS and SECO for biogas in the digester, COBRA, DOLPHIN and R5 for vapours from storage tanks and DOLPHIN and MINK for flare gas; Elmo Rietschle names compressors for digester and landfill gas.

Pressure and volume flow

The manufacturers state only a few figures: Atlas Copco 250–400 mbar for vacuum sewerage, Becker 150–250 mbar and 244–600 m³/h for its oil-free pumps with dust. For aeration, biogas and soil remediation, the manufacturers state no pressures – here the process data of the plant decide.

Frequently asked questions

Environmental and wastewater: frequently asked questions about vacuum pumps

Which vacuum pump is suitable for vacuum sewerage?

For vacuum sewerage, Atlas Copco names GHS VSD+ and DZS A and a range of 250–400 mbar; the vacuum conveys the wastewater to the vacuum station without a gradient. Busch names MINK, R5, SECO and TYR, Leybold lists NOVADRY for vacuum toilets, and Becker names vacuum for vacuum sewerage as a use case.

How much vacuum does vacuum sewerage need?

Atlas Copco states 250–400 mbar for vacuum sewerage and names GHS VSD+ and DZS A for it. The other manufacturers state no pressure for this application in their texts on environmental technology.

Which blower is suitable for aerating a sewage treatment plant?

Busch names MINK, SAMOS and TYR for aeration tanks, grit chambers, diffuser grids, SBR and moving bed reactors, and for wastewater ponds; the air supplies the bacteria with oxygen. Elmo Rietschle names blowers for supplying the activated sludge with oxygen. Becker names the aeration of sewage treatment plants as a use case without naming a series.

Which vacuum pump is suitable for biogas?

For circulating biogas in the digester, Busch names DOLPHIN, MINK, SAMOS and SECO, R5 and COBRA for upgrading by pressure swing adsorption and MINK for membrane upgrading. Elmo Rietschle names compressors for mixing and compressing digester gas in the fermenter. Leybold lists CLAWVAC and NOVADRY for biogas production, and Pfeiffer Vacuum lists biogas handling in its product finder – each without a description.

Which vacuum pump for a membrane bioreactor (MBR)?

In the membrane bioreactor, the vacuum pump draws the wastewater through the membrane; Busch names MINK, SAMOS and TYR for this. The other manufacturers do not describe this application.

Oil-free or oil-lubricated for dusty exhaust air?

For dust-intensive applications, Becker names oil-free pumps with a large filter area: VTLF and VXLF with 244–570 m³/h at 200–250 mbar, and BCV with 275–600 m³/h at 150–200 mbar, each also as a VARIAIR version.

What can be done when the vacuum pump draws in liquid or solids?

Becker describes the extraction of mixtures of gas, liquid and solids and names a separator upstream of the pump as protection. For extraction, Becker names VT/VX, KVT/KVX, VTLF/VXLF and BCV, among others.

Which vacuum pump for soil vapour extraction (soil remediation)?

Elmo Rietschle names soil gas extraction for the remediation of contaminated soils without naming a series. Leybold lists CLAWVAC and NOVADRY for soil remediation, and Becker names air sparging as a use case.

Which pump is suitable for vapour recovery from storage tanks?

Busch names COBRA, DOLPHIN and R5 for extracting vapours from storage tanks, and DOLPHIN and MINK for extracting and compressing waste gas and flare gas. For exhaust gas recovery, Busch names MINK.

Which vacuum pump for evaporating wastewater?

For wastewater treatment, Atlas Copco names evaporation and salt crystallisation (MVR) and lists the DB side channel blowers and GHS VSD+ 402–1002 for it. Atlas Copco states no pressures or volume flows for this.

Does Ehrler & Beck also supply spare parts and service?

Yes. Ehrler & Beck offers original spare parts and accessories as well as maintenance and repair.

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