| abstract |
Water, polluted with hydrocarbons and similar pollutants in which separation occurs into an upper layer, rich in hydrocarbons and residues, and a lower layer consisting of a hydrocarbon suspension or emulsion in water, is treated to remove the pollutants from the water. The upper layer is treated with quaternary ammonium salts to separate the heavy residue from a clear (or light-colored) supernatant layer, analogous to fuel oil and reusable; the lower layer is then treated with a mixture of a polyose (starch, for example) and a coagulant (for example, ordinary alum) to obtain a practically pure water. This treatment may be applied to water containing oil products and, in particular, water collected from degreasing and dewaxing plants. |