Treatment of Industrial Effluent of the Kaduna Refining and Petrochemical Company Using Rice Husk

Aim: The aim of the study was to test and assess the effectiveness of rice husk in the treatment of petroleum refinery effluents or waste water using the Kaduna Refining and Petrochemical Company (KRPC) as platform.

Place of Study: Kaduna Refining and Petrochemical Company Limited (KRPC) is located in the southern part of Kaduna State, Nigeria.

Methodology: The rice husk was obtained from a rice mill in the railway station market of Kaduna metropolis, and conditioned in accordance with standard procedures. Its characterization was carried out at the National Centre for Nanotechnology and Advanced Materials, Ondo state, Nigeria using X-Ray Fluorescence. The effluent from the refinery was sampled from the designated sampling point in the wastewater treatment plant following standard procedures and then treated with rice husk.

Results: Revealed the ability of the rice husk to remove contaminants such as heavy metals, phenolic compounds, and anions from the effluent. It also reduced the effluent turbidity, total solid content, and chemical oxygen demand. The efficiency of rice husk decontamination capacity was lower than that of chemical treatment in Kaduna Refining and Petrochemical Company.

Conclusion: Rice husk can be considered a suitable material for the treatment of effluent water from Kaduna Refining and Petrochemical Company, which may reduce the hazard associated with these pollutants.