Environmental Protection

The Andritz Group is committed to sustained environmental protection and conservation of natural resources and pursues an active information policy vis-à-vis the people living in the vicinity of the Group’s production sites, the general public, and authorities.  

The production processes applied and the products manufactured are designed to use natural resources in the best possible way such as to keep the impact on the environment to a minimum and at the same time reduce production costs as well as operation costs for Andritz customers.

Uniform environmental protection guidelines have been implemented at all Andritz production sites.  Environmental protection assignees make sure that these guidelines are strictly adhered to.

In 2003, Andritz AG issued an official Declaration on Environmental Protection that sets out the principles and objectives of its environmental policy.

Environmental Achievements

The Andritz site in Graz, Austria again received the "ÖKOPROFIT” certificate, which is awarded by the City of Graz for special efforts in environmental protection.  The Graz site has succeeded in reducing the amount of waste generated by a further 12%.  The existing ultra-filtration plant for wastewater was enlarged in order to improve the quality of water discharged into the sewerage system.  Thermography was used for the first time to identify potentials of improving insulation for workshops.

Ecological aspects are integrated in training programs to encourage Andritz staff to take an active part in environmental protection.

Andritz Products for a Cleaner Environment

The Pulp and Paper Business Area offers many processes and systems that reduce waste, save energy, and minimize effluents/emissions for customers' operations.

Many mills are seeking to reduce the environmental impact of their bleaching processes.  Andritz has developed bleaching systems which utilize alternative chemicals for reduced environmental impact.  Andritz systems for dewatering and water recycling within the mill reduce the effluent loads on nearby receiving waters.

In the chemical recovery area, the Andritz X-Filter™ offers an efficient method for removing non-process elements from green liquor.  Removal of these elements allows mills to close effluent loops that would otherwise be open to the environment.

"Dregs” (remnants from the recausticizing process) are becoming a subject of environmental concern, and the cost for landfilling such waste by-products is significant.  Dewatering of green liquor dregs with the Andritz DreX™ process reduces landfilling costs and environmental impact.

The new, patented Andritz Vertical Air™ system creates optimum temperature and velocity profiles in recovery boiler furnaces.  This improves the efficiency of the boiler and reduces the excess oxygen in the flue gases, which results in very low nitrogen oxide emissions.  The boiler also burns odorous gases collected from the mill, resulting in a significant reduction of sulfur emissions.

In terms of true energy conservation, the new Papillon™ cylindrical refiner combines gentle, stable fiber treatment with low-energy consumption.  The no-load energy consumption is 40-45% lower than for double-disc refiners, or even conical refiners.

The FilRec™ filler/fiber recovery system allows mills to re-use coating minerals and paper fillers that would otherwise be sent to landfills.

For tissue applications, the TissueFlex™ shoe press helps operators reduce the quantity of chemicals, especially softeners, used in the process.  This leads to less contamination of the white water and reduces the load on the wastewater treatment facility.

Annealing and pickling lines for stainless steel are key products offered by the Rolling Mills and Strip Processing Lines Business Area.  In annealing furnaces and in pickling plants, exhaust gases containing NO_x are generated.  To reduce NO_x emissions to a minimum, Andritz uses Low-Low NO_x burners in annealing furnaces.  Pickling plants are equipped with catalysts developed by Andritz to turn NO_x into innocuous nitrogen.

In regeneration plants for waste acid from pickling processes, special measures are taken by Andritz to prevent unwanted pollutant emissions.  Andritz uses, for instance, a chemicals washer which removes virtually all chlorine from the exhaust gas using process liquid without generating wastewater.  This washer was also developed by Andritz.

The Environment and Process Business Area offers EcoDry systems for combined drying/incineration of sewage sludge.  This technically and economically attractive solution serves the environment by utilizing the calorific value of sewage sludge for the drying process.  In this way, EcoDry saves primary energy and turns sludge into an inert material (ash) that meets the latest requirements for landfilling.

The Feed Technology Business Area is one of the world’s leading suppliers of wood pelleting equipment.  The market for this technology has grown rapidly over the past few years as a result of the Kyoto agreement, non-taxation of bio fuels and improved profitability in the production of wood pellets.

Andritz-affiliate Sprout-Matador has supplied pelleting equipment with an overall annual production capacity of more than 1.7 million tons of fuel pellets, which, in terms of energy, corresponds to over 7.5 million MWh.  Additionally, several plants for the generation of powder from wood chips, wood pellets, and straw were supplied.  The biomass powder is used by large-scale central power plants to replace coal, thereby reducing CO₂ emissions.

Andritz also offers process solutions for pelleting industrial and household waste.  Pelleting increases the bulk weight of the waste by a factor of up to 10, thus generating a product that is easier to transport and store for further treatment, e.g. recycling or combustion.  This promotes controlled handling rather than local burning or dumping. Andritz-affiliate UMT’s Paladin™ pellet mills hold a leading position in this application.

Several thousand Jesma^® filters supplied by Andritz to a wide variety of industries ensure thorough cleaning of exhaust air.