Up to 98% COD removal
Superior effluent quality, ready for discharge or reuse, even on very high-strength streams (COD load >250 g/L tolerated).
Technology · AnaeroMBR
AnaeroMBR — treat high-strength wastewater and turn organics into energy.
A completely-mixed anaerobic reactor combined with Glorinda’s low-energy tubular UF membranes. It delivers exceptional COD removal and biogas recovery from difficult, high-strength industrial wastewater — at low OPEX.
membrane bioreactoranaerobic digestionbiogashigh COD wastewater
What problem does it solve?
From the plant floor, in your words
High-COD, high-FOG, salty or toxic wastewater defeats conventional anaerobic and aerobic systems. AnaeroMBR is built for exactly these streams.
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Your solution can be AnaeroMBR.
Benefits
What you get
Maximum biogas
Organic waste becomes renewable energy with high methane yields — net energy-positive operation.
Low operational cost
1.5–2.5 kWh/m³ net permeate, with no aeration, flocculants or gas scouring.
Up to 75% less sludge
Far less biological sludge than aerobic processes — and it supports ESG goals.
Handles tough wastewater
Tolerates high COD, TSS, FOG, salinity and toxic compounds better than UASB/EGSB or aerobic MBR.
Easy maintenance
External, out-of-tank membrane units allow safe, dry access; ~8-year membrane durability and fast start-up.
How it works
The process, stage by stage
AnaeroMBR decouples biomass retention from settling by using membranes, so the reactor holds a dense, active biomass that digests strong wastewater and produces biogas.
- 01
Feed & equalisation
High-strength wastewater is buffered and fed to the completely-mixed anaerobic reactor.
- 02
Anaerobic digestion
Dense biomass converts organics to biogas (methane) without aeration, tolerating FOG, salinity and toxics.
- 03
UF membrane separation
Low-energy external tubular UF membranes retain biomass and produce crystal-clear permeate.
- 04
Biogas recovery
Captured biogas fuels on-site energy, making the system net energy-positive.
- 05
Reuse-ready effluent
Permeate quality supports discharge or water reuse, cutting freshwater demand.
Engineering detail
Why membranes change anaerobic economics
Conventional anaerobic reactors depend on the biomass settling or granulating to stay in the tank. That single dependency is what limits them: granulation takes a long start-up with seed sludge, it is disrupted by fats, oils and grease, and it fails on salinity and toxic compounds. In practice it caps the organic loading a plant can accept.
AnaeroMBR removes the dependency by retaining biomass with membranes instead of settling. The reactor can then hold a dense, highly active biomass and accept COD loads above 250 g/L, against under 15 g/L for UASB or EGSB systems and under 10 g/L for aerobic MBR. Start-up is short because no granular seed is required, and pre-treatment needs are minimal.
The membranes themselves are the second design decision. Ours are low-energy tubular ultrafiltration units mounted externally — out of tank — which means maintenance access is safe and dry rather than requiring entry into a live anaerobic vessel. Membrane durability runs to around eight years.
The energy balance is what usually decides the business case. Because the process is anaerobic there is no aeration, no flocculant dosing and no gas scouring, so net energy demand falls to roughly 1.5–2.5 kWh per cubic metre of permeate — and the biogas recovered from the organic load frequently makes the system net energy-positive. Sludge production drops by up to 75% against an aerobic process, which removes a disposal cost that is often larger than the treatment cost itself.
- 01
Feasibility
Technical and commercial feasibility, technology evaluation and cost/profitability analysis before capital is committed.
- 02
Engineering
Conceptual, basic and detailed engineering, process packages and specification of the equipment that will actually be bought.
- 03
Delivery
EPC or EPCM delivery, or an Owner’s Engineer role protecting your interest through a contractor’s execution.
- 04
Commissioning
Installation supervision, testing, start-up and the training that lets your team run the plant.
- 05
Support
Operation, troubleshooting, process optimisation, maintenance and spare parts for the life of the asset.
Industries & applications
Where this is used
Food & BeverageDairyDistilleries & BreweriesPharmaceuticalChemicalPulp & PaperPalm oilStarch & SugarMunicipal (high-strength)
Typical applications
- High-COD process effluent
- Dairy & cheese-whey wastewater
- Distillery & brewery effluent
- FOG-laden food wastewater
- Pre-treatment ahead of ZLD/MLD
- Organic-waste-to-biogas
Related products
Equipment under the Glorinda brand
Package it, engineer it, deliver it.
Glorinda scopes the technology, engineers the plant and supports it through commissioning and operation. Bring your stream and targets.
Projects
Representative work — sample cards, ready to swap
Sample project — replaceDairy effluent AnaeroMBR
High-COD dairy wastewater treated to reuse quality while recovering methane for on-site energy.
Sample project — replaceDistillery biogas recovery
Strong distillery effluent converted to biogas with up to 98% COD removal.
Sample project — replaceFood-plant pre-ZLD
AnaeroMBR removing organic load ahead of a ZLD stage, cutting evaporation duty.
FAQ
Answers for engineers and procurement
How is AnaeroMBR different from a normal MBR?
A conventional (aerobic) MBR uses aeration and produces a lot of sludge. AnaeroMBR is anaerobic: it needs no aeration, produces up to 75% less sludge, and recovers biogas, making it net energy-positive on strong wastewater.
What COD removal can I expect?
Up to 98–99% on suitable streams, with effluent quality ready for discharge or reuse.
What does it cost to run?
Around 1.5–2.5 kWh/m³ net permeate, with no aeration, flocculants or gas scouring — and biogas offsets energy use.
Can it handle FOG, salinity and toxic compounds?
Yes — it tolerates high COD, TSS, FOG, salinity and toxic compounds better than conventional UASB/EGSB or aerobic MBR systems.
How much maintenance do the membranes need?
The external, out-of-tank tubular UF units allow safe, dry access, with membrane durability around 8 years and fast, seed-free start-up.