Samsung Electronics Unveils Green Building at Pyeongtaek Campus Wastewater Treatment Facility on 'Water Day'

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Hyunjin] Samsung Electronics revealed the appearance of the 'Green Building,' an advanced wastewater treatment facility at its largest semiconductor production base, the Pyeongtaek Campus, ahead of 'World Water Day' on the 22nd.

On the 21st, Samsung Electronics introduced the process of wastewater generated during semiconductor manufacturing passing through the Green Building and moving to the Godeok wastewater treatment plant in a blog post titled 'How is the water used in semiconductor processes treated?' The Pyeongtaek Campus is the world's largest semiconductor production facility being developed by Samsung Electronics. Currently, the P1 and P2 plants have been completed and are in full operation, while construction of the P3 line is underway.

The underground water treatment facility of the Green Building at the Pyeongtaek Campus has a cross-sectional area of approximately 34,000㎡, about 3.7 times the size of the grass field at Seoul World Cup Stadium. The amount of purified wastewater here is about 70,000 tons, roughly 4.7 times the daily freshwater volume of Caribbean Bay (15,000 tons). Samsung Electronics stated, "We have accumulated over 40 years of wastewater treatment know-how here and equipped the facility accordingly."

Samsung Electronics Pyeongtaek Campus Wastewater Treatment Facility Green Building (Photo by Samsung Electronics Blog)

Wastewater generated from semiconductor processes undergoes inorganic primary treatment, organic treatment, and inorganic secondary treatment before being discharged through an outlet and transported to the wastewater treatment plant for further processing, after which it is released into the Jinwi Stream in Pyeongtaek. The wastewater from semiconductor processes is broadly divided into six types and contains substances such as fluorine and nitrogen, necessitating this purification process.

Inorganic treatment involves using chemical reactions of reagents to coagulate pollutants like fluorine and then sediment the sludge. While hydrogen peroxide removers are generally used to treat alkaline wastewater's hydrogen peroxide, Samsung Electronics introduced that the Green Building applies an eco-friendly method using activated carbon. Samsung Electronics explained, "If the organic treatment proceeds while hydrogen peroxide, a disinfectant component, remains, all microorganisms in the collection tank die."

The organic treatment process, which uses microorganisms to remove nitrogen, is a key stage in wastewater treatment. At the Green Building, instead of using the high-risk chemical methanol, a 'composite organic carbon source' is used as a substitute. Additionally, Samsung Electronics emphasized that sulfuric acid, commonly used in deodorization facilities to remove odor components, was replaced with phosphoric acid to eliminate toxicity.

After this purification process, the water travels 2.6 km to the wastewater treatment plant. The discharge pipe is also painted like a machine room with separate oxygen concentration management to ensure a safe facility, and strict management standards are applied as it moves to the Godeok wastewater treatment plant.

Furthermore, through the Green Building's central control room, all wastewater treatment processes, quality monitoring of discharged water, and safety systems monitoring each process are checked, with an automation rate reaching 97%. Various safety devices, including screen doors, have been installed to enhance worker safety during the transportation of chemicals needed for wastewater treatment.

A Samsung Electronics official stated, "Wastewater treatment carries the heavy responsibility of being the 'final process' of the semiconductor business site," adding, "We are accelerating technology development to replace chemicals used in wastewater treatment with environmentally and safety-conscious alternatives, and we have improved the precision of measuring instruments to accurately monitor discharge water quality."