化工废水具有水量水质变化大、可生化性差、难以降解的特征以及污染物复杂多样等特点，一般根据实际废水的水质采取适当的预处理方法，如絮凝、微电解、吸附、光催化等工艺，破坏废水中难降解有机物、改善废水的可生化性，再联用生物方法，如ABR、SBR、A/O工艺等，对化工废水进行处理。目前国内外对处理化工废水工艺的研究也趋向于采用多种方法的组合工艺。
Chemical wastewater has the characteristics of great change in water quantity and quality, poor biodegradability, difficult degradation and complex and diverse pollutants. Generally, according to the actual wastewater quality, appropriate pretreatment methods, such as flocculation, micro-electrolysis, adsorption, photocatalysis and other processes, are adopted to destroy the refractory organic matter in wastewater and improve the viability of wastewater. Chemical wastewater is treated by biological methods such as ABR, SBR and A/O process. At present, the research on chemical wastewater treatment process at home and abroad is also tending to adopt a combination of various methods.