SLUDGE PROCESSING

Session 7b
 SLUDGE PROCESSING AND DISPOSAL
 Processing and disposal of the solids and sludge resulting from the
treatment of WW is one of the difficult aspects of WW mgt
 The sludge resulting from WW treatment operations and processes is
usually in the form of liquid or semisolid liquid which typically contains from
0.5 to 12% solids
 The problem of dealing with sludge are complex because
(1) it is composed largely of substances responsible for the offensive
character of untreated wastewater
(2) the portion of sludge produced from biological treatment is also organic
and will decay
(3) only small part of the sludge is solid matter
The cost of sludge mgt may be from 40-60 % of overall plant cost
 SLUDGE PROCESSING AND DISPOSAL
 Sources of solids/sludge in ww treatment plants include screenings, grit
removal, sludge from primary sedimentation tanks, biological sludge/scum
from aeration units/secondary sedimentation tanks, residual sludge and ash
from processing units
 Basic aims of processing are to (a) convert waste product into a useful
resource (eg fertilizer, gas), (b) to reduce the volume requiring disposal and
(c) to make the residual sludge safe/inoffensive from public health and
environmental viewpoint
 SLUDGE PROCESSING AND DISPOSAL
 Some key facts wrt common sewage sludges:
 Untreated sludges have SG = 1 (typically 1.02) and solids content of
0.5- 12%
 The amount of dry solids in untreated sludge is about 50-70 g/h/d
 Concentrating solids content from 1 to 5% reduces sludge volume
fivefold, since volume occupied by wet sludge is roughly inversely
proportional to solids content
 Need solids content of 20-40% before can handle as a solid
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 SLUDGE PROCESSING AND DISPOSAL
Possible sludge processing unit operations/processes are as follows:
Preliminary operations  Used to improve the treatability of the sludge 
storage, grinding, blending, degritting
Thickening Used to reduce the volume of sludge  Thickening is a
procedure used to increase the solids content of sludge by removing a portion
of the liquid fraction generally achieved by physical means including gravity
settling, floatation and centrifugation
Stabilization  Used to reduce the organic content of the sludge or to alter
its characteristics so that it will not cause nuisance conditions  anaerobic or
aerobic digestion, lime stabilization, heat treatment, chlorine oxidation
Conditioning Used to make the sludge more manageable in subsequent
processing steps or to reduce chemical requirements  heat treatment,
chemical conditioning
 SLUDGE PROCESSING AND DISPOSAL
Possible sludge processing unit operations/processes are as follows (contd)
Dewatering  Used to reduce the volume of sludge  is a physical
(mechanical) unit operation used to reduce the moisture content of sludge – the
selection of the dewatering device is determined by the type of sludge to be
dewatered and the space available drying beds, lagoons, horizontal bed filter,
pressure filter, vacuum filter, centrifugation
Disinfection  Used to control the bacterial activity of microorganisms in the
sludge  Disinfection process is used to destroy pathogens in liquid and
dewatered sludge- some of the methods are pasteurization for 30 min at 700 C,
high pH treatment for 3 hrs, addition of choline to stabilize and disinfect sludge,
disinfection with other chemicals.
Drying: Used to further reduce the volume of sludge by evaporating water  is
a unit operation that involves reducing water content by vaporization of water to
the air- the purpose is to remove the moisture from wet sludge so that it can be
incinerated efficiently or processed into fertilizer – flash dryers, spray dryers,
rotary dryers are used
 SLUDGE PROCESSING AND DISPOSAL
Possible sludge processing unit operations/processes are as follows (contd)
Composting Used to produce a humus-like material that can be applied to
land as a soil amendment  sludge only or with municipal solid/ organic
wastes
Thermal reductions  Used to reduce the volume of prethickened sludge by
means of thermal reduction  is to reduce the quantities of solid material for
disposal- involves (1) the total or partial conversion of organic solids to oxidized
end products (CO2, H2O) by incineration (2) partial oxidation and volatilization of
organic solids by pyrolysis to end products with calorific value- fluidized bed
incineration, flash combustion, pyrolysis
Ultimate disposal  Final safe disposal  landfill, land spreading,
composting/reuse, ash to landfill after incineration
The cost of sludge mgt by combining several of the above operations may
be from 40-60% of overall plant costs
Source: Not known
Wastewater Treatment Video 6: Solids and Sludge Handling (4.03 min)
PROBLEMS

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