Sludge Treatment and Disposal

Sludge Treatment and Disposal
Sludge handling processes
1. Thickening
2. Digestion
3. Conditioning
4. Dewatering
5. Heat drying
6. Incineration
Introduction
Sludge refers to the residual, semi-solid material left

from industrial wastewater, or
sewage treatment processes.
Sustainable sludge handling may be defined as a

socially acceptable, cost-effective method that meets
the requirement of efficient recycling of resources 4
The harmful substances are not transferred to

humans or the environment.
Thickning
To increase solids content percentage of sludge by

removing a portion of liquid fraction
volume reduction of approximately 30 – 80 % can
be reached with sludge thickening
METHODS :-
 gravity thickening
 flotation thickening
 Centrifugation
 Rotatary drum thickening
Gravity Thickners
Gravity Thickners are deep circular tanks , provided

with a slow moving deep truss or deep arm equipped
with vertical member or pickets.
The sludge is continuously stirred by the pickets and

is concentrated and compressed at the bottom
The clear water overflows and is sent back to the

primary inlet
Floatation Thickeners
In floatation practice , certain amount of clarified

waste is pressurized to about 3-4 kg /cm^2.
The air-saturated pressurized liquid is then mixed

with the sludge , results in the release of minute air
bubble in the solution .
The sludge flocs floated by these air bubbles and

skimmed off from the surface.
Centrifugation
for separating liquids of different densities,

thickening slurries
Conditioning
 In this process sludge solids are treated with chemicals or
other means to prepare sludge for dewatering
 It improves the drainability of digested

sludge. Sludge becomes more amenable to dewatering.
 It can be achieved by various methods such as elutriation,

chemical conditioning, heat treatment, freezing etc.
Heat drying
 It involves the application of heat to evaporate water and to

reduce the moisture content of biosolids through
conduction, convection or radiation.
 Advantage of this method is to reduce product

transportation costs, improve storage capability, and
marketability.
Methods of heat drying
 Direct drying- the wastewater solids come into

contact with hot gases, which cause evaporation of
moisture.
 Dryers such as rotary dryer and fluidized bed dryer

are used.
Continue …
1. Direct drying- the wastewater solids come into

contact with hot gases, which cause evaporation of
moisture.
2. Dryers such as rotary dryer and fluidized bed dryer

are used.
Continue …
Indirect drying- Moisture evaporates when the

wastewater solids contact the metal surface heated
by the hot medium.
Dryers such as paddle dryers ,hollow flight and disc

dryers are used.
Dewatering
A physical unit operation used to reduce the
moisture content of sludge.
Difficulty due to fact that particles are very fine,

colloidal in nature and possess a gel-like structure
due to polymeric flocculation
Compared to thermal (evaporative processes) for

water reduction, mechanical dewatering is often
selected due to its low energy requirement
Continue …
Belt filter press : Uses principle of gravity drainage

and mechanically applied pressure.
Sludge Drying Beds
Sludge drying bed (SDB) is the most widely used

method for sludge dewatering.
Sludge drying involves natural ways of drying to

mechanical ways of removing water content.
It depend upon land availability, climatic factors, the

quantity and composition of the sludge.
Volume Reduction
Thickening Dewatering Drying
50
.
45
40
35
mass [t] (volume [m³])
30
25
20
15
10 Water
5 Dry matter
0
1 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
dry matter [%]
Incineration
Involves total conversion of organic solids to

oxidized end products
Sludge stabilization is not necessary before

incineration .
Water, carbon-dioxide and ash are primarily end

products .
Advantages
Pathogens would be reduced by a pasteurization

process.
Waste volume reduction.
Destruction of combustible toxins.

Disadvantages
Emission of mercury & NOx leading to air

pollution
High capital and operational costs
Ash must be landfilled and may be hazardous

Disposal of sludge
Sewage sludge contains both compounds of

agricultural value and pollutants.
Agriculture value- organic matter, nitrogen,

phosphorus and potassium.
Pollutants- heavy metals, organic pollutants and

pathogens
Methods of Sludge disposal
1. Land fill
2. Agricultural use
3. Other methods
28/35
Landfill
A site for the disposal of waste materials by burial

and is the oldest form of waste disposal.
This are used for waste management purposes, such

as the temporary storage, consolidation and transfer,
or processing of waste material
Problem with this method is that many landfills are

filling up, and towns are having trouble finding
places to put new ones.
Other Methods
Ocean Disposal – Dumping or controlled release

of sewage sludge from a barge or other vessel into
marine water.
Surface Disposal – A controlled area of land

where only sewage sludge is placed for a period of
one year or longer.

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Sludge Treatment and Disposal

Sludge handling processes

Sludge refers to the residual, semi-solid material left

Sustainable sludge handling may be defined as a

The harmful substances are not transferred to

To increase solids content percentage of sludge by

Gravity Thickners are deep circular tanks , provided

The sludge is continuously stirred by the pickets and

The clear water overflows and is sent back to the

In floatation practice , certain amount of clarified

The air-saturated pressurized liquid is then mixed

The sludge flocs floated by these air bubbles and

for separating liquids of different densities,

 It improves the drainability of digested

 It can be achieved by various methods such as elutriation,

 It involves the application of heat to evaporate water and to

 Advantage of this method is to reduce product

 Direct drying- the wastewater solids come into

 Dryers such as rotary dryer and fluidized bed dryer

1. Direct drying- the wastewater solids come into

2. Dryers such as rotary dryer and fluidized bed dryer

Indirect drying- Moisture evaporates when the

Dryers such as paddle dryers ,hollow flight and disc

Difficulty due to fact that particles are very fine,

Compared to thermal (evaporative processes) for

Belt filter press : Uses principle of gravity drainage

Sludge drying bed (SDB) is the most widely used

Sludge drying involves natural ways of drying to

It depend upon land availability, climatic factors, the

Involves total conversion of organic solids to

Sludge stabilization is not necessary before

Water, carbon-dioxide and ash are primarily end

Pathogens would be reduced by a pasteurization

Waste volume reduction.

Destruction of combustible toxins.

Emission of mercury & NOx leading to air

High capital and operational costs

Ash must be landfilled and may be hazardous

Sewage sludge contains both compounds of

Agriculture value- organic matter, nitrogen,

Pollutants- heavy metals, organic pollutants and

A site for the disposal of waste materials by burial

This are used for waste management purposes, such

Problem with this method is that many landfills are

Ocean Disposal – Dumping or controlled release

Surface Disposal – A controlled area of land

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