EAP 315/2 WASTEWATER

ENGINEERING

SLUDGE HANDLING AND

DISPOSAL

Dr Nastaein Qamaruz Zaman

Topic Date
14/12/17 (Thurs); 9 – 11 am; DK8

Sludge characteristics 07/11/17 12-1 pm

Sources of sludge
Thickening
14/12/17; 9 – 10 am: Prof Hamidi

Stabilization 14/12/17; 10 – 11 am: Dr. Nas

Dewatering
Final disposal
Final disposal 19/12/17 (Tues); 12 – 1 pm; DK3

Final disposal / Test 2 21/12/17 (Thurs); 9 – 11 am, DK8

1. Sludge characteristics
Extent of sludge management problem
What are the characteristics of
sludge
Biosolids characteristics
Contains what?
Settleable solids such as
fecal material, fibers, silt,
food wastes, biological
flocs, organic chemical
compounds, and inorganics,
including heavy metals and
trace minerals

Large volume either liquid

or semi liquid
 Sludge in the form of liquid slurry or semi-solid
liquid containing solids in the range of about 0.2 –
12% by weight.
 Screenings and grits are inorganic in nature and in
less quantity, therefore, easier to handle, treat and
dispose
 Sludge from primary and secondary sewerage
treatment is large in volume due to high water
content and contains more complex and
objectionable organic matter
Biosolids Characteristics
Characteristic vary depending on;
The origin of the solids
The amount of aging that taken place
Type of processing they have been subjected to
Operation Typical Range Colour Odour
of Solid
Concentration
% dry solids
Primary treatment 1.5 – 10 Gray Extremely offensive
Secondary settling tank 0.8 – 2.5
Gravity thickener 4–5
Dissolved air flotation 4–5
thickener
Anaerobic digester 2.5 – 4 Dark Brown to Like garden loam,
Black from methane like
Aerobic digester 1.3 – 3.5 Brown to Dark Not offensive
Brown
Chemical characteristics
 The chemical constituents, including nutrients, are
important in considering the ultimate disposal of
processed solids and the liquid removal during
processing
 pH, alkalinity and organic acids is important in
process control of anaerobic digestion
 The heavy metals, pesticide, and hydrocarbon has
to be determined when incineration and land
applications are contemplated
 The thermal content of solids is important where a
thermal reduction process such as incineration is
considered
  Solids characteristics that affect their suitability for
application to land and for beneficial use include
organic content (usually measured as volatile
solids), nutrients, pathogens, metals, and toxic
organics.
 The fertilizer value of the sludge and solids where
they are to be used as soil conditioner, is based
primarily on the content of nitrogen, phosphorus,
and potassium (potash)

Nutrients,
%
Product Nitrogen Phosphorus Potassium
Fertilizer for typical agricultural use 5 10 10

Typical values fro stabilized wastewater 3.3 2.3 0.3

biosolids
2. Sources of sludge
Where does sludge originate
in a wastewater treatment
plant?
 http://vimeo.com/1973831
Sludge origin and its quality
 Source of Biosolids
Primary sludge
Secondary sludge
Chemical sludge

Primary sludge
From physical processes of primary settling to
remove settleable solids
Can be dewatered rapidly because it comprise of
discrete particles and debris and will produce a
drier cake, better solids capture with low
conditioning requirements
Highly putrescible and unpleasant odour
 Secondary sludge
 Produced from biological treatment processes e.g.
activated sludge, membrane bioreactors, trickling
filters and rotating biological contactors
 Usually more difficult to dewater because of the light
biological flocs inherent in biological sludge

 Chemical sludge
 Chemicals added e.g. lime, alum, ferrous chloride
etc. to precipitate and remove hard-to-remove
substances (SS)
Volume-mass relationships
 Since most WWTP sludges are primarily water, the
volume of the sludge is primarily a function of the
water content
 Thus, if we know the percent solids and specific
gravity of the solids we can estimate the volume of
the sludge
 The solid matter is WW sludge is composed of fixed
and volatile solids. The volume of the total mass of
solids may be expressed as:
Example as per handout
3. Sludge thickening and
dewatering
What do you think is required
to turn:

INTO
 Objective and Method of
Biosolids Treatment
What do you think is required to turn:

INTO

Stabilisation of organic matter (BOD, COD)

Reduce volume (dewatering, thickening, drying)
Destruction of pathogenic organisms (land application /
compost includes below too)
Removal of toxic elements
Process selection depends on;
Nature and characteristics of sludge
Final disposal method intended
 The objective of sludge treatment is to reduce water
content of sludge and stabilize the organic content of
sludge.
 Thickening (concentration), conditioning, dewatering and
drying are used primarily to remove moisture from solids
 Digestion, composting and incineration are used primarily
to treat or stabilize organic materials in the solids
Contribute to half of the treatment cost for ww
Thickening
 A procedure to INCREASE the solids content of
sludge by REMOVING a portion of the liquid portion
 Sludge still in fluid state and can be pumped without
difficulty
Sometimes require to add chemicals (conditioning)
– sample principle as coagulation / flocculation
Neutralization of colloidal surface charge
Particle size the most important characteristic of
the dewaterability of sludge
By adding chemicals, particle size increase and
bound water decrease
 E.g. gravity thickener, dissolved air floatation,
centrifuge
GRAVITY THICKENER
 DISSOLVED AIR FLOATATION

In DAF, air is introduced to the sludge at a pressure in excess of

atmospheric pressure. When the pressure is reduced to atmospheric
pressure, turbulence is created, and so are bubbles. These bubbles
attach to the suspended solids, the floating solids are then skimmed off
from the system
Dewatering
 Is a physical unit operation used to separate the solid
matter and water in the sludge resulting in a high solids
content stream called “cake” and a liquid stream
 Example technologies e.g. centrifuges, belt filter
press, screw press, drying bed, lagoons
 Various forms of water associated with sludge
 Free water: water not attached to particles that can be
removed by gravitational forces, e.g filtration &
centrifugation
 Interstitial water: water trapped within the sludge matrix
 Surface water: water bound to the sludge particles by
adsorption and adhesion
 Bound water: intercellular and chemically bound water
 Purpose of increase solid content of
sludge:
 CENTRIFUGE

 Centrifuge may also be used for sludge dewatering

 In the centrifuge, sludge is fed at a constant floweret into the rotating
bowl, where it separates into a dense cake containing the solids and
dilute liquid stream called ‘centrate’. The centrate is returned to the
wastewater treatment system or treated separately, if necessary.
 The sludge cake is discharged from the bowl by a screw feeder into
a hopper or onto the conveyer belt, solids concentration in the cake
generally between 20-30%. Cake concentrations above 25% are
desirable fro processing by incineration, drying, land application or
disposal at landfill
BELT FILTER PRESS
 DRYING BEDS
In a typical sand drying bed, sludge
is placed in a 200 to 300 mm layer
and allowed to dry. Sludge dewaters
by gravity drainage through the
sludge mass and supporting sand
and by evaporation from the surface
expose to the air.
FILTER PRESS

SCREW PRESS
4. Treatment options
Biosolids Treatment
Stabilise organic matter
Destroy pathogens
Example;
Anaerobic digestion
Aerobic digestion
Heat treatment
Land application
New material
 video
 Incineration
Incineration usually involves the Sludge usually dewatered or
combustion of unprepared (raw or untreated sludge
residual) MSW. To allow the Normally unnecessary to stabilize
combustion to take place a sludge
sufficient quantity of oxygen is Sludge may be incinerated
required to fully oxidise the fuel. separately or in combination with
Typically, incineration plant municipal solid wastes
combustion (flame) temperatures
are in
excess of 850ºC and the waste is
converted into carbon dioxide and
water. Any noncombustible
materials (e.g. metals, glass)
remain as a solid, known as
Bottom Ash, that contains a small
amount of residual carbon
Figure 2 The incineration process
Incineration
technology
overview
 Combustion
Technology
There are four
combustion technologies
that can be employed to
burn sludge. A brief
overview of the main
combustion technologies
is presented in Table 3
(opposite).
 Roll type grate

Combusti
Waste
on
Funnel
chamber

Sec.
Air Stair type grate

Slag

Prim.
Water
Air
basin
 Rotary
Rotary kiln
kiln
installation

Inside Rotary
kiln
Fluidised bed incinerator
Incineration… Cont’d

The major advantage;

Max vol ↓ thereby lessening disposal requirement
Destruction of pathogens and toxic compounds
Energy recovery potential
The disadvantage include;
High capital and operating cost
Skilled operating & maintenance staff are required
Residual produced like air emission & ash may
adverse environmental effect
Disposal of residual which may be classified as
hazardous waste if they exceed prescribe max
pollutant concentrations
 Composting
 Composting: organic material
undergoes biological degradation to
a stable end product
 20-30% VS are converted to carbon
dioxide and water
 Composting can be practiced for
dewatered sludge
 Composting process

As organic material decompose, the compost heats to temperatures in the

pasterurization range of 50C to 70C and pathogens are destroyed
Composting process stages
 Composting process stages
 During composting, three separate stages of activity and
associated temperature are observed: mesophilic,
thermophilic and curing (cooling)
 Mesophilic stage: temperature in compost pile increase from
ambient to 40°C, with the appearance of fungi and acid-
producing bacteria
 Thermophilic stage: Within 40°C – 70°C, emergence of
thermophilic bacteria, actinomycetes, and thermophilic fungi.
Maximum degradation and stabilization of organic matter
occur.
 Curing stage: Further evaporative release of water from the
composted material, as well as stabilization of pH and
completion of humic acid formation
Composting process steps
 Composting process steps
 Most composting operations consist of
 (1) preprocessing, the mixing of dewatered sludge with
and amendment and or bulking agent;
 (2) high-rate decomposition, aerating the compost pile
either by the addition of air, by mechanical turning, or by
both;
 (3) recovery of the bulking agent (at the end of either the
high-rate decomposition or curing phase, if practical);
 (4) further curing and storage, which allows further
stabilization and cooling of the compost;
Composting process steps
 (5) postprocessing, screening for the removal of
nonbiodegradable material such as metals and plastics or
grinding for size reduction; and
 (6) final disposition.

A portion of the final product is sometimes recycled to the

preprocessing step to aid in conditioning the compost mixture
 Important design considerations for
aerobic composting process

Item Comment
Temperature For best results, temperature should be maintained
between 50 and 55ºC for the first few days and between
55 and 60ºC for the remainder of the active composting
period. If temperature goes beyond 66ºC, biological
activity is reduced significantly. A temperature maintained
between 60 and 70ºC for 24 h will eradicate pathogens,
weeds and seeds during the composing process
Oxygen Air with at least 50 percent of the initial oxygen
concentration remaining should reach all parts of the
composting materials for optimum results, especially in
mechanical systems.
Moisture content Moisture content should be in the range between 50 and
60 percent during the composting process. The optimum
value appears to be about 55 percent
Item Comment
Physical properties For optimum results the size of solid wastes should be
of between 25 and 75 mm
composting mix
Nutrients Initial carbon to nitrogen ratios between 25 and 50 are
optimum for aerobic composting. At lower ratios, ammonia
is given off. Biological activity is also impeded at lower
ratios. At higher ratios, nitrogen may be a limiting nutrient
pH To achieve an optimum aerobic decomposition, pH should
remain at 7 and 7.5 range. To minimize the loss of
nitrogen in the form of ammonia gas, pH should not rise
above about 8.5
Composting methods – turned
windrow
Composting methods –
aerated static pile
Composting methods –
aerated static pile
Composting methods – in
vessel composting
Composting methods – in
vessel composting
Rotating drum Agitated bed

In-vessel horizontal In-vessel vertical

Application of Biosolids to Land
Define as the spreading of biosolids on or just
below the soil surface
May applied to
Agricultural Land
Forest Land
Dedicated Land Disposal Site
Designed with the objective of providing further
biosolids treatment
Sunlight, soil microorganisms and desiccation
combine to destroy pathogens and many toxic
organic substance
Application of Biosolids to Land:
why treated biosolids suitable for land
application

Organic matter in biosolids improves soil

structure, water holding capacity, water
infiltration and soil aeration that aid plant growth
Biosolids also aid plant growth from
Macronutrients – nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium
Micronutrients – iron, manganese, copper, chromium,
selenium and zinc
Organic matter also contributes to the cation-
exchange capacity (CEC) of the soil which
allows the soil to retain potassium, calcium and
magnesium
Application of Biosolids to Land:
why treated biosolids suitable for land
application

Organic matter improves the biodiversity in soil

and improves the availability of nutrients to plant
Trace metals are trapped in the soil matrix and
nutrients are taken up by plants & converted to
useful biomass
Nutrient in the biosolids also serve as a partial
replacement for expensive chemical fertilizers
Application of Biosolids to Land:
Agricultural Land Site Evaluation
Characteristics of the site will determine the
actual design & will influence the overall
effectiveness of the land application concept
Site characteristic of importance are topography,
soil characteristic, soil depth to groundwater, and
accessibility & proximity to critical area
Application of Biosolids to Land:
Agricultural Site Evaluation… Cont’d
Topographical Evaluation
Affect potential for erosion and runoff
Suitability depends on biosolids type & app method
Liquid biosolids can be spread, sprayed or injected
onto sites with rolling terrain up to 15% in slope
Dewatered sludge is usually spread on agricultural
land that requires a tractor and spreader
Forested sites can accommodate slopes up to 30% if
adequate setback from streams are provided
 Application of Biosolids to Land:
Agricultural Site Evaluation… Cont’d
Slope, Biosolids Runoff &
% Liquid Dewatered Erosion

0–3 Ideal no concern

3–6 surface application acceptable slight risk
6 – 12 Injection required for surface application
general cases except in generally acceptable
closed drainage basin
and/or when extensive Need
runoff control is provided concern &
control
12–15 No application should be surface application measures
made without extensive acceptable, but immediate
runoff control incorporation into the soil
is recommended
Over Suitable only for sites with good permeability where
15 the length of slope is short and where the area with Risky
steep slope is a minor part of the total application area
Application of Biosolids to Land:
Agricultural Site Evaluation… Cont’d
Soil Characteristics Evaluation
In general, desirable soil characteristics include
1. Loamy soil
2. Slow to moderate permeability
3. Soil depth ≥ 0.6 meter
4. Alkaline or neutral soil, pH ≥ 6.5
5. Well drained to moderately well drained
Application of Biosolids to Land:
Agricultural Site Evaluation… Cont’d
Soil Depth to Groundwater Evaluation
A basic philosophy, that biosolids pose no greater
threat to gwater than current agricultural practices
Because the groundwater fluctuates on a seasonal
basis in many soils, a bit hard to determine min depth
Generally the greater the depth to the water table, the
more desirable a site for biosolids application
At least 1 m to groundwater is preferred considering
seasonal water-table fluctuation to within max 0.5 m
 Application of Biosolids to Land:
Agricultural Site Evaluation… Cont’d
Accessibility & Proximity to Critical Area Evaluation
Buffer zones or setbacks are needed to separate the
active application area from sensitive area such as
residence, well, ect… Below are some of the guideline;
Setback from Min, m
Property boundaries 3
Primary agricultural drainage ways 10
Public roads and onsite occupied residences 15
Nondomestic water supply wells, Surface water( wetland, pond, lake) 30
Domestic water supply reservoir 120
Domestic water supply wells, Occupied non-agricultural building 150
Domestic surface water supply intake 750
Others
End of Slide
Thank You