All You Need to Know About Sewage Sludge
For quite a long time, the disposal of sewage wastes were done over water bodies such as rivers, streams, etc. Even though this approach is still followed today, companies are switching towards a more sustainable way of getting rid of sewage wastes.
As urban populations are increasing, the natural capacity of these water bodies have become diminished. To reduce the impact of sewage wastes, industries introduced the treatment process that resulted in producing sewage sludge. Different sludge treatment equipment is a vital necessity for industries that deal with them.
Keep reading till the end to learn more about sewage sludge and what industries do with it.
Municipal Sewage Sludge
The municipal wastewater or sewage is referred to the water that is used in suburban and urban areas or businesses that handles washing, flushing toilets, bathing, etc. In some cases, municipal wastewater carries water from industrial wastes as well.
The treatment of all these water results in formation of municipal sewage sludge.
Different Treatment Methods for Municipal Sewage Sludge
The municipal sewage sludge is categorized as raw sewage sludge that is a mixture of primary, secondary and tertiary sludges. This type of sludge contains pathogens and its unstable nature makes them environmentally hazardous.
However, there are several treatment methods that are designed to stabilize such sewage sludge and reduce the pathogen content. Some of the most commonly used methods are –
Thickening Method
In this method, the sludge solids are treated by concentrating them either by introducing air or by settling due to gravity that results in sludge solids to float.
With the method of thickening, the sludge is able to retain liquid properties and the solid content is increased by 5% to 6%.
Dewatering Method
The dewatering method involves air drying on sand beds, centrifugation and belt pressing which is essentially the filtration step. This particular sludge treatment method allows an increase in solids by 15 to 30%.
The application of air drying aids in eliminating the pathogens present in the sludge. Whereas the centrifugation and filtration results in loss of nutrients.
Composting Method
The composting method involves the method of dewatering where the sludge is after that is mixed with organic material of high-carbon content such as sawdust.
This mix is then composted under aerobic conditions at temperatures around 131°F for several days. This method results in reduction of sludge volume, odors, and volatile solids.
It also stabilizes the organic matter present and gets rid of most pathogens.
Importance of Sewage Sludge Treatment
Sewage Sludge can be composed of both organic and inorganic materials that may include, large concentration of plant nutrients, minor traces of numerous elements and more.
The composition of wastewater and the treatment method applied greatly influences the sewage sludge’s overall composition. The production of sewage sludge around the world is immense and their disposal needs to be carried out suitably without causing any hazardous situation or disruption of business.
This is the reason why sewage sludge is needed to be treated with the most efficient methods. The methods are carried out by using high-end sludge treatment equipment.