Water Research 126 (2017)

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Water Research
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/watres

Study of energetic valorification of activated sludge from wastewater

treatment plants
Banciu Cristiana*, Silva Burcaa, B.R.H. Mişcaa
a
Departament of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Babes-Bolyai University, RO-400028 Cluj-Napoca, Romania

ARTICLE I NF O ABSTRACT

Article history:
Received 20 May 2017
The sludge from sewage treatment will remain a permanent waste problem requiring an
Received in revised form adequate solution. Sludge processing technologies comprise all the technical processes for
6 September 2017 stabilizing and solving the final problem of waste from sewage treatment. There are several
Accepted 10 September 2017
processes used for energy recovery of sludge, which is also the incineration with heat recovery,
Available online 13 September 2017
also used for this study. In this paper had been tried to design a sludge recovery facility in
Keywords: sewage treatment plants and sizing an industrial oven for the sludge incineration process. For
Sludge this to be done it was needed to determine some the characteristics of the activated sludge such
Incineration
as humidity, quantity of ash, volatile matter and heat of combustion. With all these
Process
Energy Recovery characteristics of activated sludge it was developed a mathematical model in order to determine
Sewage treatment plant if the process is feasible or not based on the energy balance.
Wastewater

1. Introduction
The water industry is a particularly important branch of a country's
economy. Without water it is impossible to conceive life, production of any
kind, as well as maintaining a health climate of the population, flora and fauna.
Wastewater treatment technologies are particularly complex. It invites to
unitary processes of chemical, physical and biological nature. It is a necessity
to make a perfect correlation between the different parameters that occur and
which determine the process of purification. Today, new processes, modern,
energy efficient and operational solutions have emerged that lead to increased
performance in wastewater treatment. They can be applied in the refurbishment
and rehabilitation of wastewater treatment plants with low implementation costs
because they often do not require very large investments..
Municipal waste water treatment can be considered an uninterrupted activity
in the future. From an organizational, technical and economic point of view, it
is impossible to prevent or greatly reduce the amount of municipal waste water.
Also, the presence of toxic pollutants in these waters can not be avoided
because much of this comes from a far too many sources. This also means that
the quality of sewage sludge and the amount of sewage sludge, estimated at
about 50 g dry matter per person per day, will not change significantly in the
future.
* Corresponding author.
E-mail addresses: cristian.banciu21@gmail.com
The sludge from the treatment process will remain a permanent waste problem
that requires a suitable solution. In the future, we can expect that sludge
management and research into innovative treatment methods will focus on three
important issues: recovering and reusing valuable mud products, finding a
complete solution to the problem of sludge and toxic substances and, last but
not least, acceptable costs (Rulkens, 2008).Sludge processing technologies
comprise all the technical processes for stabilizing and solving the final problem
of waste from sewage treatment.
Sludge is a polyphase mixture composed of a base fluid, water, and various
constituents, of a mineral or organic nature, dispersed in the aqueous medium.
The sludge may have various compositions and concentrations depending on
the origin, primary, secondary or tertiary decanter and depending on the degree
of dehydration, extracted from the decanter, concentrator, or dehydration. Thus,
the term sludge is a very broad concept which designates various aqueous
solutions with heterogeneous composition in which are suspended matter,
dissolved, colloidal particles of mineral or organic nature, having a gelatinous
appearance at higher concentrations and black and brown color. As a general
characterization, six types of chemical substances are found in the sludge
composition: non-toxic organic substances (about 60% in dry matter), a large
part of which is of biological nature, various nitrogen and phosphorus
compounds, organic and inorganic toxic pollutants such as: a) heavy metals such
as Zn, Pb, Cu, Cr, Ni, Cd, Hg and As (concentrations vary between 1-1000 ppm)
and b) biphenyl polychlorinates (PCBs) polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbs,
dioxins, pesticides, linear alkyl sulfonates, nonylphenols,
flame retardant polybrominated compounds, pathogens and other pollutants of
microbiological nature, inorganic compounds such as silicates, alumina and
calcium and magnesium compounds and water in a concentration even greater
than 95% (McCann, 2001; Spinosa, 2001; Rulkens, 2004; Camacho et al, 2002;
Dohányos et al, 2000; Müller et al, 2004).
The methods of energy recovery of sludge are classified into nine categories:
anaerobic digestion of sludge from sludge plants, obtaining biofuels from
sludge, direct obtaining of electric current in microbial cells, incineration of
sludge with heat recovery, co-incineration of sludge in power plants on carbon
base, sludge gasification and pyrolysis, the use of sludge as a source of energy
and materials for the production of construction materials, supercritical
oxidation of wet sludge and its hydrothermal treatment.
Anaerobic digestion of sludge from sewage treatment plants use of a set of
microorganisms cultures to degrade organic compounds from sludge and
metabolize them into a mixture of methane and carbon dioxide known as
biogas. The biogas obtained is used as a fuel for the production of electricity.
This variant has several advantages such as: higher biogas production, higher
degree of pathogen destruction, and a lower degree of organic solids left behind
(Neis et al, 2000; Weemaes et al, 2000).
The production of biofuels from sludge involves the fermentation of biomass
by specific microorganisms in order to obtain biofuels: methanol, ethanol,
butanol or acetone (Claassen et al, 1999).
Directly obtaining electricity in microbial cells - microbial electric cells are
used to obtain direct electrical power from wastewater containing
biodegradable organic compounds. A microbial electric cell consists of two
chambers: one anode and one cathode one, separated by a cation exchange
membrane (Ting et al, 2004). The performance of this type of system depends
on a number of parameters: pH, temperature, type of electrode, type of
substrate, type of microorganisms, internal cell resistance, etc (Rabaey et
al,2005).
Incineration of sludge with heat recovery involves the complete oxidation of
organic compounds from sludge at high temperatures, including toxic ones. In
order for the sludge to be incinerated, it must not have moisture, dehydration
can be done either mechanically or by drying. The amount of heat depends on
the efficiency of the incineration and the quantity of humidity of the sludge
(Dentel et al, 2004; Braguglia et al, 2003; Guibelin, 2004; Simonsen, 2003).
Gasification and sludge pyrolysis - Both methods have several advantages:
the gases obtained can be used more efficiently in the generation of electricity,
can produce gaseous chemicals, and there is no need to treat large amounts of
effluent gases. Instead, due to the presence of pollutant and toxic organic
compounds in the effluent gas, their treatment is more complicated than in the
case of incineration.
The components in the sludge, both organic compounds and inorganic
compounds can be considered as valuable materials. There are several
possibilities of using these compounds simultaneously in a beneficial way. One
way to capitalize on both types of organic and inorganic compounds is to use
sludge in production of Portland cement (Okuno et al, 2004).
Supercritical oxidation of wet sludge - This process takes place at temperatures
and pressures above the supercritical point of water (374.2 ° C and 218.12 atm).
The supercritical water has special properties, namely it has the superior ability
to dissolve oxygen and organic compounds, yet having a solubility small for
mineral compounds, such as sodium chloride. The use of oxygen in the process,
high pressure pipes and high pressure reactors, and the existence of corrosion
problems, if chlorine is present, influence the choice and construction of such
technology (Svanström et al, 2004).
Hydrothermal treatment (or thermal hydrolysis) is a process in which sludge is
heated as an aqueous phase at temperatures of 120-400 ° C. The hydrothermal
treatment process is based on sludge disintegration and the production of
dissolved products. The potential of hydrothermal treatment to recover energy
from sludge depends on the performance of the process. Volatile fatty acids and
other biodegradable volatile organic compounds can be used as an energy source
in the process of denitrification of wastewaters but also in the anaerobic digestion
process (Rulkens, 2008).
2. Methods and materials
2.1. Determination of active sludge humidity
It was analyzed the humidity of the sludge from all 4 samples. The method
consists in drying the sample subject to determination under the specified
temperature conditions to a constant mass. Calculate the mass loss, which was
expressed in %. In the laboratory, humidity was determined by drying the
samples in the oven at 105 ° C for an hour. The drying-cooling operations
were repeated in steps of 15 and 30 minutes until a constant mass was reached.
2.2. Determination of the amount of ash from the dry active sludge
Ash is the solid residue remaining after calcination of dry sludge at 815 ±
25 ° C to constant mass. The method consists in burning a weighed sample of
sludge and keeping the resulting residue at 815 ± 25 ° C to constant mass. The
ratio between the mass of the residue obtained after calcination and the weight
of the weighted sample, expressed as a percentage, is the ash content. In a
previously calcined crucible weigh 1-2 grams of sludge, which will be
analyzed. The sample crucible is placed in the oven, which has been preheated
to room temperature. The furnace temperature gradually increases to 815 ±
25 ° C, the temperature to be reached in at least 60 minutes so as to avoid
sudden release of moisture and volatile materials which could induce sludge
or ash particles.
After the oven temperature has reached 815 ± 25 ° C, the crucibles are kept
in the oven for another 60-90 minutes. At the end of the calcination, the
samples are removed from the oven and allowed to air for 5 minutes to cool,
and then placed in the desiccator. After the samples have cooled, they are
weighed. During this time, the oven is kept at 815 ± 25 ° C and the samples
are placed in rounds of 15 minutes until the mass does not vary by more than
0,001g. If the mass of the remaining ash crucible starts to increase, then the
lowest mass is taken into account for calculating the ash content.
2.3. Determination of volatile materials from dry active sludge
Volatile materials contained in sludge refer to the total amount of products
released by heating under well-established conditions, from which humidity
and non-combustible gases (CO2) are reduced. Determination of volatile
matter in the sludge consists in heating a known amount of sludge in the
absence of air for a determined time. Mass loss of sludge is the sum of
moisture and volatile matter. First, the uncovered crucibles, together with the
lids, are placed on the heat-resistant wire support and calcined in the oven at
850 ± 20 ° C until they reach a constant mass.
At the same time, weigh 1g, and paste it with the hand press. This must
be done to avoid entrapment of sludge particles at the sudden release of
volatile matter and moisture. Pour the sample into a crucible which has been
brought to a constant mass and weighed to the analytical balance, then placed
in the oven at a temperature of 850 ± 20 °
The sample crucible is held for exactly 7 minutes from the closing of the
oven door. After this time, the samples will be removed from the oven and
allowed to cool to air for 5 minutes and then placed in a desiccator for constant
temperature cooling, to be weighed.
2.4. Elemental analysis of dry active sludge
In the practice of organic chemistry, the elemental qualitative analysis is very
rarely used. It is and normal, given the current and modern techniques of
identifying organic compounds by mass spectrometry, analytical
chromatography, molecular diagrams. But there are situations where, thanks
to a simple lab test, we can check whether the substance contains halogen or
nitrogen, so we can determine whether or not a chemical transformation took
place. The constituent elements of organic substances can not be identified by
use specific reagents for each element, but transformation is required organic
substances into readily inorganic substances. This is done by degradation of
organic substances.
2.5. Determination of caloric power of dry active sludge 3.5 Chemical elemental analysis

In order to determine the calorific value, a calorimetric bomb is used in The results of elemental analysis of dry sludge taken from the Dej waste
which a known amount of sludge is burned in an oxygen atmosphere. The heat water treatment plant show a high C content (30.03%) which indicates that the
released by the combustion is given to the calorimetric system comprising a dry active sludge has relatively high calorific power. The presence of nitrogen
known amount of water, and whose temperature increase is recorded. in the proportion of 3.5% in dry activated sludge requires a stage of
The calorimetric flask was filled with 2550 g of distilled water and start the combustion gas removal (catalytic method, adsorption).
agitation system. The sludge pill was weighed on an analytical balance and
was introduced In the calorimetric bomb. After this the bomb was filled with Sample C(%) H(%) N(%) S(%)
oxygen at the pressure of 25 atm. The calorimetric bomb was introduced in 1 2.550.357 4.225.102 3.636.409 0
the calorimetric flask and the sludge pill was lit. From that point the 2 2.998.284 5.238.693 5.176.348 0
temperature of the water from the inside on the calorimetric flask was 3 3.680.182 5.764.912 2.609.039 0
measured from minute to minute till a constant measure was obtained. Table 5 –Chemical elemental analysis of activated sludge

3. Results and discussion In order to see if the activated sludge incineration process is feasible, it was
necessary to determine some characteristics of the active sludge on which the
3.1. Humidity determination of sludge mathematical calculation of the incineration process was made. Characteristics
that can help us to figure out how it would the process of incineration,
Moisture analysis was done to see what percentage of the sludge is water. depending on the humidity of the sludge, the content of volatile materials, the
Based on this, the provenance of the sludge can also be determined. According ash content, elemental analysis on the basis of which we were able to
to the results in Table 1, it has been demonstrated that the soil can have a determine certain elements of the sludge composition, and the calorific power
humidity of over 95% with which the mathematical simulation of the incineration process could be
achieved.
Item Mass of Mass of Mass of Total Mass Humidity(%) In order to determine if the incineration process is feasible of not some
vial vial sample(g) mass after 1 presumptions were made based on the characteristics of the sludge. For the
with without (g) hour(g) mathematical modeling of the process based on the C and H content of the
cover(g) cover(g)
sludge a thermal balance was made. Knowing the percentages in which the
1 45,488 28,539 2,017 47,505 45,864 81
2 50,736 29,008 2,112 52,848 50,822 96 two elements are found in samples determined by elemental analysis (30,03%
3 38,185 26,448 1,567 39,752 38,287 93 C and 5,04% H), determine the amount of heat emitted by the combustion: in
4 41,151 31,115 2,04 43,191 41,170 99 the case of C, it is about a heat quantity of 49249.2 MJ, while in the case of H,
Table 1 - Experimental determination of sludge humidity we are talking about a heat quantity of 35733.6 MJ. The oxygen demand
(stoichiometric) is then calculated, resulting in an amount of 6020 kg O2.
3.2. The amount of ash Considering a 5% excess of the combustion air, the total combustion air
volume equal to 22101,5 m 3. The amount of water vapor is also important.
Determining the amount of ash is an analysis necessary to determine the Knowing that the sludge will go into the furnace at a humidity of 25% will
mineral content of the dry sludge, knowing that the lower the ash content the determine the total amount of water contained in the 5 tons of sludge as having
lower the calorific value. the value of 1250 kg of water. Based on this the thermal balance was calculated
as follows.
Item Mass of Mass of Total Mass after Ash
blank the mass(g) calcination(g) content(%)
crucible(g) sample(g)
1 17,809 1,772 19,581 18,676 18,676
2 13,850 1,201 15,005 14,22 14,224
3 13,850 1351 15,201 16,01 14,314
Table 2 –Experimental determination of the amount of ash from the sludge

3.3. Combustion heat determination

Based on the results obtained, an combustion heat value of the sludge of

8574.12 kcal / kg can be calculated, a value comparable to a good quality coal.

K
Item E (g) (cal/˚C) A (g) q(cal.) r(˚C) Qs(kcal/kg) Normally, losses are considered to be 5% of the amount of heat that has
Standard 11018.6 13568.6 2550 36.28 0.15 6325 elapsed. In this case, the losses can be neglected because the excess of air with
2 11018.6 13568.6 2550 36.28 0.45 7060.3 O2 will permanently generate additional heat by combustion. It is worth
3 11018.6 13568.6 2550 36.28 0.66 11227.3 mentioning that a low humidity of the sample will increase the economic
4 11018.6 13568.6 2550 36.28 0.58 9684.2 efficiency of the process due to the caloric capacity of the water. Before the
Table 3 –Experimental determination of combustion heat of activated sludge thermal balance was calculated the necessary amount of air that will be used f
for vaporization of the water in the sample, it was done the calculation for
3.4. Determination of volatile matter simple drying in a single step. Was calculated the amount of water to be
vaporized if the sludge enters with 85% humidity in the dryer and we assume
Item Mass of Mass of Total Mass after Volatile it exits with 25% humidity.
blank the mass(g) calcination(g) matter The total quantity of water to be vaporized is 15,000 kg. The heat demand
crucible(g) sample(g) for water evaporation is 3396 · 107 kJ/kg. It was considered that the air is
1 16,978 1,016 17,994 17,91 7,45 inserted at atmospheric pressure so it was needed to take in consideration the
2 16,978 0,832 17,171 17,717 26,5 latent heat for the phase change that is r = 2264 · 103 kJ/kg. In order to
3 16,978 1,032 18,011 17,954 10,24
determine the amount of air required for water evaporation, we have to choose
Table 4 - Experimental determination of volatile matter from sludge
an air humidity coefficient at 20˚C from the Ramzin diagram. The total amount
of air was determined to be 600000 kg.
4. Conclusions
The use of activated sludge in wastewater treatment plants requires a large
amount of energy for both the drying and combustion operations. The process
uses large amounts of fuel, and some of the heat generated by them can be
recovered as steam or as electricity. This process of recovering activated
sludge is the cheapest of existing technologies . Sizing of the key machine of
the activated sludge incineration process has been done where it has been
demonstrated that the process is not feasible in conditions where the sludge
has a 25% moisture content because a large amount of additional fuel for
incineration is needed.
The process of recovering the sludge by incineration can be achieved in
better conditions if the sludge is dehydrated until it reaches a moisture content
of less than 3%.
Calorific power was determined at an average value of 8574.12 [kcal /
kg]. The calorific value calculated on the basis of determinations made on the
dry active sludge taken from the Dej wastewater treatment plant.
Technological design under the industrial conditions of the activated
sludge incineration process was carried out based on the calculation of the
thermal balance for the key machine and the experimental determinations in
the laboratory.
Acknowledgements
This work was possible with the support of the Chemical Engineering
department from the Faculty of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Babes-
Bolyai University, Cluj-Napoca, Romania.
The activated sludge samples for this study were collected with support
from Dej Wastewater Treatment Plant.
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