Possible Uses for Sludge from Drinking Water Treatment Plants

Hidalgo, A.M.; Murcia, M.D.; Gómez, M.; Gómez, E.; Garcia-Izquierdo, C.; Solano, Caterina

doi:10.1061/(asce)ee.1943-7870.0001176

Cited by 45 publications

(24 citation statements)

References 17 publications

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“…manures, composts or biosolids) can circumvent this concern. Indeed, support for this approach can also be found in the review of legislation at a European level on WTR disposal by Hidalgo et al (2016), which indicated that the most feasible use of WTRs from a regulatory standpoint is as an agricultural substrate when mixed with a nutrient source.…”

Section: Environmental and Ecological Impacts And Concernsmentioning

confidence: 94%

Potential Alternative Reuse Pathways for Water Treatment Residuals: Remaining Barriers and Questions—a Review

Turner

Wheeler²,

Stone³

et al. 2019

Water Air Soil Pollut

106

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Water treatment residuals (WTRs) are byproducts of the coagulation and flocculation phase of the drinking water treatment process that is employed in the vast majority of water treatment plants globally. Production of WTRs are liable to increase as clean drinking water becomes a standard resource. One of the largest disposal routes of these WTRs was via landfill, and the related disposal costs are a key driver behind the operational cost of the water treatment process. WTRs have many physical and chemical properties that lend them to potential positive reuse routes. Therefore, a large quantity of literature has been published on alternative reuse strategies. Existing or suggested alternative disposal routes for WTRs can be considered to fall within several categories: use as a pollutant and excess nutrient absorbent in soils and waters, bulk land application to agricultural soils, use in construction materials, and reuse through elemental recovery or as a wastewater coagulant. The main concerns and limitations restricting current and future beneficial uses of WTRs are discussed within. This includes those limitations linked to issues that have received much research attention such as perceived risks of undesirable phosphorous immobilisation and aluminium toxicity in soils, as well as areas that have received little coverage such as implications for terrestrial ecosystems following land application of WTRs.

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Section: Environmental and Ecological Impacts And Concernsmentioning

confidence: 94%

Potential Alternative Reuse Pathways for Water Treatment Residuals: Remaining Barriers and Questions—a Review

Turner

Wheeler²,

Stone³

et al. 2019

Water Air Soil Pollut

106

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…In Europe, this waste is considered non-hazardous waste on the European waste list (LER 190902) and therefore it is usually disposed in landfills, thereby increasing the overall costs, both economic and environmental, of water treatment [9]. This fact highlights the need to find efficient and sustainable alternatives for its management.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Using Dewatered Sludge From a Drinking Water Treatment Plant for Phosphorus Removal in Constructed Wetlands

Oliver¹,

Hernández-Crespo

Peña³

et al. 2020

WIT Transactions on Ecology and the Environment

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This study evaluates the applicability of drinking water sludge as an active substrate in vertical subsurface flow constructed wetlands (VFCW) for advanced wastewater treatment. This treatment enables the achievement of greater phosphorus removals, as well as other pollutants, reaching concentrations below the required limits and obtaining suitable water for different uses, particularly environmental ones. To this end, two prototypes, one of them operating intermittently and another one with continuous flow, have been installed at Quart-Benàger urban wastewater treatment plant (WWTP), facility property of Entidad Pública de Saneamiento de Aguas Residuales (EPSAR) of the Valencian region. Preliminary results indicate that the reuse of the drinking water sludge as an active substrate in VFCW improves the quality of WWTP effluents, minimizing their impact on the receiving aquatic environments.

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“…The sludge from DWTPs is mainly composed of metal ions, settleable organic particles, and several types of microorganisms [2]. Due to these characteristics, the recycling in raw form has been tested for different purposes such as treatment of landfill leachate [3], adsorption processes [4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12], production of geopolymers [13], reuse as coagulant [14][15][16][17], application in agriculture [18], production of cement [19][20][21], sulfide control in sewers [22], production of ceramics [23,24], and reuse in wastewater treatment [25,26]. On the other hand, the utilization of this material in the form of activated carbon is rare.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evaluating adsorbent properties of drinking water treatment plant sludge-based carbons activated by K2CO3/CH3COOH: a low-cost material for metal ion remediation

et al. 2019

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Sludge reclaimed from drinking water treatment plant was carbonized and chemically activated by K 2 CO 3 and CH 3 COOH. The proposal was to evaluate its adsorbent properties as a low-cost alternative material for metal ion remediation. Morphological, physicochemical, and chemical characteristics have been presented and comprehensively discussed. Main findings revealed a surface area rich in mesopores and loaded with weakly acidic functional groups, also presenting an eroded aspect. Carbonization of the sludge's organic content increased the concentration of nitrogenic and oxygenated functional surface groups. Chemical activation by K 2 CO 3 and CH 3 COOH increased adsorption and desorption capacity, pore volume, and pore size by two, three, and over tenfolds, respectively. Uptake of cations increased by 51% and, for anions, around 27%. Association of carbonization with sequenced activation processes converted drinking water treatment plant sludge into an excellent and promising alternative adsorbent material. and activation is available on the literature. Considering the lack of studies regarding the production of activated carbons from DWTP sludge, this study reports the conversion of this widely available feedstock through carbonization and chemical activation.Activated carbons (AC) are scientifically known for having high sorption capacity for different types of chemical species [28], a characteristic of an adsorbent material with large surface area, porous structure, and chemically active surface [29]. Additionally, the high concentration of metals in raw water treatment sludge and, consequently, in its char, may also improve ion-solution interaction. Activated carbons usually have their surface functional groups bonded to complex aromatic rings, behaving similarly to aromatic hydrocarbons [30]. As so, a thermochemical modification would then improve these characteristics in the AC's surface chemistry, as a function of the usage purpose. Overall, the chemical activation of carbonized materials'

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Possible Uses for Sludge from Drinking Water Treatment Plants

Cited by 45 publications

References 17 publications

Potential Alternative Reuse Pathways for Water Treatment Residuals: Remaining Barriers and Questions—a Review

Potential Alternative Reuse Pathways for Water Treatment Residuals: Remaining Barriers and Questions—a Review

Using Dewatered Sludge From a Drinking Water Treatment Plant for Phosphorus Removal in Constructed Wetlands

Evaluating adsorbent properties of drinking water treatment plant sludge-based carbons activated by K2CO3/CH3COOH: a low-cost material for metal ion remediation

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