The Influence of Freezing-thawing on the Properties of Sludge from Water Treatment Facilities and the Prospects for its Disposal

Abstract

It has been shown that the freezing-thawing method allows a sharp increase in the water-yielding capacity of water treatment sludge (WTS sludge) and leads to an increase in the median particle size of the dispersed phase of sludge. The distribution of bound water types in WTP sludge was studied using thermogravimetry (TG), differential thermal thermogravimetry (DTG), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and mass spectrometry of gaseous thermolysis products (MS). It has been established that the release of water and carbon dioxide is completely completed at a temperature of 600°C. The specific surface area of the solid phase of WTP sludge before and after freezing-thawing was determined. The pore size distribution was studied. The BET isotherm of WTP sludge corresponds to mesoporous sorbents.