Valorization of sewage sludge in the fabrication of construction and building materials: A review

Chang, Zhiyang; Long, Guangcheng; Zhou, John L.; Ma, Cong

doi:10.1016/j.resconrec.2019.104606

Cited by 162 publications

(63 citation statements)

References 135 publications

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“…Taking into account that the content of oxides of sewage sludge (Al 2 O 3 , CaO, SiO 2 , and Fe 2 O 3 ) is similar to that of Portland cement or clay, it has been proposed that it can be used for the production of building or construction materials, including eco-cement, bricks, ceramic materials, supplementary cementitious materials (SCMs), or lightweight aggregates (LWAs) [171]. Nevertheless, a high amount of organic matter is also present in sewage sludge, which can affect the cementitious properties, causing low bonding strength.…”

Section: Construction Materialsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The partial replacement of Portland cement by raw sewage sludge in cement is not a feasible option due to the low pozzolanic activity of the sludge, which needs pre-treatment to improve its activity. Thermal treatments (incineration) have been widely used since the organic matter is decomposed, and high temperature favours the activation of inert minerals, such as kaolin, which is transformed into metakaolin [171].…”

Section: Construction Materialsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Towards the Implementation of Circular Economy in the Wastewater Sector: Challenges and Opportunities

Guerra-Rodríguez

Oulego

Rodríguez

et al. 2020

Water

127

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The advancement of science has facilitated increase in the human lifespan, reflected in economic and population growth, which unfortunately leads to increased exploitation of resources. This situation entails not only depletion of resources, but also increases environmental pollution, mainly due to atmospheric emissions, wastewater effluents, and solid wastes. In this scenario, it is compulsory to adopt a paradigm change, as far as the consumption of resources by the population is concerned, to achieve a circular economy. The recovery and reuse of resources are key points, leading to a decrease in the consumption of raw materials, waste reduction, and improvement of energy efficiency. This is the reason why the concept of the circular economy can be applied in any industrial activity, including the wastewater treatment sector. With this in view, this review manuscript focuses on demonstrating the challenges and opportunities in applying a circular economy in the water sector. For example, reclamation and reuse of wastewater to increase water resources, by paying particular attention to the risks for human health, recovery of nutrients, or highly added-value products (e.g., metals and biomolecules among others), valorisation of sewage sludge, and/or recovery of energy. Being aware of this situation, in the European, Union 18 out of 27 countries are already reusing reclaimed wastewater at some level. Moreover, many wastewater treatment plants have reached energy self-sufficiency, producing up to 150% of their energy requirements. Unfortunately, many of the opportunities presented in this work are far from becoming a reality. Still, the first step is always to become aware of the problem and work on optimizing the solution to make it possible.

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Section: Construction Materialsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Construction Materialsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Towards the Implementation of Circular Economy in the Wastewater Sector: Challenges and Opportunities

Guerra-Rodríguez

Oulego

Rodríguez

et al. 2020

Water

127

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“…Sewage sludge management remains in the center of attention throughout the world. In the European Union, new directives and regulations focus on stabilization and valorization options instead of storage routes, such as landfilling or back-filling of mining areas [33][34][35]. Among the first to investigate the use of sewage sludge for hydrochar production, Zhao et al (2014) realized that HTC has the advantages of volume reduction and energy densification of the original biomass.…”

Section: Citespace Recent Scientometric Analysis (2018-2020)mentioning

confidence: 99%

Hydrochars as Emerging Biofuels: Recent Advances and Application of Artificial Neural Networks for the Prediction of Heating Values

et al. 2020

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In this study, the growing scientific field of alternative biofuels was examined, with respect to hydrochars produced from renewable biomasses. Hydrochars are the solid products of hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) and their properties depend on the initial biomass and the temperature and duration of treatment. The basic (Scopus) and advanced (Citespace) analysis of literature showed that this is a dynamic research area, with several sub-fields of intense activity. The focus of researchers on sewage sludge and food waste as hydrochar precursors was highlighted and reviewed. It was established that hydrochars have improved behavior as fuels compared to these feedstocks. Food waste can be particularly useful in co-hydrothermal carbonization with ash-rich materials. In the case of sewage sludge, simultaneous P recovery from the HTC wastewater may add more value to the process. For both feedstocks, results from large-scale HTC are practically non-existent. Following the review, related data from the years 2014–2020 were retrieved and fitted into four different artificial neural networks (ANNs). Based on the elemental content, HTC temperature and time (as inputs), the higher heating values (HHVs) and yields (as outputs) could be successfully predicted, regardless of original biomass used for hydrochar production. ANN3 (based on C, O, H content, and HTC temperature) showed the optimum HHV predicting performance (R2 0.917, root mean square error 1.124), however, hydrochars’ HHVs could also be satisfactorily predicted by the C content alone (ANN1, R2 0.897, root mean square error 1.289).

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“…Without cement, other natural materials could also be used for cementation. Chang et al [16] reported that using biomass without cement by combining sewage sludge with recycling aggregate could produce a road foundation with a strength of 1.8 MPa. The foundation backfills normally have a low compressive strength requirement, unlike the track plate materials over the foundation.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Utilization of Coal Gangue Aggregate for Railway Roadbed Construction in Practice

Long

Bai

et al. 2020

Sustainability

Self Cite

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As a massive solid waste, the high value-added utilization of coal gangue has received more and more attention in China. This study focuses on the utilization of coal gangue aggregate in railway engineering for coal transportation passage. Coal gangue aggregate was employed as high-grade railway subgrade filler andprepared concrete for roadbed drainage (named coal gangue roadbed protecting concrete—CGRPC). First, the basic properties of coal gangue such as particle size distribution, ignition loss, strength change under water softening, and compression performance were measured. Then, the technology to use coal gangue as filler in railway subgrade was put forward based on a real engineering application with the Jingang coal-carrying railway special line. Field tests showed that the coal gangue roadbed had excellent performance. The dynamic stiffness expressed as K30 was more 130 MPa/m, which meets the requirement for high-speed railway roadbeds. The distribution of vertical earth pressure according to the backfill depth showed a linear growing tendency. Finally, the technical and economic benefits of using coal gangue railway roadbeds were analyzed. The application of coal gangue near the railway line not only solved the problem of aggregate shortage in engineering construction, but it also consumes the coal gangue waste and leads to huge social benefits.

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Valorization of sewage sludge in the fabrication of construction and building materials: A review

Cited by 162 publications

References 135 publications

Towards the Implementation of Circular Economy in the Wastewater Sector: Challenges and Opportunities

Towards the Implementation of Circular Economy in the Wastewater Sector: Challenges and Opportunities

Hydrochars as Emerging Biofuels: Recent Advances and Application of Artificial Neural Networks for the Prediction of Heating Values

Utilization of Coal Gangue Aggregate for Railway Roadbed Construction in Practice

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