What is sludge?
Any solid, semisolid, or liquid byproduct generated from a municipal, commercial, or industrial wastewater or water supply treatment plant is termed as sludge.
Why is Sludge Management required?
The composition of sewage sludge varies depending on the composition of wastewater and the processes used for its treatment. Irrespective of its origins, sludge contains water, organic and inorganic materials and suspended solids. Sludge of different qualities are produced from different biological unit operations.
A key sludge quality parameter is its % dry solids (%DS) content.
The percentage of dry solids reflects the extent to which the sludge can be consolidated. The sludge volume decreases with decreasing water and correspondingly increasing DS content, in the absence of any biological degradation of the solids.
The second key sludge quality parameter is the degradable organic matter content, usually expressed as the chemical oxygen demand (COD).
The essential element of sludge treatment is the reduction of its volume by reducing the water content.
The water present in sludge exists in various forms:
• Unbound or free water is the fraction that is not associated with the solids.The free water makes up around 70% of the water in municipal wastewater sludge.
• Interstitial water is the water that is bound by capillary forces between the sludge flocs. A part of this water may be removed by mechanical means such as by centrifugation.
• Surface water also known as vicinal water is the fraction associated with the solid particles and bound to the particle surface by hydrogen bonding. This water cannot be removed by mechanical means.
• Intercellular water is the water held within the micro-organism cells, or chemically bound within the particle structure.This water gets released only by thermal methods which destroy the particles and cells and extract the water as a vapour.
Options for Dealing with Sewage Sludge
Sewage sludge can be dissected either as an organic and nutrient resource to be used beneficially or as a waste material to be disposed of.
Sludge production has increased dramatically with the implementation of environmental programs to improve the quality of discharges from wastewater treatment plants. The disposal of sludge by sea dispersal has been banned by environmental legislation, requiring all the sludge from sewage treatment to be disposed of on land.
Sludge management is a big challenge in the field of environmental engineering and science. Effective solutions adopted nowadays for the treatment of wastewater led to an improvement on the quality of the final effluent but it has considerably increased the volume of sewage sludge, which is increasing each year.
Due to environmental pressure and economic considerations sludge management is of major concern. Sludge management methods can be recovery, disposal, recycling, or treatment.
What Netsol water has to offer?
As the composition of sludge varies from industry to industry, this demands customized sewage management.
Every project is unique and our specialist at Netsol water will help you in deciding the best methods to manage your sludge.
Netsol water is one of the leading water and wastewater treatment company in India with services in the field of WTP plant manufacturing, WWTP plant manufacturing. Netsol Water is a manufacturer of sewage treatment plants and effluent treatment plants, dedicated towards saving earth. The company designs and manufactures machines and is dedicated to practical solutions that spur business growth.
We have the solution to every environmental problem and its management. We believe in the motto – Save Earth and its Resources now!
Netsol Water is Greater Noida-based leading water & wastewater treatment plant manufacturer. We are industry's most demanding company based on client review and work quality. We are known as best commercial RO plant manufacturers, industrial RO plant manufacturer, sewage treatment plant manufacturer, Water Softener Plant Manufacturers and effluent treatment plant manufacturers. Apart from this 24x7 customer support is our USP. Call on +91-9650608473, or write us at enquiry@netsolwater.com for any support, inquiry or product-purchase related query.