scispace - formally typeset
Search or ask a question
Journal ArticleDOI

Utilization of sewage sludge in EU application of old and new methods—A review

01 Jan 2008-Renewable & Sustainable Energy Reviews (Pergamon)-Vol. 12, Iss: 1, pp 116-140
TL;DR: In this article, the authors review past and future trends in sludge handling, focusing mainly at thermal processes (e.g. pyrolysis, wet oxidation, gasification) and the utilization of sewage sludge in cement manufacture as a co-fuel.
Abstract: The European Union has made progress in dealing with municipal wastewater in individual countries and as a corporate entity. However, it intends to make still further and substantial progress over the next 15 years. Currently, the most widely available options in the EU are the agriculture utilization, the waste disposal sites, the land reclamation and restoration, the incineration and other novel uses. The selection of an option on a local basis reflects local or national, cultural, historical, geographical, legal, political and economic circumstances. The degree of flexibility varies from country to country. In any case sludge treatment and disposal should always be considered as an integral part of treatment of wastewater. There is a wide range of other uses for sludge, which exploit its energy or chemical content, namely the thermal processes. The present paper sought to review past and future trends in sludge handling, focusing mainly at thermal processes (e.g. pyrolysis, wet oxidation, gasification) and the utilization of sewage sludge in cement manufacture as a co-fuel.
Citations
More filters
Book ChapterDOI
01 Jan 2019
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors compared sludge legislation among the EU and the world's biggest countries and stated that sludge management in individual countries is affected by many factors, of which population density, land area, cost, and social acceptance are the most important.
Abstract: This study compares sludge legislation among the EU and the world's biggest countries. It can be stated that sludge management in individual countries is affected by many factors, of which population density, land area, cost, and social acceptance are the most important. Well-developed countries have extensive legislation systems concerning sludge management. In these countries, the minimization of waste production is preferred, followed by recycling. Landfilling is not a preferable option. The less developed a country, the more sludge is landfilled or disposed on lands without control. Use of sludge in agriculture is the future solution as well as circular economy methods such as phosphorus recovery. The most controversial method is thermal treatment of sludge, in part because of cost. The sewage sludge can be considered a neutral, in terms of CO2 emission, energy source which makes it attractive for some industrial plants, such as cement factories.

12 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The pathways proposed in this paper are considered as potentially economically viable approaches to not only resolve the issues associated with disposal of biosolids but also to produce renewable hydrocarbons for fuel and chemical applications.
Abstract: The escalating generation of biosolids and increasing regulations regarding their safe handling and disposal have created a great environmental challenge. Recently, biosolids have been incorporated into the hydrolysis step of a two-step thermal lipid conversion process to act as water replacement in the production of renewable chemicals and fuels. Here, the hexane extract recovered from hydrolysis of biosolids, lipids from brown grease hydrolyzed using either water (control) or biosolids as a water replacement, was pyrolyzed at 410–450 °C for 2 h. The product distribution and composition were not significantly different when biosolids were used to hydrolyze brown grease instead of water. The liquid product consisted mainly of alkanes, alkenes, aromatics, and cyclic compounds similar to those in petroleum-derived liquid fuels. However, the use of biosolids as a water substitute resulted in a significant increase in sulphur content of the pyrolysate, which will necessitate processes to reduce the sulphur content before or after pyrolysis. Nevertheless, the pathways proposed in this paper are considered as potentially economically viable approaches to not only resolve the issues associated with disposal of biosolids but also to produce renewable hydrocarbons for fuel and chemical applications.

12 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper , the authors examined four novel, non-combustion technologies or applications for the treatment of persistent per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) wastes.
Abstract: The release of persistent per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) into the environment is a major concern for the United States Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA). To complement its ongoing research efforts addressing PFAS contamination, the U.S. EPA’s Office of Research and Development (ORD) commissioned the PFAS Innovative Treatment Team (PITT) to provide new perspectives on treatment and disposal of high priority PFAS-containing wastes. During its six-month tenure, the team was charged with identifying and developing promising solutions to destroy PFAS. The PITT examined emerging technologies for PFAS waste treatment and selected four technologies for further investigation. These technologies included mechanochemical treatment, electrochemical oxidation, gasification and pyrolysis, and supercritical water oxidation. This paper highlights these four technologies and discusses their prospects and the development needed before potentially becoming available solutions to address PFAS-contaminated waste.Implications: This paper examines four novel, non-combustion technologies or applications for the treatment of persistent per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) wastes. These technologies are introduced to the reader along with their current state of development and areas for further development. This information will be useful for developers, policy makers, and facility managers that are facing increasing issues with disposal of PFAS wastes.

12 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: A dynamic model of sludge combustion in an industrial fluidized bed combustor mainly focused on NOx formation is proposed, tuned with industrial data and the results are sufficiently acceptable for this process to be carried out in a real incinerator plant.

12 citations

References
More filters
Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, an analytical procedure involving sequential chemicai extractions was developed for the partitioning of particulate trace metals (Cd, Co, Cu, Ni, Pb, Zn, Fe, and Mn) into five fractions: exchangeable, bound to carbonates, binding to Fe-Mn oxides and bound to organic matter.
Abstract: An analytical procedure involving sequential chemicai extractions has been developed for the partitioning of particulate trace metals (Cd, Co, Cu, Ni, Pb, Zn, Fe, and Mn) into five fractions: exchangeable, bound to carbonates, bound to Fe-Mn oxides, bound to organic matter, and residual. Experimental results obtained on replicate samples of fluvial bottom sediments demonstrate that the relative standard deviation of the sequential extraction procedure Is generally better than =10%. The accuracy, evaluated by comparing total trace metal concentrations with the sum of the five Individual fractions, proved to be satisfactory. Complementary measurements were performed on the Individual leachates, and on the residual sediments following each extraction, to evaluate the selectivity of the various reagents toward specific geochemical phases. An application of the proposed method to river sediments is described, and the resulting trace metal speciation is discussed.

10,518 citations


"Utilization of sewage sludge in EU ..." refers background in this paper

  • ...Over the last decades, a great variety of extraction schemes, both simple and sequential have been developed and, although some methods have been widely used [12,13] none has been unreservedly accepted by the scientific community....

    [...]

Book
01 Jan 1972
TL;DR: Wastewater Engineering: An Overview of Wastewater Engineering, Methods and Implementation Considerations as mentioned in this paper is a good starting point for a discussion of the issues of wastewater engineering. But, it is not a complete survey of the entire literature.
Abstract: Wastewater Engineering: An Overview. Wastewater Flowrates. Wastewater Characteristics. Wastewater Treatment Objective, Methods, and Implementation Considerations. Introduction to Wastewater Treatment Plant Design. Physical Unit Operations. Chemical Unit Processes. Biological Unit Processes. Design of Facilities for Physical and Chemical Treatment of Wastewater. Design of Facilities for the Biological Treatment of Wastewater. Advanced Wastewater Treatment. Design of Facilities for the Treatment and Disposal of Sludge. Natural-Treatment Systems. Small Wastewater Treatment Systems. Management of Wastewater from Combined Sewers. Wastewater Reclamation and Reuse.

3,826 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, a review of the current and future issues related to the combustion of sewage sludge is presented, and a number of technologies for thermal processing of sludge are discussed in three groups, i.e., mono-combustion, cocombustions and alternative processes.

1,026 citations


"Utilization of sewage sludge in EU ..." refers background in this paper

  • ...Multiple hearth and fluidized bed furnaces are the most popular and the latter is becoming widely applied [24]....

    [...]

  • ...Analysis has shown that about 78–98% of Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb and Zn present in the sewage sludge are retained in the ash, whereas up to 98% of the Hg may be released into the atmosphere with the flue gas [24]....

    [...]

  • ...The whole process is occurring in two distinctive regimes [24]:...

    [...]

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors proposed a standardization with respect to grain size effects, commonly achieved by analyzing the sieve fraction <63μm, which is used to pin point major sources of metal pollution and to estimate the toxicity potential of dredged materials.
Abstract: Sediment analyses are used to pin‐point major sources of metal pollution and to estimate the toxicity potential of dredged materials on agricultural land. For source assessments (Part I of the present review) standardization is needed with respect to grain size effects, commonly achieved by analyzing the sieve fraction <63μm. Further aspects include sampling methods, evaluation of background data and extent of anthropogenic metal enrichment.

530 citations