Environmental Biotechnology

Sludge treatment &

disposal
(Introduction)
Sludge treatment & disposal

The main solid by-

products produced in
wastewater treatment are:
• screened material
• grit
• scum
• primary sludge
• secondary sludge
• chemical sludge (if a
physical–chemical stage is
included)
Sludge treatment & disposal

Even though the sludge,

in most of its handling
stages, is constituted by
more than 95% water, it
is only by convention
that it is called a solid
phase, with the aim at
distinguishing it from
the wastewater, or the
liquid flow being treated
(liquid phase).
Sludge treatment & disposal
Aspects needed to be
taken into consideration
when planning sludge
management:
• production of the sludge
in the liquid phase,
• wastage of the sludge
from the liquid phase
(removal to the sludge
processing line)
• wastage of the sludge
from the solid phase
(removal from the
wastewater treatment plant
to the sludge disposal or
reuse site)
Sludge treatment & disposal

The sludge production

is a function of the
wastewater treatment
system used for the
liquid phase.

In principle, all the

biological treatment
processes generate
sludge.
Sludge treatment & disposal
The processes that receive
raw wastewater in primary
settling tanks generate the
primary sludge, which is
composed of the settleable
solids of the raw
wastewater.

In the biological treatment

stage, there is the so-called
biological sludge or
secondary sludge.
This sludge is the biomass
that grows at the expense
of the food supplied by the
incoming sewage.
Sludge treatment & disposal
Depending on the
treatment system, the
primary sludge can be sent
for treatment together with
the secondary sludge.
In this case, the resultant
sludge of the mixture is
called mixed sludge.
In treatment systems that
incorporate a physical–
chemical stage for
improving the
performance of primary or
secondary settling tanks, a
chemical sludge is
produced.
Sludge treatment & disposal

Some treatment systems

can store the sludge for
all the operating horizon
of the works (e.g.
facultative ponds),
others require only an
occasional withdrawal
END (e.g. anaerobic reactors)
and others need the
continuous or very
frequent removal (e.g.
activated sludge).