A study of the improvement in dewatering behavior of wastewater sludge through the addition of fly ash

Abstract

Wastewater sludge is classified as a difficult dewatering material (DDM) due to the high cake specific resistance (CSR). On the other hand, fly ash is classified as an easy dewatering material (EDM), which suggests that it might be able to improve the dewaterability of wastewater sludge. The water content and cake specific resistance of dewatered sludge without the addition of fly ash were 80% and 2. 9×1014 kg/m, respectively. When 50% (by dry weight) fly ash was added to the sludge, the water content and cake specific resistance decreased to 29. 4% and 2. 9×1013 kg/m, respectively. The cake specific resistance and water content decreased with increasing fly ash additions. Therefore, the production of sludge cake can be reduced by adding fly ash, which can help minimize the social and environmental problems caused by the need to dispose of wastewater sludge. © 2010 Korean Institute of Chemical Engineers, Seoul, Korea.