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Effect of mixing ratio on sewage sludge and septage co-digestion

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Abstract

Septage, which is made up of liquid and solid materials pumped from septic tanks, can be a potential co-digestion resource for sewage sludge. This study was conducted to evaluate possibility of co-digestion of sewage sludge and septage. Biochemical methane potential tests were performed using primary sludge, secondary sludge and septage. The mixing ratio of the septage ranged from 30% to 62% (by volatile solid wt.) based on the typical ratio of the septage transported to municipal WWTP plants and the sewage sludge generated in the plants. The co-digestion of sewage sludge and septage showed synergistic effects on the methane potential due to the enhanced C/N ratio. The observed methane potential of co-digestion substrate was 8–16% higher than the predicted value based on weighted average of mono-digestion substrate's methane potentials. The maximum synergistic effect on methane potential was observed when 42% (by volatile solid wt.) of the septage was co-digested. In conclusion, the septage can be a suitable resource for co-digestion with sewage sludge.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by Science and Technology Support Program through the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) funded by the Ministry of Science and ICT (MSIT) (NRF-2019K1A3A9A01000029). The authors appreciate the technical support from BrainKorea21 Four research program of the National Research Foundation of Korea, and Institute of Construction and Environmental Engineering at Seoul National University.

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  1. Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Seoul National University, Seoul, 08826, Republic of Korea

    Changmin Lee & Jae Young Kim

  2. Institute of Construction and Environmental Engineering, Seoul National University, Seoul, 08826, Republic of Korea

    Xin Zhao

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Correspondence to Jae Young Kim.

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Lee, C., Zhao, X. & Kim, J.Y. Effect of mixing ratio on sewage sludge and septage co-digestion. J Mater Cycles Waste Manag 24, 971–979 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10163-022-01372-2

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