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Effect of permeability and loading conditions on dehydration of sludge in its pressurization process

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Abstract

The mechanical dehydration method is generally used for reducing the moisture content in sludge. However, there is little understanding of the physical and mechanical properties and dehydration mechanism of sludge during pressurization. In this paper, characteristics of sludge were studied from the perspective of soil mechanics. The water permeability, loading conditions, and dehydration performance of the sludge during the pressurization process were analyzed through a series of geotechnical laboratory experiments. The results showed that the pore structure, compressibility coefficient, consolidation coefficient, and permeability coefficient of the sludge are related to the dehydration rate. The conditioners that mixed with sludge could increase the dewatering rate by reducing the sludge viscosity, changing the water status, and increasing the permeability coefficient. The two conditioners used in this study increased the dehydration rate of the sludge from 27.5 to 52.6% and 63.9%, respectively. Unlike the seepage consolidation of ordinary clay, which has only one stage, the seepage consolidation of sludge could be divided into three stages. The removed water in the first stage is mainly free water; the discharge in the second stage is the combination of free water and bound water, and bound water was mainly discharged in the third stage. The water content at the end of each stage corresponds to the liquid limit, plastic limit, and shrinkage limit of the sludge. Our study provides a novel insight for understanding the deep dewatering of sludge and is benefit to solve the problem of sludge dewatering.

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Acknowledgements

This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Environmental and Chemical Engineering, Yanshan University, Qinhuangdao, 066004, People’s Republic of China

    Z. Xiaochun, F. Yao & H. Ying

  2. Hebei Province Key Laboratory of Deep Remediation of Heavy Metals in Water and Resource Utilization, Yanshan University, Qinhuangdao, 066004, People’s Republic of China

    Z. Xiaochun, F. Yao & H. Ying

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  1. Z. Xiaochun
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  2. F. Yao
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  3. H. Ying
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Correspondence to H. Ying.

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Editorial responsibility: Binbin Huang.

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Xiaochun, Z., Yao, F. & Ying, H. Effect of permeability and loading conditions on dehydration of sludge in its pressurization process. Int. J. Environ. Sci. Technol. 18, 2295–2302 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13762-020-02959-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13762-020-02959-8

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