Optimization of chemistry and process parameters for control of intermetallic formation in Mg sludges

Intermetallic formation in sludge during magnesium(Mg)melting,holding and high pressure die casting practices is a very important issue.But,very often it is overlooked by academia,original equipment manufacturers(OEM),metal ingot producers and even die casters.The aim of this study was to minimize the intermetallic formation in Mg sludge via the optimization of the chemistry and process parameters.The Al8Mn5 intermetallic particles were identified by the microstructure analysis based on the Al and Mn ratio.The design of experiment(DOE)technique,Taguchi method,was employed to minimize the intermetallic formation in the sludge of Mg alloys with various chemical compositions of Al,Mn,Fe,and different process parameters,holding temperature and holding time.The sludge yield(SY)and intermetallic size(IS)was selected as two responses.The optimum combination of the levels in terms of minimizing the intermetallic formation were 9 wt.%Al,0.15 wt.%Mn,0.001 wt.%(10 ppm)Fe,690℃ for the holding temperature and holding at 30 mins for the holding time,respectively.The best combination for smallest intermetallic size were 9 wt.%Al,0.15 wt.%Mn,0.001 wt.%(10 ppm)Fe,630℃ for the holding temperature and holding at 60 mins for the holding time,respectively.Three groups of sludge factors,Chemical Sludge(CSF),Physical Sludge(PSF)and Comprehensive Sludge Factors(and CPSF)were established for prediction of sludge yields and intermetallic sizes in Al-containing Mg alloys.The CPSF with five independent variables including both chemical elements and process parameters gave high accuracy in prediction,as the prediction of the PSF with only the two processing parameters of the melt holding temperature and time showed a relatively large deviation from the experimental data.The Chemical Sludge Factor was primarily designed for small ingot producers and die casters with a limited melting and holding capacity,of which process parameters could be fixed easily.The Physical Sludge Factor could be used for mass production with a single type of Mg alloy,in which the chemistry fluctuation might be negligible.In large Mg casting suppliers with multiple melting and holding furnaces and a number of Mg alloys in production,the Comprehensive Sludge Factor should be implemented to diminish the sludge formation.

Study Progress Analysis of Effluent Quality Prediction in Activated Sludge Process Based on CiteSpace

In this paper, CiteSpace, a bibliometrics software, was adopted to collect research papers published on the Web of Science, which are relevant to biological model and effluent quality prediction in activated sludge process in the wastewater treatment. By the way of trend map, keyword knowledge map, and co-cited knowledge map, specific visualization analysis and identification of the authors, institutions and regions were concluded. Furthermore, the topics and hotspots of water quality prediction in activated sludge process through the literature-co-citation-based cluster analysis and literature citation burst analysis were also determined, which not only reflected the historical evolution progress to a certain extent, but also provided the direction and insight of the knowledge structure of water quality prediction and activated sludge process for future research.

Study on Limited Filamentous Sludge Bulking Test in A/O Activated Sludge Process

[Objective] This study aimed to make use of the limited filamentous sludge bulking characteristics to purify water quality and save energy. [Method] The effects of dissolved oxygen （DO） on sludge bulking were explored by changing the DO con- centration in the aerobiotic pool of NO system from the low load （0.25 kg COD/（kg MLSS.d）） and the medium to high load （0.55 kgCOD/（kg MLSSod））. [Result] In the NO activated sludge system, when the sludge load was 0.25 kg COD/（kg MLSS.d）, DO=1.5 mg/L, the sludge index was at around 250, while when the sludge load- ing was 0.55 kg COD/（kg MLSS.d）, DO=1.5 mg/L, the sludge index was close to 300, occurring the limited filamentous bulking. The bulked sludge still showed high removal rates to COD, SS, nitrogen and phosphorus. [Conclusion] It could improve the oxygen transfer rate and reduce the aeration rate at low DO conditions to achieve energy-saving.

Intercross real-time control strategy in alternating activated sludge process for short-cut biological nitrogen removal treating domestic wastewater

To develop technically feasible and economically favorable dynamic process control(DPC)strategies for an alternating activated sludge(AAS)system,a bench-scale continuous-flow alternating aerobic and anoxic reactor,performing short-cut nitrogen removal from real domestic wastewater was operated under different control strategies for more than five months.A fixed-time control(FTC) study showed that bending-points on pH and oxidation-reduction potential(ORP)profiles accurately coincided with the major biologic...

Characteristics of coal sludge slurry prepared by a wet-grinding process

Coal sludge slurry(CSS) is an alternative fuel and a potential competitive method for sludge reduction.Based on the researches of coal water slurry, we studied CSSs by using a wet-grinding process with different types of regional municipal sludge(sludge) in an orthogonal experiment. The sludge type,sludge mixing proportion, dosage of dispersant, and grinding time were tested in this study. The results show that water content and its occurrence characteristics in the sludge have primary hindering influences on slurry ability. The range of fixed-viscosity concentrations with raw wet sludge is from 50.78%to 44.40%(by weight), while the range is from 53.35% to 51.51%(by weight) with dry sludge. All of the CSSs exhibit shear-thinning behaviors with different variation trends, especially the CSSs with more than 15%(by weight) raw wet sludge in it. Adding the same proportion of raw wet sludge increases the thixotropic properties of CSSs and the highest area of thixotropy loop is 3065 Pa/s, while the highest value of dry sludge is 1798 Pa/s. Hydrophilic group plays an important role in adsorbing water and building three-dimension networks with other particles, which is the main reason for CSS properties.Therefore, the mechanism can be used to find the way for making high quality CSS.

Effect of Ferric Chloride on the Properties of Biological Sludge in Co-precipitation Phosphorus Removal Process

This paper studied the effect of ferric chloride on waste sludge digestion,dewatering and sedimentation under the optimized doses in co-precipitation phosphorus removal process.The experimental results showed that the concentration of mixed liquid suspended solid(MLSS) was 2436 mg.L-1 and 2385 mg.L-1 in co-precipitation phosphorus removal process(CPR) and biological phosphorous removal process(BPR),respectively.The sludge reduction ratio for each process was 22.6% and 24.6% in aerobic digestion,and 27.6% and 29.9% in anaerobic digestion,respectively.Due to the addition of chemical to the end of aeration tank,the sludge content of CPR was slightly higher than that of BPR,but the sludge reduction rate for both processes had no distinct difference.The sludge volume index(SVI) and sludge specific resistance of BPR were 126 ml.g-1 and 11.7×1012 m.kg-1,respectively,while those of CPR were only 98 ml.g-1 and 7.1×1012 m.kg-1,indicating that CPR chemical could improve sludge settling and dewatering.

Comparison of heavy metal removal efficiencies in four activated sludge processes

The removal efficiencies of heavy metals(As, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb and Zn) were investigated in the 17 operating municipal wastewater treatment plants(WWTPs) and compared with those in four main activated sludge processes. Significant differences of heavy metal removal efficiencies were observed among four activated sludge processes. The removal efficiency for As(75.5%) in the oxidation ditch(OD) process is significantly higher than that in the conventional activated sludge(CAS) process(38.6%) or sequencing batch reactor(SBR) process(51.4%). The mean removal efficiencies for Cu and Ni in the OD process are 90.5% and 46.7%, respectively, while low mean removal efficiencies are observed for Cu(69.9%) and Ni(16.5%), respectively, in the SBR process. The removal efficiencies for Cu and Ni in the OD process are significantly higher than those in the anaerobic-anoxic-oxic(A2-O) process. These results highlight the differences of removal efficiencies for heavy metals in different processes and should be considered when selecting a wastewater treatment process.

Enhanced biological nutrient removal in modified carbon source division anaerobic anoxic oxic process with return activated sludge pre-concentration

A pilot-scale modified carbon source division anaerobic anoxic oxic(AAO) process with pre-concentration of returned activated sludge(RAS) was proposed in this study for the enhanced biological nutrient removal(BNR) of municipal wastewater with limited carbon source. The influent carbon source was fed in step while a novel RAS pre-concentration tank was adopted to improve BNR efficiency, and the effects of an influent carbon source distribution ratio and a RAS pre-concentration ratio were investigated. The results show that the removal efficiency of TN is mainly influenced by the carbon source distribution ratio while the TP removal relies on the RAS pre-concentration ratio. The optimum carbon source distribution ratio and RAS pre-concentration ratio are 60% and 50%, respectively, with an inner recycling ratio of 100% under the optimum steady operation of pilot test, reaching an average effluent TN concentration of 9.8 mg·L-1with a removal efficiency of 63% and an average TP removal efficiency of 94%. The mechanism of nutrient removal is discussed and the kinetics is analyzed. The results reveal that the optimal carbon source distribution ratio provides sufficient denitrifying carbon source to each anoxic phase, reducing nitrate accumulation while the RAS pre-concentration ratio improves the condition of anaerobic zone to ensure the phosphorus release due to less nitrate in the returned sludge. Therefore, nitrifying bacteria, denitrifying bacteria and phosphorus accumulation organisms play an important role under the optimum condition, enhancing the performance of nutrient removal in this test.

Reuse of Ferric Sludge by Ferrous Sulfide in the Fenton Process for Nonylphenol Ethoxylates Wastewater Treatment

In this paper, Fenton process was determined to be an effective technique to treat the refractory Nonylphenol ethoxylates (NPEOs) wastewater. The COD removal efficien-cies above 89% were obtained when the initial COD concentration was 12000mg/L. However, A large number of ferric sludge (SS=8.724g/L) would be produced after the Fenton oxidation of the wastewater and must be disposed appropriately. A novel process for Fenton sludge reused by low-cost ferrous sulfide (FeS) was also investi-gated. Experimental results show that the Fenton sludge could be reduced to produce a certain amount of Fe2+ in the acidic mixed liquor by ferrous sulfide. This mixed liquor from Fenton sludge could be used as the new catalyst in the Fenton process and was also highly effective for the NPEOs wastewater treatment. The residual ferrous sulfide from the mixed liquor could be used for the next batch of the

Effects of Municipal Sewage Sludge on Fixation of Cr,Ni,Cu,and Zn during Co-processing of Heavy Metal-containing Waste in Cement Kilns

Cement raw meal with MSS and different heavy metals was blended to examine the fixation ratios, chemical species, and cement crystalline phases in clinkers. The results showed that blending MSS could decrease the fixation ratio of Cr, Ni, Cu, and Zn in the produced clinker by 5% to 25%. And Cr, Cu, and Zn were mainly incorporated into clinkers as metal silicates, Ni was mainly solubilized in Mg O to form magnesium nickel oxides, and the transition phases were mainly metal aluminum oxides as indicated by X-ray diffraction. The reduction of fixation ratios was likely attributed to the presence of impure elements, such as sodium and phosphorus in MSS. In addition, high concentrations（eg, 1.7 wt%） of chlorine in MSS led to metal chloride formation that could vaporize Cu, Cr, Ni, and Zn. To summarize, introducing MSS would decrease the fixation ratios of heavy metals due to the presence of impure elements, such as sodium and phosphorus and chlorine.

Process of Waste Sludge Facultative Metabolism

Laboratory- scale experiments were conducted to determine new technology of waste sludge facultative metabolism . 10-L laboratory-scale facultative reactors were operated during 24-hour sludge residence time (SRT) and in room temperature . Results show that the organic matter in waste sludge after hydrolysis acidification will be reduced by 75.39%, the removal rate of CODer above 85% . Advantage of the process is hydrolysis-acidification in ambient air temperature as there is no need for facilities to be sealed or heated. In addition, the sludge will be recycled into the wastewater treatment system and finally towards zero-discharge.

A Review of Co-processing of Kitchen Waste and Municipal Residual Sludge

In this paper, the methods of kitchen waste disposal in recent years were summed up, and the advantages and disadvantages of the current treatment methods were analyzed. At the same time, it has been found that the co-processing of kitchen waste and residual sludge not only has dealt with both kitchen waste and residual sludge, but also the carbon and nitrogen ratio and moisture content of the mixture are balanced, and increases the processing efficiency significantly. It has a certain processing advantage. At present, most research is about the anaerobic digestion of kitchen waste and residual sludge, and the process is more mature, but the study of VFAs accumulation is still insufficient. Aerobic composting is still in the early stage of development, and there are few studies on it at home and abroad. Meanwhile, prospects for the kitchen waste recycling were made in this article.

Co-Processing Sewage Sludge in Cement Kiln in China

Sewage sludge is the by-product from municipal waste water treatment plant and is highly polluted. How to treat the SS in a solid environmental friendly way is strictly concerned in China. In this article, the SS situation and also the treatment methods in China have been introduced. The advantage and some related issues of co-processing SS in cement kiln have been discussed. The technical model and projects of Huaxin cement for co-processing SS in cement kiln also have been introduced.

Stoichiometric deduction of activated sludge process for organic carbon and nitrogen removal

The activated sludge process （ASP） is the most generally applied biological wastewater treatment method. The ASP for the removal of organic carbon and nitrogen can be looked as the combination of eight processes. In order to set up an ASP model, the stoichiometric coefficients should be deduced so that the stoichiometric matrix can be presented. The important assumptions and simplifications behind the model for ASP are enumerated. Using the matrix, mass balance equation and consistent units, the stoichiometric coefficients in the eight processes are exclusively deduced one by one.

Combined process of sequencing batch reactor activated sludge process and constructed wetland for domestic wastewater treatment

By combining sequencing batch reactor (SBR) activated sludge process and constructed wetland (CW), this study is to achieve the domestic wastewater treatment. Our purpose was to determine the optimum operating parameters of the combined process. The process involved advantages and shortages of SBR and CW. Under normal temperature, the 3rd cycle (SBR’s operation cycle is 8 h: inflow for 1 h, limited aeration for 3 h, sediment for 1 h, outflow for 1 h, and idling for 2 h; CW’s hydraulic retention time (HRT) is 24.8 h and hydraulic loading is 24.5 m3/m2 d) was the best cyclic mode. The effluents can meet the standard GB/T18921-2002: "The reuse of urban recycling water: water quality standard for scenic environment use". In the 3rd cycle, the efficiency of CW was the maximum, and energy consumption of SBR was the minimum. Under the condition of low dissolved oxygen, the removing efficiency of chemical oxygen demand (COD) and ammonia was not affected obviously. Simultaneously, nitrification and denitrification phenomena occured and phosphorus was absorbed obviously.

Highsludge~工艺中氮的沿程变化与同步脱氮研究

采用Highsludge工艺处理城市污水,考察了氮的沿程变化与同步脱氮情况。结果表明,在第二好氧池中只发生了硝化作用,总氮无明显的下降;而在第一好氧池中总氮有明显的下降,去除率在16.8%～62.3%变化,平均去除率为33.19%,表明在该池中发生了明显的同步脱氮反应。该工艺的除污效果良好,对COD、BOD5、TN、NH4+-N的去除率分别为95%、96%、84%和82%,且污泥沉降性能良好,并未因污泥浓度高而发生丝状菌污泥膨胀、沉淀池污泥上浮等现象。

A sludge volume index (SVI) model based on the multivariate local quadratic polynomial regression method

In this study, a multivariate local quadratic polynomial regression(MLQPR) method is proposed to design a model for the sludge volume index(SVI). In MLQPR, a quadratic polynomial regression function is established to describe the relationship between SVI and the relative variables, and the important terms of the quadratic polynomial regression function are determined by the significant test of the corresponding coefficients. Moreover, a local estimation method is introduced to adjust the weights of the quadratic polynomial regression function to improve the model accuracy. Finally, the proposed method is applied to predict the SVI values in a real wastewater treatment process(WWTP). The experimental results demonstrate that the proposed MLQPR method has faster testing speed and more accurate results than some existing methods.

Kinetics of aerobically activated sludge on terylene artificial silk printing and dyeing wastewater treatment

Aerobically activated sludge processing was carried out to treat terylene artificial silk printing and dyeing wastewater (TPD wastewater) in a lab-scale experiment, focusing on the kinetics of the COD removal. The kinetics pa-rameters determined from experiment were applied to evaluate the biological treatability of wastewater. Experiments showed that COD removal could be divided into two stages, in which the ratio BOD/COD (B/C) was the key factor for stage division. At the rapid-removal stage with B/C>0.1, COD removal could be described by a zero order reaction. At the mod-erate-removal stage with B/C<0.1, COD removal could be described by a first order reaction. Then Monod equation was introduced to indicate COD removal. The reaction rate constant (K) and half saturation constant (KS) were 0.0208-0.0642 L/(gMLSS)h and 0.44-0.59 (gCOD)/L respectively at 20 C-35 C. Activation energy (Ea) was 6.05104 J/mol. By comparison of kinetic parameters, the biological treatability of TPD wastewater was superior to that of traditional textile wastewater. But COD removal from TPD-wastewater was much more difficult than that from domestic and industrial wastewater, such as papermaking, beer, phenol wastewater, etc. The expected effluent quality strongly related to un-biodegradable COD and kinetics rather than total COD. The results provide useful basis for further scaling up and efficient operation of TPD wastewater treatment.

Sludge concentration dynamic distribution and its impact on the performance of UNITANK

UNITANK is a biological wastewater treatment process that combines the advantages of traditional activated sludge process and sequencing batch reactor, which is divided into Tank A, B and C. In this study, the sludge distribution and its impact on performance of UNITANK were carried out in Liede Wastewater Plant （WWTP） of Guangzhou, China. Results showed that there was a strong affiliation between Tank A and B of the system in sludge concentration distribution. The initial sludge concentration in Tank A could present the sludge distribution of the whole system. The sludge distribution was mainly influenced by hydraulic condition. Unsteady sludge distribution had an impact on variations of substrates in reactors, especially in decisive reactor, and this could lead to failure of system. Settler could partially remove substrates such as COD and NO3-N, but there was adventure of sludge deterioration. The rational initial sludge concentration in Tank A should be 4000-6000 mg/L MLSS.

Effective Utilization of Concrete Sludge as Soil Improvement Materials

The amount of muddy soil generated from various kinds of construction sites is always problematic. It is very difficult to treat muddy soil because of its low strength and high water content. But, the reuse of muddy soil is necessary to reduce the total amount of industrial wastes. Surplus concrete is also in a similar situation. Coarse and fine aggregates are removed from surplus concrete as an intermediate treatment, however, concrete sludge still remains. The authors propose a reuse method that involves the muddy soil being mixed with concrete sludge as an improvement material. The possibility of the utilization of concrete sludge was investigated through laboratory experiments. As a result, it was found that the unconfined compressive strength of the improved soil mixed with concrete sludge increased as the curing proceeded.