subject: Wastewater Treatment And Sludge Treatment [print this page] Freshwater is potentially our most limited resource, and fundamental to our modern civilization. Competing demands on its use across every aspect of our daily lives, from domestic use, to the production of products and services in the industry sectors all contribute to the associated risks on supply, availability and quality.
With limited water resources, much of the billions of gallons of water used by homes, industries and businesses must be treated before it is released back to the environment or made fit for re-use
Wastewater comprises liquid waste discharged by domestic residences, commercial properties, industry, and/or agriculture and can encompass a wide range of potential contaminants and concentrations. If not properly treated, then the environment and human health can be impacted. Municipal wastewater is usually treated in a combined sewer, sanitary sewer, effluent sewer or septic tank. Industrial wastewater is either discharged to the sewer where it is treated by the water companies or companies will build their own on-site effluent treatment plants which is becoming more popular because the treatment technology means that water can be recycled and reused and can even generate energy from waste. Every cubic meter of water recycled or reused means a cubic meter less of water to buy and a cubic meter less of wastewater discharge to pay for.
Wastewater treatment is the process of removing contaminants from wastewater and household sewage, both runoff (effluents) and domestic. Wastewater Treatment consists of applying various technology treatment processes to improve or upgrade the quality of the wastewater by removing as much of the toxic solids as possible. It includes physical, chemical, and biological processes to remove physical, chemical and biological contaminants. Its objective is to produce an environmentally safe fluid waste stream (or treated effluent) that can be discharged back into the environment for its intended use, whether it be for water supply, recreation or any other required purpose. These solids can be organic or inorganic and are referred to as Sludge and are made suitable for disposal or reuse.
Sludge is produced from the treatment of wastewater in on-site (septic tank) and off- site (activated sludge) systems. The treatment required is dependent on the characteristics of the sludge.
Process applications and solutions to treat sludge can be:
Chemical Treatment
Biological Treatment
Thermal Treatment
Sludge can be recycled in a number of ways that are both environmentally beneficial and sustainable to the environment.
Various uses and benefits of sludge usage are listed below:
? It can help in producing biogas and electricity.
? Sludge contains nutrients that are useful to the plants. If used as landfill or soil conditioner, Sludge can improve the capacity of soils to hold water and air.
? The wet digested sludge can be used as a fertilizer for the crops.
Thus, it can be said that with the growing problem of water shortage and degradation of the environment, Wastewater Treatment and Sludge Treatment is a beneficial and sustainable choice for the future.
