TY - JOUR
T1 - Investigation of Incineration Characteristics of Waste Water Treatment Plant Sludge
AU - Mcclennen, W. H.
AU - Lighty, J. S.
AU - Summit, G. D.
AU - Gallagher, B.
AU - Hillary, J. M.
N1 - Incineration is an important disposal method for the large volumes of sludge produced by industrial and municipal waste water treatment. This paper describes analytical methods developed for examining industrial sludge incineration processes and the dependence of potential products of incomplete combustion (PICs) on the sludge composition.
PY - 1994/11/1
Y1 - 1994/11/1
N2 - Incineration is an important disposal method for the large volumes of sludge produced by industrial and municipal waste water treatment. This paper describes analytical methods developed for examining industrial sludge incineration processes and the dependence of potential products of incomplete combustion (PICs) on the sludge composition. A surrogate sludge was developed from peat, calcium and iron salts, and a waste water-treatment polymer suspension to simulate incineration characteristics of the real sludge while allowing for controlled variation of its composition. Experiments were conducted under both oxidative and pyrolysis conditions, in reactor systems ranging from microscale up to bench scale with on-line analytical instrumentation. The organic products emitted from the surrogate were quite similar to those of the sludge, with the exception of products from certain synthetic polymers. Significant quantities of aromatic hydrocarbons were emitted from the combustion of the cellulosic and lignin fractions of the material even without the presence of those specific compounds in the original waste. The presence of the metal salts and the additional water they retained significantly affected the peak hydrocarbon concentration by delaying the onset of emissions and lengthening their duration. The amount of polystyrene and polymethylmethacrylate in the real sludge made their decomposition products important potential PICs, which would need further combustion.
AB - Incineration is an important disposal method for the large volumes of sludge produced by industrial and municipal waste water treatment. This paper describes analytical methods developed for examining industrial sludge incineration processes and the dependence of potential products of incomplete combustion (PICs) on the sludge composition. A surrogate sludge was developed from peat, calcium and iron salts, and a waste water-treatment polymer suspension to simulate incineration characteristics of the real sludge while allowing for controlled variation of its composition. Experiments were conducted under both oxidative and pyrolysis conditions, in reactor systems ranging from microscale up to bench scale with on-line analytical instrumentation. The organic products emitted from the surrogate were quite similar to those of the sludge, with the exception of products from certain synthetic polymers. Significant quantities of aromatic hydrocarbons were emitted from the combustion of the cellulosic and lignin fractions of the material even without the presence of those specific compounds in the original waste. The presence of the metal salts and the additional water they retained significantly affected the peak hydrocarbon concentration by delaying the onset of emissions and lengthening their duration. The amount of polystyrene and polymethylmethacrylate in the real sludge made their decomposition products important potential PICs, which would need further combustion.
KW - fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR)
KW - gas chromatography
KW - incineration
KW - Industrial sludge analysis
KW - mass spectrometry
KW - thermogravimetry
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=0005161373&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00102209408951889
U2 - 10.1080/00102209408951889
DO - 10.1080/00102209408951889
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:0005161373
SN - 0010-2202
VL - 101
SP - 483
EP - 503
JO - Combustion Science and Technology
JF - Combustion Science and Technology
IS - 1-6
ER -