[Magnetic Fe3O4Microparticles Conditioning-Pressure Electro-osmotic Dewatering (MPEOD) of Sewage Sludge].

ABSTRACT

For magnetic Fe3O4 microparticles conditioning--pressure electro-osmotic dewatering (MPEOD) process of activated sludge (AS), the effects of operating parameters (optimal dosage of Fe3O4, electric field duration, mechanical pressure and voltage) on the dewatering efficiency and energy consumption were investigated, and the optimal conditions were determined. Moreover, the properties of supernatant and sludge along MPEOD process were studied as well as the interaction force between the sludge biosolids. Taking the energy consumption into consideration, the results showed that the optimal dewatering effect for AS could be achieved with a magnetic Fe3O4 microparticles dosage of 0.15 g · g⁻¹, an electric field duration of 2 h, a mechanical pressure of 400-600 kPa and a voltage of 30-50 V. When MPEOD was conducted at 400 kPa and 50 V for 2 h, the sludge reduction rate reached 98.30%, the percentage of water removal was 99.34% and the moisture content of AS decreased from 99.18% to 44.46%. The corresponding consumption of energy was 0.013 3 kW · h · kg⁻¹. The coagulation mechanism played a slight role in the AS conditioning with magnetic Fe3O4 micro-particles. In fact, magnetic Fe3O4micro-particles could greatly decrease the acid-base interaction (WA) between AS biosolids, cause floc growth and enlarge pores in AS aggregates, which will be beneficial to AS dewatering. Compared to DLVO theory, the extended DLVO theory could accurately describe the aggregation and dispersion behavior of sludge particles.