Evaluation of electrokinetic removal of heavy metals from sewage sludge.
The presence of heavy metals is one of the main obstacles for agricultural use of million tonnes of dewatered sewage sludge produced in wastewater treatment plants. Electrokinetic (EK) treatment can be applied to remove heavy metals from sludge. The aim of this study was to increase the efficiency of electrokinetic removal of heavy metals from dewatered sewage sludge. EK experiments were carried out with and without pH adjustment in cathode chamber of acidified sewage sludge. The selective sequential extraction (SSE) was used to determine the fractionation of heavy metals in sewage sludge. The mobility of heavy metals in sludge significantly increased after its acidification at pH 2.7 and followed the order: Ni, Zn, Cu, As, Cr, Pb. Removal efficiencies of heavy metals in the experiment with acidified sewage sludge and pH adjustment at cathode chamber at 2.0 were: 95% for Zn, 96% for Cu, 90% for Ni, 68% for Cr, 31% for As and 19% for Pb. The concentrations of Zn, Cu, Ni, Cr and Pb after EK treatment were below the United States Environmental Protection Agency limits for biosolids applied to agricultural land, forest, public contact sites or reclamation sites.
School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, 50 Nanyang Avenue, Singapore 639798, Singapore.
Jing-Yuan
JY
Wang
Di-Song
DS
Zhang
Olena
O
Stabnikova
Joo-Hwa
JH
Tay
D005591:Chemical Fractionation / Q000379:methods; D004563:Electrochemistry / Q000379:methods*; D006863:Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; D007700:Kinetics; D019216:Metals, Heavy / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D009995:Osmosis; D012722:Sewage / Q000737:chemistry*; D014835:Volatilization
D019216:Metals, Heavy; D012722:Sewage