title: Rheological characterisation of thermally-treated anaerobic digested sludge: impact of temperature and thermal history.
abstract: This study investigated the partially irreversible effect of thermal treatment on the rheology of digested sludge when it was subjected to temperature change between 20 °C and 80 °C and then cooled down to 20 °C. The yield stress, infinite viscosity and liquor viscosity of sludge were measured at 20 °C for different thermal histories and were compared to the evolution of the solubilised chemical oxygen demand (COD) of sludge liquor. The results showed that thermal history irreversibly affects sludge rheology as the yield stress of sludge which was heated to 80 °C then cooled down to 20 °C was 68% lower than the initial yield stress at 20 °C. This decrease was due to the irreversible solubilisation of solid matter during heating as underlined by soluble COD data which did not reach its original level after thermal treatment. Measured soluble COD of sludge which was heated and cooled down was much higher than the soluble COD of initial sludge. We found a proportionality of the increase of soluble COD with the decrease of the yield stress as well as increase of infinite viscosity.
authors.affiliation: Rheology and Material Processing Lab. (RMPC), Civil Environmental and Chemical Eng. Department, RMIT University, Victoria 3001, Australia.
authors.forename: Ehsan
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Farno
authors.affiliation: Irstea, UR TSCF, Domaine des Palaquins, F-03150 Montoldre, France.
authors.forename: Jean Christophe
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Baudez
authors.affiliation: Rheology and Material Processing Lab. (RMPC), Civil Environmental and Chemical Eng. Department, RMIT University, Victoria 3001, Australia.
authors.forename: Rajarathinam
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Parthasarathy
authors.affiliation: Rheology and Material Processing Lab. (RMPC), Civil Environmental and Chemical Eng. Department, RMIT University, Victoria 3001, Australia. Electronic address: nicky.eshtiaghi@rmit.edu.au.
authors.forename: Nicky
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Eshtiaghi
mesh_terms: D000693:Anaerobiosis; D006358:Hot Temperature; D012212:Rheology; D012722:Sewage / Q000737:chemistry*; D013997:Time Factors; D014783:Viscosity; D014865:Waste Disposal, Fluid / Q000379:methods
chemical_list: D012722:Sewage
keywords: Composition change; Digested sludge rheology; Infinite viscosity; Soluble COD; Yield stress