title: A novel acrylamide-free flocculant and its application for sludge dewatering.
abstract: In the present research, copolymers of methyl acrylate (MA) with anionic or cationic monomers were synthesized via emulsion polymerization, and used as sludge dewatering aids in wastewater treatment. The copolymerization of different stoichiometry of two monomers afforded a variety of water soluble copolymers with charge densities ranging from 40% to 80%, which align with the charge density of current flocculant products. These copolymers resemble current commercial products, but provide a greener solution by eliminating acrylamide monomer, which is a suspected carcinogen. High molecular weight copolymers were achieved by applying powder-like synthesis process with intrinsic viscosity of final products as high as 12.98 dl/g for anionic flocculant and 10.74 dl/g for cationic flocculant. The copolymers of methyl acrylate and [2-(Acryloyloxy)ethyl]trimethylammonium chloride (AETAC) with 55% charge density exhibited comparable performance in clay settling test, real water jar test, and sludge dewatering, when compared to AM-based commercial product in the real wastewater treatment application.
authors.affiliation: Water and Process Chemistry Lab, Global Research Center of General Electric, Shanghai 201203, China.
authors.forename: Lianghua
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Lu
authors.affiliation: Water and Process Chemistry Lab, Global Research Center of General Electric, Shanghai 201203, China. Electronic address: zhida.pan@ge.com.
authors.forename: Zhida
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Pan
authors.affiliation: Water and Process Chemistry Lab, Global Research Center of General Electric, Shanghai 201203, China.
authors.forename: Nan
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Hao
authors.affiliation: Water and Process Chemistry Lab, Global Research Center of General Electric, Shanghai 201203, China.
authors.forename: Wenqing
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Peng
mesh_terms: D000179:Acrylates / Q000737:chemistry*; D000180:Acrylic Resins / Q000737:chemistry*; D000838:Anions / Q000737:chemistry; D002412:Cations / Q000737:chemistry; D005427:Flocculation; D058105:Polymerization; D012722:Sewage / Q000737:chemistry*; D014865:Waste Disposal, Fluid / Q000379:methods*; D000099166:Polyacrylamides
chemical_list: D000179:Acrylates; D000180:Acrylic Resins; D000838:Anions; D002412:Cations; D012722:Sewage; D000099166:Polyacrylamides; C035956:methyl acrylate
keywords: Acrylamide-free; Flocculant; Poly (MA-co-AETAC); Poly(MA-co-AA); Sludge dewatering; Ultra-high molecular weight polymer