Transforming Sewage Sludge Into Green Energy

Posted by: YijunW

When people told me that sewage sludge can be transformed into green energy, I thought, “What are you talking about?” Yes, I get that they are both green and environmentally friendly. But I could never link wastewater management to green energy— It just sounds too good to be true. Then I started to look at how sewage sludge is treated. During the treatment process, the sludge is thickened by stirring to form larger and more rapidly settling aggregates. Then the sludge is dewatered, separating solids and liquids. However, how to handle of residual sludge from sewage treatment plants is a challenge to rural and metropolitan areas. Now, people solve the problem by utilizing the sludge to produce biogas through a process called thermal hydrolysis and anaerobic digestion. It will produce biogas without the olfactory nuisance. It is hygienic: it controls health risks and secures agricultural use. Sludge becomes our resources. It gives value to waste that previously possess threats to the Earth. To read more, please visit: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sewage_sludge_treatment#Treatment_processes https://www.veolia.com/en/solution/sewage-sludge-green-energy-biogas-wastewater https://extension.psu.edu/what-is-sewage-sludge-and-what-can-be-done-with-it