Treatment, Evaluation, Recycling and Use of Sewage Sludge
A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Waste and Recycling".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (1 May 2024) | Viewed by 3294
Special Issue Editors
Interests: water and wastewater engineering; water and wastewater treatment; wastewater management; water supply; sewage and drainage; environmental impact assessment; sewage sludge management; waste utilization; green concrete
Interests: water and wastewater engineering; water and wastewater treatment; wastewater management; water supply; sewage and drainage; environmental impact assessment; sewage sludge management; waste utilization; policy and regulation in the field of sanitary hydro-technics
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
We are pleased to invite you to this Special Issue of Sustainability entitled "Treatment, Evaluation, Recycling and Use of Sewage Sludge". Dr. Domagoj Nakić and Dr. Dražen Vouk are serving as Guest Editors for this issue.
Sewage sludge management is a current problem worldwide because of its increasing quantities and the presence of contaminants. Sludge management should meet all sustainability requirements: solutions must be socially acceptable and cost-effective, but at the same time, they must respect the requirements for efficient recycling of all by-products while ensuring safety for human health and the environment.
Sewage sludge management is critically important to prevent environmental pollution as the pollutants entering a wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) are concentrated in the sludge. Despite its potential as a resource and the fact that landfilling of sewage sludge is no longer an acceptable disposal option according to current guidelines in developed countries, it is still largely landfilled on the worldwide level.
Analyzing the different experiences and practices in the field of sludge management, apart from the basic logical principles, it is not possible to see a unique approach in the application of technologies for the treatment and use or disposal of sewage sludge. When defining the optimal solution for sludge disposal, it is extremely important to remember that different methods (solutions for rational sludge management) require specific sludge treatment procedures.
This Special Issue aims to gather different methods of processing, valorization, disposal, and/or use of sewage sludge at the world level, giving an overview of regulatory risks and restrictions. The goal is to encourage the scientific and professional community to adopt widely applicable guidelines in the field of defining optimal methods of sludge treatment and disposal, with a high probability of new scientific discoveries or technologies that will significantly affect the technological, ecological, and economic value of sludge management (discovery of new, more efficient, environmentally friendly, and cost-effective technological processes or improvements to existing technologies).
Considering the interdisciplinary nature of this field, a journal such as Sustainability is the ideal platform for achieving these goals, especially considering that sludge management should be sustainable both from the point of view of environmental protection and human health, as well as from the point of view of efficient and rational use of natural resources where sludge can replace a wide range of them.
In this Special Issue, original research articles and reviews are welcome. Research areas may include (but are not limited to) the following:
- Sewage sludge treatment methods;
- Different sewage sludge disposal routes;
- Sewage sludge characteristics in relation to its origin and applied treatment methods;
- Sewage sludge valorization;
- Possibilities for recycling and utilization of sewage sludge;
- Possibilities and limitations in thermal treatment of sewage sludge;
- Possibilities and limitations in the use of sewage sludge in agriculture;
- Policy and regulations regarding sewage sludge management;
- Environmental impact of sewage sludge;
- Methods and tools for assessing the environmental impact of sewage sludge;
- Case studies of comprehensive sewage sludge management solutions.
We look forward to receiving your contributions.
Dr. Domagoj Nakić
Dr. Dražen Vouk
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
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Keywords
- sewage sludge management
- sewage sludge treatment and disposal
- environmental impact
- cost analysis
- potential for recycling and use of sewage sludge
- policy and regulations
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