ARTICLE IN PRESS

Renewable Energy 32 (2007) 16611675

www.elsevier.com/locate/renene

Solar drying in sludge management in Turkey

Nezih Kamil Salihoglu, Vedat Pinarli, Guray Salihoglu
Faculty of Engineering & Architecture, Environmental Engineering Department, Uludag University,
16059, Bursa, Turkey
Received 30 April 2006; accepted 2 August 2006
Available online 17 November 2006

Abstract

Two main wastewater treatment plants in Bursa city in Turkey will start to operate and produce at
least 27,000 tons of dry solids per year by the end of 2006. The purpose of this study was to
investigate an economical solution to the sludge management problem that Bursa city would
encounter. The general trend in Turkey is mechanical dewatering to obtain a dry solid (DS) content
of 20%, and liming the mechanically dewatered sludge to reach the legal landlling requirement,
35% DS content. This study recommends limited liming & solar drying as an alternative to only-
liming the mechanically dewatered sludge. Open and covered solar sludge drying plants were
constructed in pilot scale for experimental purposes. Dry solids and climatic conditions were
constantly measured. Faecal coliform reduction was also monitored. The specially designed covered
solar drying plant proved to be more efcient than the open plant in terms of drying and faecal
coliform reduction. It was found that, if the limited liming & solar drying method was applied after
mechanical dewatering instead of only-liming method, the total amount of the sludge to be disposed
would be reduced by approximately 40%. This would lead to a reduction in the transportation,
handling, and landlling costs. The covered drying system would amortize itself in 4 years.
r 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Sludge management; Solar drying; Greenhouse; Net present value

1. Introduction

Sludge disposal is an indispensable part of waste management. Sludge originates as an

unavoidable waste product from the treatment process of wastewater. Due to the large
Corresponding author. Tel.: +90 224 4428177; fax: +90 224 4429148.
E-mail addresses: nkamils@uludag.edu.tr (N. Kamil Salihoglu), pinarli@uludag.edu.tr (V. Pinarli),
gurays@uludag.edu.tr (G. Salihoglu).

0960-1481/$ - see front matter r 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.renene.2006.08.001
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1662 N. Kamil Salihoglu et al. / Renewable Energy 32 (2007) 16611675

production, sludge is economically and environmentally an unwanted burden. In recent

years, sludge management has become one of the most important issues in waste
management owing to the increase in sludge output with the rapid urbanization
and the reinforcement of the regulations on its disposal. Obviously, the quantities of
sludge requiring disposal would continuously increase in EU Member and Candidate
States with the implementation of the EC Directive [1] concerning wastewater treatment.
The number of households connected to sewers would rise and the level of treatment would
increase.
Currently the most common form of sludge disposal is sanitary landlling, which
requires sludge to be dewatered to 35% of solids [2]. By means of mechanical processes,
sludge containing water can only be dewatered to a certain extent. Beyond this level,
moisture must be expelled by means of thermal processes, which involve high invest-
ment costs.
In this study, solar drying was applied as an economical and efcient further-dewatering
and drying method. Mechanically dewatered sludge generated in municipal wastewater
treatment plants of Bursa, Turkey was limitedly limed and solar dried at specially designed
paved drying beds to obtain a decreased volume and increased solids fraction appropriate
for safe landlling. The study presented is among the further-dewatering and drying
choices of the city of Bursa, and can make an example for the cities receiving medium or
high solar radiation.

1.1. Sludge management in Turkey

Turkey, with a population around 71 million people, has approximately 1911

municipalities with 1421 served with sewer systems [3]. According to the data of 2004,
2.77 billion m3 of wastewater was discharged from the sewer system of which 60% is
treated at the wastewater treatment plants [3]. Fig. 1 shows the relative use of the methods
for treatment of Turkish wastewaters in 2004. Thirty seven percent of the total population
was served with wastewater treatment service in 2004. The municipal wastewater treatment
plants summed up to 165 in 2004, in Turkey.
The population served with wastewater treatment plants is estimated to rise up to
6080% by the year 2020, during the EU integration process of Turkey. As a result, the
production of municipal sludge from the Turkish wastewater treatment plants is estimated
to increase up to more than 1 million tons DS per year, in 2020. This value was estimated

Further
13%

Physical
Biological
28%
59%

Fig. 1. The relative use of methods for treatment of wastewaters in 2004, in Turkey.
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N. Kamil Salihoglu et al. / Renewable Energy 32 (2007) 16611675 1663

by using the value of 60 g of dry solids (capital. day 1) obtained from the average data of
existing facilities in the EU [4].
Centrifuging, lter presses, and especially belt presses are the most commonly used
sludge dewatering methods, in Turkey. Sludge has a very limited use as fertilizer in
agriculture. The general trend is liming the sludge after mechanical treatment and dumping
or sanitary landlling.
The Ministry of Environment and Forestry issues the statutory order governing the use
and applications of waste, including sludge, in Turkey. The Ministry published a circular
allowing the sewage sludge to be incinerated at cement factories. Considering the emission
problem and other environmental factors that may occur, limited incineration studies have
been conducted for industrial sludge with testing purposes. Only four cement factories
have licenses to incinerate sludge. Careful steps are taken in this eld since the
incorporation of the sludge to the fuel of cement kiln may affect the quality of the cement.

1.2. Sludge management in Bursa City

The city of Bursa is located in the southeast of the Marmara Sea, in northwestern
Turkey. The geographic coordinates of Bursa City are 40.201N, 29.081E. Having a
population of 2 125 140 according to 2000 census, Bursa City is considered as the 4th
largest city of Turkey. The elevation from sea level is 100 m. The average annual
precipitation is 706 mm, according to the 52-years monitoring. The yearly average relative
humidity in the city is approximately 69%. Long-term average sunshine duration for
the Marmara Region, where Bursa is located, 2409 h year 1, and the annual total solar
radiation is 1168 kWh m 2 [5]. Fruit agriculture and especially automotive and
textile industries represent the main activities of the city. The city is also an important
tourism area.
The city has a short history of wastewater and sludge management, although it has been
facing industrialization since 1950s. Most of the industrial and domestic wastewater of
Bursa city has been discharged to the Nilufer Stream, the main river owing in the city
boundaries and connecting to the Marmara Sea. A map of Nilufer Stream and watershed
is displayed in Fig. 2. As a result of this, a serious water pollution problem occurred. In
order to reduce the damage caused by uncontrolled wastewater discharges to the Nilufer
Stream, an important management program has led to the installation of several
wastewater treatment plants. Bursa Wastewater Treatment Plants (WWTPs) were planned
for the target year of 2030. WWTPs that could treat the wastewaters to meet the discharge
criteria dened by the Turkish and EU regulations are being constructed at the east and
west of the city. The activated sludge system-based (Biological Nutrient RemovalBNR)
plants will start to operate by the end of 2006. The design parameters and discharge criteria
of the WWTPs are given in Tables 1 and 2, respectively [6].
The establishment of the WWTPs will cause a huge and costly sludge disposal problem.
The sludge that would be generated from the East and West WWTPs is estimated to sum
up to approximately 75 tons DS day 1. This sludge will be belt thickened and belt pressed
to obtain a dry solids (DS) content of 20%. However, the DS content of the sludge should
be increased to 35% for sanitary landlling purposes, according to legal and operational
requirements. Therefore mechanical dewatering is planned to be followed by lime
treatment, not only to increase the DS content but also effectively disinfect the sludge.
0.77 tons lime ton DS 1 will be added over the sludge of 20% DS to obtain 35% DS target.
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1664 N. Kamil Salihoglu et al. / Renewable Energy 32 (2007) 16611675

Fig. 2. A map of Nilufer stream and watershed in Bursa city, Turkey.

Table 1
Design parameters for the east and west wastewater treatment plants (WWTP)

East WWTP West WWTP

Parameters Unit (20062017) (20062030) (20062017) (20062030)

3 1
Dry weather ow m day 240,000 320,000 87,500 175,000
1
BOD5 kg day 64,000 85,300 23,500 47,000
1
SS kg day 64,000 85,300 23,500 47,000
1
Ammonia (as N) kg day 10,800 14,400 3938 7875
1
Phosphorus (as P) kg day 2640 3520 963 1925

Table 2
Discharge criteria for the east and west waste water treatment plants

Discharge parameters Concentration (mg l 1)

Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD5) 25a

Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) 125a
Suspended Solids 35a
Total Nitrogen (as N ) 10a
Total Phosphorus (as P) 3
a
EC Directive of 91/271/EEC.
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After lime treatment, the mass of the sludge will increase to 438 tons sludge/day. This
amount is planned to be landlled at the sanitary landll site of Bursa. The sanitary landll
of Bursa currently receives 12001500 tons/day of waste (excluding sludge) and has a total
capacity of 20 million m3. The addition of municipal sludge would reduce the life of the
landll.
In the concept of this study, limited liming & solar drying was applied to the
mechanically dewatered sludge. Open and covered solar drying plants were built for
experimental purposes. It was found that solar drying in the covered plant led to a
considerable increase in the DS content of the sludge and decreased the need for liming to
obtain 35% DS content. Reduction of the lime resulted in a decreased amount of sludge to
be transported to the landll site. Consequently, solar drying would help to avoid lime
costs, and decrease the transportation and landlling costs for the sludge disposal.
The results of this study showed that, limited liming & solar drying in covered drying
beds could be an effective further-dewatering and drying alternative for the wastewater
treatment plants in cities receiving high solar radiation.

2. Materials and methods

2.1. Materials

Since the municipal wastewater treatment plants are at construction stage, a

representative sludge sample was used for the experiments. The sludge used was obtained
from a municipal BNR plant with similar characteristics to the one being constructed. The
capacity of the BNR plant was 64 000 m3/day. Limited liming & solar drying was applied
to the sludge that had been stabilized with extended aeration and dewatered at the belt
press to obtain a dry solids ratio of 20%.

2.2. Experimental design

The experimental study was carried out at the pilot drying plants, located at the region
of East WWTP, in Bursa. Covered and open sludge drying plants were constructed with
oor dimensions of 2  5 m to conduct the experiments. The elevation of the pilot plants
from the sea level was 87 m. The covered and open sludge drying plants were operated
according to the conceptual model shown in Fig. 3. The sludge was spread out on the
oors of the covered and open sludge drying plants in 25 cm-layers.

2.2.1. The covered sludge drying plant

The covered sludge drying plant was constructed as a tunnel type greenhouse with a roof
height of 2.5 m. It was completely enclosed by two-wall, 10 mm thick transparent
polycarbonate sheet with light transmittance of 80%. The plant was constructed with the
main principle of increasing the difference between the sludge relative vapor pressure and
indoor relative vapor pressure to obtain effective drying. The indoor air accumulated in the
plant during the day is directed to the rock bed for energy conservation. Its schematic view
is shown in Fig. 4. The design components of the system are as follows:
Aeration of the surface of the sludge: An indoor ventilator was mounted to the roof. The
saturated layer developed on the surface of the sludge was removed with the turbulent air
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WWTP
(BNR)

Belt Press

Sludge

Covered Open
Solar Drying Bed Solar Drying Bed

Surface Sludge Surface Surface Sludge Surface

Aeration Heating Renewal Renewal Heating Aeration

Bottom
Heating
Fan
Greenhouse Mixing Mixing Wind

Ventilator
Solar Solar
Radiation Radiation

Fig. 3. Conceptual model for the experimental design.

Polycarbonate sheet
Ventilator

Outdoor Air Temperature,

Relative Humidity, Solar
Radiation Sensor Indoor Air Temperature Fan
and Relative Humidity
Solar Sensor
Door
Collector
Sludge
Concrete Fan
Temperature
Platform Sensor Sludge

Ground

Rock - Bed Insulation Layer

Perforated Pipe Concrete

Fig. 4. Schematic view of the covered solar drying plant.

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provided by the ventilator. The saturated air accumulated in the plant was discharged with
two air fans mounted above the doors of the plant, and air renewal was provided.
Sludge heating: The greenhouse effect obtained in the plant provided effective usage of
the solar energy. The impermeable concrete oor area of 10 m2 of the plant was heated
with the hot water pipes connected to two at plate solar collectors. A rock-bed heat
storage unit of 50 cm depth was constructed under the concrete oor. The rock-bed was
composed of 1648 mm-diameter stones. The hot and saturated indoor air was recycled to
the rock bed with 4 axial fans of 100 mm diameter, 90 m3/h airow rate, and of 12 W power
consumption. The bottom and sidewalls of the rock-bed were insulated with an
impermeable concrete oor and heat insulation material.
Surface renewal: The sludge was mixed manually twice a day for sludge renewal
purposes.

2.2.2. The open sludge drying plant

An impermeable concrete oor is constructed for the open sludge drying plant. Surface
aeration was supplied with the wind effect, and the sludge was heated by direct exposure to
the solar radiation. Surface renewal for the sludge was provided with manual mixing twice
a day.

2.2.3. Tests and the equipment

During the experiments, changes in the dry solids and in the climatic conditions were
constantly measured and documented. Meteorological data were collected with an onsite
meteorological station. The results such as: hourly mean data of rainfall (1.0% at up to
20 mm), solar radiation (10 W m 2 or 75%), temperature (70.7 1C at +25 1C), relative
humidity (73% RH over the range of 01 to +50 1C) and wind speed/direction (70.5 for
o17, 73% for 17 to 30 m s 1) were gathered by Onset Computer HOBO weather station
and microstation data loggers. Total DS content were analyzed three times a week
according to the Standard Methods [7]. Faecal coliform counts were performed according
to the most probable number method given by Standard Methods. Brilliant green bile
broth was used as the growth medium. The parameters measured and the methods used
within the experimental process are given in Table 3.

3. Results and discussion

The results of the previous studies have indicated that sludge from wastewater treatment
plants has greater than 95% moisture content. Mechanical dewatering can remove the
water within the sludge only to a certain extent, which is usually referred as to 2025% DS
content. Mechanical dewatering does not reduce pathogens as well. Despite the fact that it
provides a more efcient drying than the mechanical dewatering, thermal drying
necessitates high operation costs and energy requirement [8]. Hence utilizing solar energy
appears as a more economical, efcient, and less complex choice than the other dewatering
systems.
Solar energy was traditionally used for food and crop drying [9,10]. Kurklu et al. [11]
carried out greenhouse energy conservation experiments in a tunnel-type greenhouse
equipped with an underground rock-bed, and reported that the rock-bed system enabled to
hold the air temperature difference at 10 1C between inside and outside of the greenhouse
at night. Several researchers studied solar sludge drying [8,12,13]. Solar energy is reported
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Table 3
The parameters measured and the methods used within the experimental process

Parameter Method Instrument

pH pH Electrode WTW
Total Solids (TS) Gravimetric (2540 Ga) Nuve drying oven (F400)
Volatile Solids (VS) Gravimetric (2540 Ga) LINDBERG/BLUE oven
Fecal Coliform Direct Method, Multiple Tube Nuve LD 501
Fermantation (9221 E2a)
Indoor and Outdoor Continuous Monitoring Onset Computer HOBO H21 data
Conditions loggers and sensors
(Hourly mean)
Heavy Metals Inductively Coupled Plasma/Mass ICP-OES Varian Vista MP-X
Spectrometry (3125a)
TOC High-Temperature Combustion Shimadzu TOC 5000A
Method (5310 Ba)
a
Method number in standard methods.

Table 4
Characteristics of the mechanically dewatered sludge

Parameter Mean7standard errors

PH 7.670.8
Total Solids (TS), % 20.671.8
Volatile Solids in TS, % 60.472.1
1
Total Organic Carbon mg kg 169723
Total Nitrogen (%) 5.3872.13
Total Phosporus (%) 2.770.6
Arsenic (As) (mg kg 1) 44.975.7
Cadmium (Cd) (mg kg 1) 1.370.4
Chromium(Cr) (mg kg 1) 321715
Copper (Cu) (mg kg 1) 388718
Iron (Fe) (mg kg 1) 103757675
Manganese (Mn) (mg kg1) 16578
Nickel (Ni) (mg kg 1) 128712
Lead (Pb) (mg kg 1) 29.273.6
Zinc (Zn) (mg kg 1) 541773

to be used as either the sole source of the required heat or as a supplemental source in
greenhouse [14].
Limited liming & solar drying was applied as an effective and economical dewatering
alternative to only-liming of the mechanically dewatered sludge, in this study. The physical
and chemical characteristics of the mechanically dewatered sludge are given in Table 4.
Because natural air drying is incomplete in some periods in the winter months, a covered
drying plant was developed by additional solar collectors, thus reducing not only the nal
moisture content of the sludge but also reducing the pathogen content. The feasibility of
the pilot plants were evaluated according to the dry solids content and pathogen removal
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N. Kamil Salihoglu et al. / Renewable Energy 32 (2007) 16611675 1669

achieved as well as the economical considerations. Several results of the study are
submitted as follows.

3.1. Changes in the dry solids content

The dry solids content of the sludge was measured constantly during the solar drying
process in the covered and the open sludge drying plants both in the summer and winter
periods. Fig. 5 shows the indoor and outdoor dry solids variations. Drying in the covered
plant resulted in higher levels of dry solids content than in the open system both in the
summer and winter periods. Starting at 20%, the mechanically dewatered sludge reached
the dry solids concentration of 35%, the legal landlling requirement, within a period of 15
days in the covered system in summer, and in 30 days in winter. During the drying process
in the covered system the amount of the sludge was reduced from 255 to 145 kg m 2. Fig. 6
shows the picture of the dried sludge. However, there is not a guarantee to achieve the 35%
dry solids concentration in a denite time period in the open system. The rainfall would
damage the drying anytime.
The covered system provided the greenhouse effect in a controlled volume and allowed
the indoor sludge temperature to be 1172 1C higher than the outdoor temperature. The
indoor air heated by the greenhouse effect during the daylight was directed to the rock bed
of the plant. Due to the heated rock bed, the sludge lost just a small portion of its
temperature although the outdoor temperature decreased. However, 12 h before the sun
rise, a dewing occurred because of the difference between the indoor and outdoor humidity
and temperature. It was seen that the air renewal fans of the designed covered drying plant
were insufcient to evacuate the saturated air accumulated in the plant. If the renewal fans

Fig. 5. Variations in the dry solids content of the sludge in the covered and open sludge drying plants during
summer and winter periods.
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1670 N. Kamil Salihoglu et al. / Renewable Energy 32 (2007) 16611675

Fig. 6. The picture of the sludge dried in the covered sludge drying plant (90% DS).

were updated to function according to the difference between indoor and outdoor
humidity, the dewing problem would not occur, and better drying results could be
achieved.
In the open drying system, the sludge was exposed to all of the outdoor environmental
conditions. For example rainfall directly affected the performance of the system, and
decreased the dry solids content that had been achieved up to that time. Drying stopped
when the temperature and wind speed were low, and the relative humidity was high.
A linear relationship (correlations were signicant at po0.01) was found between the
cumulative solar radiation and the DS content during the solar drying process at the
covered and open sludge drying plants in spring, summer, winter, and autumn seasons.
Fig. 7 shows the relationship between the cumulative solar radiation and the DS content at
the covered plant. It was observed that at least a cumulative solar radiation value of
40,000 W m 2 is necessary to increase the DS ratio of sludge from 20% to 35% in all
seasons.

3.2. Pathogen removal

A greater pathogen reduction was obtained within the covered sludge drying system
than the open system. Fig. 8a and b show the faecal coliform reduction obtained during the
solar drying in the covered and open plants, in summer period. The coliform content of the
mechanically dewatered sludge was 107 at the beginning. At the end of the drying period of
45 days the coliform content decreased to below 2  106 CFU/g DS in summer, which is the
limit value of the EPA [15] Class B pathogen requirement. This value ensures that
pathogens have been reduced to levels that are unlikely to pose a threat to public health
and environment under the specic use conditions. To obtain the EPA Class A pathogen
requirement of 1000 CFU g 1 DS in a shorter time, a limited amount of lime was added to
the mechanically dewatered sludge before solar drying. The level of pathogenic organisms
in the Class A biosolids does not pose a risk of infectious disease transmission through
casual contact or ingestion [15]. As can be seen in Fig. 8d, the coliform content decreased
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N. Kamil Salihoglu et al. / Renewable Energy 32 (2007) 16611675 1671

40
SPRING WINTER
y = 19.659 + 0.0004x y = 20.769 + 0.0003x
r = 0.970 r = 0.962
35
DRY SOLIDS (%)

30

25

AUTUMN SUMMER
y = 22.999 + 0.0003x y = 26.942 + 0.00042x
r = 0.971 r = 0.88964
35
DRY SOLIDS (%)

30

25

20
0 10000 20000 30000 40000 50000 0 10000 20000 30000 40000 50000
CUMULATIVE SOLAR RADIATION (W/m2)

Fig. 7. The relationship between cumulative solar radiation and dry solids content during the solar drying process
at the covered drying plant.

below 1000 CFU g 1 DS in only 5 days with the lime addition of 15% (of the DS) before
solar drying in the covered system. The time to reach the 35% DS content thereby
decreased from 15 to 10 days, in summer.
As it can be seen in 8a and 8c, rainfall is an adverse factor in the faecal coliform
reduction. It increased the moisture content of the sludge and hindered a constant coliform
reduction. However, a constant coliform reduction was observed in the covered system.
When the moisture content of the sludge was below 50%, the coliform reduction speed
increased in the covered system. Similarly Liang et al. [16] reported 50% moisture content
as the minimal requirement for rapid increase in microbial activity in sludge.

3.3. Financial evaluation

A limited amount of lime was added to the sludge before drying in the covered system to
obtain a safe pathogen reduction in a short period of time. The lime needed was only 15%
of the dry solids content of the sludge, while the lime needed would be 77% without solar
drying. Fig. 9 shows the nancial comparison between the only-liming method and the
limited liming & solar drying method, and the net present value (NPV) of the solar drying
in the covered system.
When the sludge is treated with 15% lime and solar dried in the covered system, its
volume would decrease and a safe pathogen reduction would be achieved. The decrease in
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1672 N. Kamil Salihoglu et al. / Renewable Energy 32 (2007) 16611675

100 (a) (b) 13

Dried Sludge In the Open Plant Dried Sludge In the Covered Plant
90 12
11

Faecal Col., Log CFU.g-1.DS-1

80
Sludge Temperature, C and

10
70
Moisture Content, %

and Rainall,cm
60 8
7
50
6
40 5
30 4
3
20
2
10 1
0 0
1 7 13 19 25 31 37 43 49 55 1 7 13 19 25 31 37 43 49 55
Days
Faecal Coliform Rainfall Moisture Content Sludge Temperature

100 (c) Lime Added (15% of Dry Solids) and (d) Lime Added (15% of Dry Solids) and 15
Dried Sludge In the Open Plant Dried Sludge In the Covered Plant 14
90
13

Faecal Col., Log CFU.g-1.DS-1

80 12
Sludge Temperature, C and

11
Moisture Content, %

70
10
60 9

and pH
8
50
7
40 6
5
30
1000 CFU.g-1 DS 4
20 3
2
10
1
0 0
1 5 9 13 17 21 25 29 33 37 41 45 49 53 1 5 9 13 17 21 25 29 33 37 41 45 49 53
Days
Faecal Coliform Moisture Content Sludge Temperature pH

Fig. 8. Relationship between the faecal coliform and moisture content of the sludge during the solar drying in
open and covered sludge drying plants, in summer period.

the sludge volume would result in several advantages such as decreased transportation, and
landlling cost, when compared to the only-lime treatment method. The life of the landll
site would be positively affected from the decrease in the sludge volume.
The net present values of the two systems, shown in Fig. 9, were calculated using 4% as
the interest rate (discount) and targeting the year 2017. Accordingly the investment for the
covered solar drying system would amortize itself in 4 years, and the limited liming & solar
drying method would result in a lower cost than the only-liming method subsequently.
Dating from the year 2010, approximately 13 million Euros would be saved up in 7 years
by choosing the covered limited liming & solar drying method instead of the only-liming
method. Additionally 78,000 tons of lime would also be saved up.
The NPV calculations were based on transportation cost, lime cost, capital expenditure
for the covered solar drying plant, and operation costs of the recommended covered solar
drying system. The costs that NPV calculations were based can be found in Table 5.
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N. Kamil Salihoglu et al. / Renewable Energy 32 (2007) 16611675 1673

50 200
45 180

SLUDGE, 1000 Tons. Year-1

40 160
Amortisation Year
NPV, Million EURO

35 140
30 120
25 100
20 80
15 60
10 40
5 20
0 0
2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017
YEARS
Sludge (Lime 77% of DS) Sludge (Lime 15% of DS + Solar Drying)
NPV (Lime 15% of DS + Solar Drying) NPV (Lime 77% of DS)

Fig. 9. Net present values for the two methods: limited liming & solar drying method and only-liming method.

Table 5
The basis for net present value calculations

Item Costa

Lime 75 Euro Ton 1

Transportation from the west waste water treatment plant to landll 4 Euro Ton 1 Sludge
Transportation from the east waste water treatment plant to landll 8 Euro Ton 1 Sludge
Landlling cost 20 Euro Ton 1 Sludge
Item Amount
1
Lime for solar drying 0. 15 Ton Lime Ton Dry Solids
1
Lime for the proposed system 0. 77 Ton Lime Ton Dry Solids
a
The costs were calculated considering the real practical values applied in Bursa and Turkey.

4. Conclusion

This study recommends the application of the limited liming & solar drying method
instead of the only-liming method to the mechanically dewatered sludge of Bursa city, in
Turkey. When the limited liming & solar drying method was applied to the mechanically
dewatered BNR sludge of 20% DS content, the legal landlling requirement of 35% DS
content and the EPA Class A pathogen reduction requirement were achieved in 10 days in
summer, and in 20 days in winter. The achieved high volume reduction of approximately
40% by solar drying would lead to a reduction of the transportation, handling, and
landlling costs. The high dry solids content and reduced pathogens of the end-product
would allow different sludge disposal options.
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The results of the study showed that the covered sludge drying plant was more
advantageous than the open sludge drying plant both in summer and winter periods. While
the open sludge drying plant received rain, which hindered the drying of the sludge and
pathogen reduction, the covered drying plant used solar energy effectively to dry the sludge
and allowed pathogen reduction. The covered plant also functioned as an area for
temporarily storing the dried sludge.
The covered drying system that is recommended in this study would bring nancial
advantages when compared to the application of the only-liming method, which the
decision makers are planning to apply. If applied as an alternative to the only-liming
method, the covered drying system would amortize itself in 4 years, and starting from that
date it would help to save at least 13 million Euros in 7 years.
The covered solar drying system can be applied in cities receiving high solar radiation.
The design of the system has some improvement possibilities in the future. It provides
regulated indoor conditions for controlling emission, odor, and vector attraction
problems. Bio-lters can be used to treat the indoor air and odor. If the system is
controlled with Programmable Logic Controller (PLC) regarding the control of the indoor
temperature and humidity, lower energy costs and higher drying performance can be
obtained. For example, if the indoor air is automatically discharged more rapidly at the
high-humid periods or if an additional energy supply is automatically used when the
temperature decreased, the performance of the system would increase. Natural ventilation
of the covered drying plant would increase the performance of the system when the wind
speed is continuous.
Similar solar drying plants can also be used as a temporary storing unit by small and
medium facilities, along with their further dewatering-drying function. These plants can
also be transformed to composting units considering their constructional characteristics.
Consequently, the covered drying plants can serve as multi-purpose units that use
renewable energy, in making sludge disposal choices.

Acknowledgement

The authors would like to thank to Bursa Water and Sewage Administration (BUSKI)
for supporting this project.

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