Energy Recovery from Wastewater Sludge – A Review of Appropriate Emerging and Established Technologies for the South African Industry

Abstract

The historical approach to sludge management in South Africa has been mostly to implement strategies and practices that fulfill legislative and regulatory requirements. Although Department of Water and Sanitation regulations recommend beneficial use, there are very few wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) that recover energy (and/or other valuable resources) from wastewater sludge. However, the electricity shortages in 20 08 exposed the risk to wastewater treatment operations posed by an unreliable power supply an d continuous increases in electricity prices, stimulating interest in technologies for recoveri ng energy from wastewater sludge. In response, the Water Research Commission (WRC) and its partners increase d research funding into technologies to recover energy from wastewater, to provide detailed information on such technologies and decision support tools that can assist municipalities to evaluate these technologies. This project was funded by the WRC as part of the ongoing research into recovering energy from wastewater sludge.

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