The odour of digested sewage sludge--determination and its abatement by air stripping

This paper describes a project to investigate the odour of sewage sludge after anaerobic digestion. The impact of air stripping on the odour of liquid sludge and on the quality of the dewatered product was evaluated at a full-scale sludge treatment installation. A continuous and a batch air-stripping mode were tested. Odour samples were collected during air stripping from the liquid sludge and from the biosolids surface during long term storage. The biosolids were also analysed for hedonic tone and for their potential odour expressed as an odour unit per unit mass. The odour emission profiles for continuous and batch air stripping demonstrated a reduction in the overall (time weighted) emissions during a 24 hr-period compared with emissions from the quiescent liquid storage tank. The averaged specific odour emission rate (Esp) of the biosolids derived from the continuous process was only 13% of the Esp of the biosolids derived from unaerated liquid sludge during the first month of storage. The results of the total potential odour and the hedonic tone of the biosolids underpin the beneficial effects of the air stripping. Odour dispersion modelling showed a noticeable reduction in overall odour impact from the sludge centre when air stripping was applied. The reduction was primarily associated with the reduced odour from stockpiled biosolids. The continuous air-stripping mode appeared to provide the greatest benefits in terms of odour impact from site operations.