Sludge disintegration using UV assisted Sono-Fenton process

In this study, the effects of combination of ultrasonic process with UV light and both classical Fenton (CFP) and modified Fenton (MFP) processes on disintegration of waste sludge were investigated. Fe²⁺ and Fe⁰ dosage, hydrogen peroxide dosage, reaction time, pH, and different UV lamps were optimized to achieve a high degree of disintegration (DD). In addition, kinetic study and toxicity analysis were performed under optimum conditions for all processes. For CFP, the best DD 22.85% was found with optimum pH 3, reaction time 60 min, 7 g/kg TS Fe²⁺, 35 g/kg TS H₂O₂ doses, and UV-C light, while this value increased to 37.83% with ultrasound (US) application. For MFP; the best DD was achieved as 25.84% with optimum pH 3, reaction time 60 min, 5 g/kg TS Fe⁰, 25 g/kg TS H₂O₂ doses, and UV-C light; however, it rose to 42.32% in the presence of US. The use of US in all processes increased the germination percentage that expresses the sludge toxicity, up to 100%. In the kinetic study, it was found that all processes are in compliance with zeroth-order kinetics. It was concluded with this study that US has an important synergistic effect on Fenton applications and contributes to sludge disintegration.