Influence of wastewater sludge treatment using combined peroxyacetic acid oxidation and inorganic coagulants re-flocculation on characteristics of extracellular polymeric substances (EPS)

Extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) are highly hydrated biopolymers and play important roles in bioflocculation, floc stability, and solid-water separation processes. Destroying EPS structure will result in sludge reduction and release of trapped water. In this study, the effects of combined process of peracetic acid (PAA) pre-oxidation and chemical re-flocculation on morphological properties and distribution and composition of EPS of the resultant sludge flocs were investigated in detail to gain insights into the mechanism involved in sludge treatment. It was found that sludge particles were effectively solubilized and protein-like substances were degraded into small molecules after PAA oxidation. A higher degradation of protein-like substances was observed at acid environments under PAA oxidation. Microscopic analysis revealed that no integral sludge floc was observed after oxidation with PAA at high doses. The floc was reconstructed with addition of inorganic coagulants (polyaluminium chloride (PACl) and ferric chloride (FeCl3)) and PACl performed better in flocculation due to its higher charge neutralization and bridging ability. Combined oxidative lysis and chemical re-flocculation provide a novel solution for sludge treatment.