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61,005 resultsShowing papers similar to Sewage Sludge Quality and Management for Circular Economy Opportunities in Lombardy
ClearWastewater and sludge valorisation: a novel approach for treatment and resource recovery to achieve circular economy concept
This review highlights novel approaches for wastewater and sludge valorisation within a circular economy framework, focusing on recovering value-added products including biopolymers, nutrients, and energy to achieve sustainable development goals and combat water scarcity.
The presence of microplastics in waste sludges
This Croatian review examines the presence of microplastics in sewage sludge from wastewater treatment plants and their pathways into terrestrial and aquatic environments. The authors discuss alternative sustainable sludge management approaches aligned with circular economy principles.
Co-Management of Sewage Sludge and Other Organic Wastes: A Scandinavian Case Study
This review analyzes sewage sludge management in Scandinavian countries with a focus on resource recovery through co-digestion with other organic municipal wastes. Researchers found that anaerobic digestion is the dominant treatment approach and that co-management strategies can improve energy yields and nutrient recovery in a circular economy framework.
Wastewater Valorization: Practice around the World at Pilot- and Full-Scale
This review summarizes pilot- and full-scale wastewater valorization practices globally, focusing on how water resource recovery facilities recover nutrients, energy, and bio-based materials from sewage and sludge to contribute to a circular economy. The authors identify effective technological strategies that are being implemented or scaled up worldwide.
A systematic overview of current advancements for chemical, material, and energy production using sewage sludge for industrial ecology and sustainability transition
This review examines current advances in recovering chemicals, materials, and energy from sewage sludge, identifying opportunities to convert this waste stream into valuable products while addressing microplastic and contaminant concerns that complicate sludge reuse.
Circular Economy in Wastewater Treatment Plant—Water, Energy and Raw Materials Recovery
This review proposes a conceptual framework for future wastewater treatment plants operating as resource recovery facilities within a circular economy, focusing on technologies for recovering water, energy, and raw materials including nutrients and biopolymers.
What sewage sludge is and conflicts in Swedish circular economy policymaking
This study analyzes policy conflicts in Sweden around using sewage sludge as agricultural fertilizer within circular economy frameworks, finding that competing framings of sludge as either a valuable nutrient resource or a toxic pollutant (due to microplastics and PFAS) create regulatory deadlock.
Biorefinery of Sewage Sludge: Overview of Possible Value-Added Products and Applicable Process Technologies
This review examined biorefinery approaches for sewage sludge, evaluating value-added products and applicable process technologies as sustainable alternatives to traditional disposal methods like landfill and incineration.
Microplastics in Wastewater Sludges : Extraction, Occurrence and Implications for the Circular Economy
This thesis examines microplastic extraction methods, occurrence levels, and circular economy implications for wastewater treatment sludges, including both municipal sewage sludge and industrial sludges from pulp and paper processing.
Microplastics removal from a primary settler tank in a wastewater treatment plant and estimations of contamination onto European agricultural land via sewage sludge recycling
Researchers found that primary settling in wastewater treatment removes significant microplastics from sewage, but these particles concentrate in sludge that is often recycled onto agricultural land, creating a pathway back into the environment.
Standardization: A Necessary Support for the Utilization of Sludge/Biosolids in Agriculture
Not relevant to microplastics — this paper discusses standardization of characterization procedures for sewage sludge and biosolids used in agricultural applications, covering quality, safety, and European regulatory frameworks.
Biopolymers in Aerobic Granular Sludge—Their Role in Wastewater Treatment and Possibilities of Re-Use in Line with Circular Economy
This review examines the composition and role of extracellular polymeric substances in aerobic granular sludge, finding that the high alginate content of granules not only improves wastewater treatment performance but also presents opportunities for polymer recovery aligned with circular economy principles.
A method for the characterisation of microplastics in sludge
Researchers developed a method for detecting and characterizing microplastics in sewage sludge, which concentrates the majority of microplastics removed during wastewater treatment. This method is important because sludge is widely spread on agricultural land, making it a key pathway for microplastics entering soils.
The fate of microplastic in sludge management systems
This review assessed the fate of microplastics in sewage sludge management systems, finding that standard stabilization processes including anaerobic digestion and composting do not substantially reduce MP concentrations. Land application of MP-rich sludge was identified as a major pathway for plastic particles entering agricultural soils, with the review calling for alternative sludge disposal strategies aligned with circular economy principles.
Combined application of analytical techniques for microplastic determination to achieve comprehensive results for sewage sludge samples
Researchers combined multiple analytical techniques for comprehensive microplastic determination in sewage sludge samples, addressing the challenge that more than 90% of microplastics entering wastewater treatment plants are retained in sludge and require robust multi-method characterization.
Seasonal Variation, Distribution and Characteristics of Microplastic in Sewage Sludge
Researchers investigated seasonal variation in microplastic concentration, distribution, and characteristics within sewage sludge at wastewater treatment plants, examining how precipitation patterns and sludge treatment processes influence microplastic retention and the pathways by which sludge-borne microplastics enter agricultural soils upon land application.
Recovery of Cellulose, Extracellular Polymeric Substances and Microplastics from Sewage Sludge: A Review
This review examines the technical feasibility and circular economy potential of recovering cellulose, extracellular polymeric substances, and microplastics from sewage sludge, finding that while biopolymer recovery offers significant value, microplastics remain a persistent polymeric pollutant whose removal and valorization pathways are underexplored compared to nutrient recovery.
Parametric study of coagulant recovery from water treatment sludge towards water circular economy
Researchers investigated coagulant recovery from water treatment sludge at two treatment plants using sulfuric acid acidification at variable normalities, characterizing recovered coagulants by SEM and FTIR and testing their turbidity removal performance. The study aimed to establish optimal acidification conditions for a circular economy approach to coagulant reuse in surface water treatment.
Circular Economy in Wastewater Management—The Potential of Source-Separating Sanitation in Rural and Peri-Urban Areas of Northern Finland and Sweden
Researchers evaluated regional-scale source-separation sanitation scenarios in sparsely populated northern Finland and Sweden, finding that black water separation and urine diversion can substantially improve nutrient recovery compared to conventional wastewater treatment, particularly in rural and peri-urban areas.
Assessing metal contamination and speciation in sewage sludge: implications for soil application and environmental risk
This systematic review estimated that global sewage sludge production could triple to 160 million tons if all wastewater were treated to EU standards, and found that metals in sludge applied to farmland are predominantly in less bioavailable forms. The research is relevant to microplastics because sewage sludge is a major pathway for microplastic contamination of agricultural soils, carrying both metal and plastic pollutants to farmland.
Microplastics in sewage sludge from the wastewater treatment plants in China
Researchers analyzed microplastics in sewage sludge from wastewater treatment plants across China, finding high concentrations of microplastics — predominantly fibers and fragments — raising concerns about their spread when sludge is applied to agricultural land.
Fate of microplastics in a centralized biogas plant treating mainly sewage sludge
Researchers tracked the fate of microplastics through a centralized biogas plant treating sewage sludge, examining how anaerobic digestion and subsequent dewatering partition microplastics between solid and liquid digestate fractions. The study informs efforts to develop safer digestate-based recycled fertilizers that minimize microplastic introduction to agricultural soils, where 20-55% of microplastics entering wastewater treatment plants are estimated to end up in sludge.
Sewage Sludge in Agricultural Lands. The Legislative Framework in EU-28
This review examines the legislative framework across EU member states for using sewage sludge as agricultural fertilizer. While sludge provides valuable nutrients and organic matter, researchers found it can also contain contaminants including microplastics, heavy metals, and pathogens. The study highlights the need for updated regulations that account for emerging pollutants like microplastics to better protect soil health and food safety.
Land Application of Biosolids in Europe: Possibilities, Con-Straints and Future Perspectives
This review examines how sewage sludge, or biosolids, is used as agricultural fertilizer across European countries and the regulations governing this practice. While biosolids provide valuable nutrients like phosphorus, the study highlights concerns about contaminants including microplastics, pharmaceuticals, and heavy metals that could enter soil and food chains through land application.