Introduction
Anaerobic digestion of sludge is one of the oldest biological treatments known dating from about 1850. In the period between 1920 and 1935 the process was investigated in greater depth, heat was applied to digesters which made important improvements.
Actually we are still using the same basic technology but making great strides in: compression and process control, reducing the size of tanks, their design and equipment, As digesters have a high volume and a large amount of sludge to digest, a small change can have large impact economically. Therefore, several changes have been effected on the digesters to find the ideal conditions for bio degradation, Laminar flow influent of primary and secondary sludge, improve the heat exchange system, increasing the internal temperature, and improving or replacing the agitation system.
Reactor for the ultrasonic treatment of sludge
Success in any of these aspects can increase the production of biogas which can make the difference between an economically viable or non viable farm.
For several years technologies Ultrasound technology has been used in different aspects of everyday life, such as ultrasound tests in structures of materials, medical treatments and in molecular structures
In 1996 Mr. Piers Clark signing the patented development of a novel technology of using ultrasound to breakdown cell walls of micro organisms present in the sludge,this process is called SONIX. This application significantly improves the sludge treatment processes such as digestion and dehydration.
Figure 1: Effect of applying SONIX on cell membranes. In the image before it can be seen SONIX cell membranes in the mud. In image after SONIX shows the breakdown of cell membranes.
DAM Depuración de Aguas del Mediterráneo
c/ Guglielmo Marconi, 11 piso 2º, despacho 19
Parque Tecnológico
46980 Paterna (Valencia)
Tel. 902 881 510
Fax. 96 353 12 25
mail: info@dam-aguas.es
