Significances of deflocculated sludge flocs as well as extracellular polymeric substances in influencing the compression dewatering of chemically acidified sludge
Chemical acidification of sludge reduced the moisture content in dewatered sludge by 13.5%. Chemical acidification of sludge reduced the average removal rate of moisture of sludge by 44.1%. Increases of outer layer EPS and deflocculated flocs led to low dewatering rate of acidified sludge. Only 5 mg/g dry solid (DS) of PAA improved the dewatering rate of acidified sludge through re-flocculating its flocs. Chemical acidification and conditioning can enhance the compression dewatering of sludge.