Feasibility of Activated Carbon via Hydrothermally Carbonized Sewage Sludge

Abstract

Hydrothermal Carbonization can be defined in the simplest of terms as a thermochemical process for the conversion of wet/moist biomass into high-energy density solid fuels that can serve as, precursors to produce activated carbon for pollution remediation, solid fuels, soil remediation application, and other carbonaceous materials. The popularity of hydrothermal carbonization process can comfortably be attributed to its availability and ability to process/convert wet biomass into solid fuels and other by-products without any form of pre-treatment. This research paper as a request from Woima Corporation, investigated the viability of producing 100 kg of activated carbon for the treatment of effluents from waste to energy incineration plants through carbon activation of sewage sludge and subsequent steam activation. Qualitative and quantitative research methods were employed to respond appropriately to the material balance, energy balance and the economic/financial implication objectives of this research. From the material and energy balance results of this research, which indicated 2120 kg of waste water sewage sludge, 1059.22 kg of H2O and 2520 MJ of energy required, and the calculations on the economic/financial implication of this project, which estimated € 91 as the production cost for 100 kg of activated carbon with BET surface area of 226 within a 4 hours’ time frame and a 9.66% rate of return with A.C selling price being the most influential variable with respect to variations in estimated forecast, it was concluded that within the explicitly stated delimitations of this research, the production of 100 kg of activated carbon via hydrothermal carbonization of sewage sludge and subsequent steam activation is viable.