Grant: Collaborative Research and Development Grants

This proposal is to integrate UBC developed leading edge technologies into a high efficient sewage sludge treatment system for sludge solids destruction, nutrient release and recovery, as well as bioenergy production at the Joint Abbotsford Mission Environmental System (JAMES) wastewater treatment plant, Abbotsford, BC. The integrated system will consists of a UBC patented microwave treatment process, a high-rate struvite crystallizer and an innovative anaerobic digestion system. The microwave system would not only reduce sludge solids content, but also facilitate the release of nutrients into solution. Phosphorus and nitrogen can thus be recovered in the form of struvite, which is a slow release fertilizer via a subsequent crystallization process. More efficient bioenergy production can also be achieved by an innovative anaerobic digestion system. The tasks required in this project include: 1). testing of the UBC-designed pilot-scale continuous flow microwave treatment system; 2). testing and evaluating the recovery efficiency of the newly developed high-rate struvite crystallizer; 3). examining the performance of a two-phase anaerobic digestion system; 4). operating the integrated system at JAMES wastewater treatment plant; and 5). establishing the design criteria and operating protocols of this integrated system. The final outcome of the project will be a fully developed 'proof-of-concept' integrated sewage sludge treatment system. The improved waste management, sludge reduction and resource recovery system developed in this project will have a significant impact on sludge management, and offer substantial economical and environmental benefits for the wastewater treatment industry.