Increasing the Hydraulic Conductivity of Solidified Sewage Sludge for Use as Temporary Landfill Cover

Abstract

Using sewage sludge as temporary cover for landfills is one of the most effective methods to dispose sludge. The mechanical properties of solidified sludge usually meet the requirements for temporary landfill cover, but its low permeability can cause problems due to formation of perched leachate. This study focused on the effect of solidification and remolding on hydraulic conductivity of sludge and conducted permeability tests on sludge solidified by using either ordinary Portland cement (OPC) or sulphoaluminate cement (SAC). The related pore structure and aggregate size distribution were analyzed later by the mercury intrusion pressure (MIP) method and soil water characteristic cure (SWCC) method. The experiment results show that the hydraulic conductivity of solidified sludge was in the range of 10−7∼10−6 cm/s. When sludge is solidified with an SAC dosage >40% and remolded after curing for 7 days, its hydraulic conductivity increases sufficiently to the order of 10−4 cm/s. The trend for solidified sludge exhibited a power function relation between the logarithmic hydraulic conductivity and the proportion of macropores. Overall, it can be concluded that the increase of hydraulic conductivity is attributed to the development of an aggregate structure, with water being transmitted mainly through the interaggregate pores; therefore, the sludge could be used as temporary landfill cover.