One possible strategy to reduce sludge production in water treatment plant (WTP) is the application of polyaluminium chloride (PAC) as the sole coagulant or together with iron salts. The purpose of this paper was to investigate PAC usage with regard to sludge production as well as to evaluate impacts of discharging WTP sludge in activated sludge wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). It was observed that PAC-based sludge production presented values close to aluminum sulfate-based sludge production, which was around 4.75 mg of dry solids per mg of Al. Furthermore, eventual discharge of PAC-based sludge in a WWTP should change the physical and chemical quality of the dry sludge, which is a function of coagulant type, coagulant dosage and of the impurities present in the coagulan's formulation.
sludge production; water treatment; coagulation; polyaluminium chloride; wastewater treatment
