Dehydration effect of freeze-thaw on sludge: Temperature spatio-temporal distribution and multi-scale evaluation

The freeze-thaw vacuum method for conditioning pretreated sludge has been proved that it not only has greater dewatering efficiency but also is more ecologically friendly. In this paper, the experiment is improved to address shortcomings in previous freeze-thaw vacuum approach for sludge treatment. The spatio-temporal distribution relationship of distance-time-temperature is developed and divided into two stages by numerically fitting the temperature change of freezing tubes in the sludge. It is expected to guide the time control of large-scale frozen sludge in practical engineering applications to achieve optimal dewatering treatment. Furthermore, the performance of dehydration after the model test is evaluated on multi-scale: settlement and mechanical properties (macroscopic perspective), mean particle size (mesoscopic perspective), and SEM microstructure (microscopic perspective). The results reveal that the improved sludge treatment method of alternating freeze-thaw vacuum procedures, using both prefabricated horizontal drains (PHDs) and prefabricated vertical drains (PVDs), substantially benefits the sludge dewatering and reduction. This method results in an unparalleled volume reduction of 63.51% and a water content reduction to 58.54%. Moreover, in-situ vane shearing strength of the sludge obtained from the improved test meets the strength requirement for the landfill final cover soil, demonstrating that the method is superior in improving mechanical properties.