Coevolution of Iron, Phosphorus, and Sulfur Speciation during Anaerobic Digestion with Hydrothermal Pretreatment of Sewage Sludge

Anaerobic digestion (AD) with hydrothermal (HT) pretreatment is an emerging technology for enhanced resource recovery from sewage sludge. This study investigates the speciation of Fe, P, and S during sequential HT-AD treatment of sewage sludge using sequential chemical extraction, X-ray diffraction, and X-ray absorption spectroscopy. Results suggest strong correlations between Fe and P species as well as Fe and S species, affecting the solubility and bioavailability of each other. For instance, much vivianite formed in the hydrochars after HT treatment at low temperature, while more strengite precipitated at higher HT temperature. During the subsequent AD process, microbial reduction of strengite and other Fe(III) species led to the formation of more vivianite, with concurrent P release into the solution and adsorption onto other minerals. HT pretreatment of sewage sludge had a weak effect on the sulfidation of Fe during the AD process. This work has important implications for understanding the nutrient speciation and availability in sludge-derived hydrochars and AD solids. It also provides fundamental knowledge for the selection and optimization of HT pretreatment conditions for enhanced resource recovery through sequential HT-AD process.