Thanks Kristian

Yeah i thought about a loading bay and then using a Archimedes screw to lift the water from the solids and into the inlet. I think they problem we have then is getting the remaining solids from the loading bay into the drying bed. As the pilot is already constructed we wont to try and reduce the amount of contact with the sludge.

do you have any links for a rotating bar screw?

One idea we are getting fabricated to test this week is similar to a French Coffee Press. We will have a circular metal frame with supports and a wire mesh, then push it into a barrel so that hopefully the water comes through the mesh and pushes the solids down to the bottom of the barrel. If this is successful we will look into an options for lifting and loading the barrel once it has been "Pressed" and then pour the solids into the drying bed.

We have also come across a slope and rake methods where your water falls through a filter and then you rake the solids to one side. It could be an option but with the way the pilot has been constructed there is the issue with getting the water to the inlet chamber height.

One thing we need to do is look at all possible options in design stages which im doing over today and tomorrow and then narrow this down into the feasible options and look at the pros and cons of each to find the best options.

Thanks for the advice once again

Hey Bob, great to see you post on SuSanA more. I was actually meaning to visit your pilot plant some time, but have yet to find a proper occasion (and time) to do it.

As an idea: a "leaky" archimedes' screw (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Archimedes%27_screw ) is sometimes used to pump larger solids only, thus separating them from the remaining liquids.

A rotating "bar screen" can also remove solids from a waste-water stream and could be adapted for your purposes.

Hi All,

I am working in Uganda at Water for People in the Sani-Hub team we currently have a pilot treatment plant for faecal sludge and have to design a lifting and loading device for the plot.

Some of the issues we have been faced with is separating the solid waste from solids and ways to dewater the sludge. We are looking for advice on the following issues:


Methods of Dewatering sludge, we want to separate the effluent from the sludge to go directly into the inlet tank of the DEWATS pilot we have made. And looking for some guidance into the different methods of doing this. We aim for the effluent to be separated from the solids and solid waste.

Methods of separating solid waste from the solids, this is not a major issue because alot of rubbish is removed into one barrel at the start of the pit emptying operation. So this barrel can be handled however it is possible from some rubbish to pass through the emptying device.

Different options we could have when looking at what to do with the solid waste once it has been separated
[attachment:1]C:\fakepath\PROGRESS OF THE FAECAL SLUDGE TREATMENT PROJECT.pdf[/attachment]


from the solids.

Finally different options and methods that people have seen when loading sludge into a treatment plant. our inlet tank is raised approximately 1.5 meters from the ground level. So we are looking into a lifting and loading device for the plant, which of course needs to be highly user friendly and not require alot of effort to use.

I have attached a paper from the engineer who is working on the pilot scheme and there are picture of the pilot.

If anyone would like to discuss the ideas and though process we are currently on please do not hesitate to get in touch, and all comments will help us.

Cheers

Bob Stalker