Effects of pH and Mixing on Polymer Conditioning of Chemical Sludge

chemical reagents to raw sludge resulted in increased rates of sludge dewatering, decreased sludge volumes, and reduced equipment costs.13 Initially, most of the chemical-conditioning reagents used were inorganic salts, but more recently high molecular weight organic polyelectrolytes have been used either independently or in conjunction with the inorganic materials. The use of organic polyelectrolytes as coagulants and sludge-conditioning agents led to a considerable increase in the consumption and demand for commercial polyelectrolytes. There are hundreds of these polymers available on the commercial market, but most of the information pertaining to commercial polyelectrolyte characteristics is regarded as proprietary and not obtainable through product bulletins nor directly from the manufacturer. While a number of studies have shown