Thesis topic:
Pretreatment of sludge by thermal hydrolysis – impact on dewaterability and structure of digested sludge
Motivation
Decades of research have been dedicated to the enhancement of anaerobic digestion of sewage sludge to overcome common drawback as low efficiency of organic matter degradation. Thermal hydrolysis is nowadays the leading approach for improving the degradability of the sludge. increasing the biogas production at the existing sludge treatment process. Additionally, thermal hydrolysis improves the dewaterability of digested sludge. Improvement of the dewaterability brings lower operational costs for the subsequent sludge processing.
On the other hand, problems for following anaerobic digestion are arising due to the thermal hydrolysis such as free ammonia inhibition or recalcitrant compounds production which needs to be overcome or minimized.
Solution
In this Ph.D. topic, we will study the sludge structure and dewaterability of sludge while applying different conditions of thermal pretreatment processes prior to anaerobic digestion. The aim is to propose the optimal method of thermal hydrolysis in relation to different aspects of digestion process and digested sludge quality.
Another area of interest/Projects:
- Sewage sludge disposal
Education:
- 2020 - present: UCT Prague, FTOP, Department of Water technology and environmental engineering, Ph.D. Student
- 2018 – 2020: University of Applied Sciences Upper Austria, master thesis: „ Processes for sewage sludge disposal in the wastewater treatment plant operated by the company CEVAK a.s. in České Budejovice- present and outlook “
- 2015 – 2018 University of Applied Sciences Upper Austria, bachelor theses:
- BT I: “Reference substances for the measurement of odor concentration”
- BT II: “Drainage of the paved areas in the Welser Baustoffrecycling GmbH”
Participation in teaching:
Laboratory Course in Water Analysis (UCT Prague)