EFFECT OF PH ON METAL SOLUBILIZATION FROM SEWAGE-SLUDGE - A NEURAL-NET-BASED APPROACH

Microbial leaching for heavy metals removal from municipal sewage sludge is a complex biological process. The ultimate metal solubilization achieved depends on the type of sludge involved (nondigested, aerobically digested or anaerobically digested sludge), the decrease in sludge pH as a result of the leaching operation, and the concentration of metals initially present in the sludge. In addition, the system temperature exerts an indirect but strong influence by its effect on the bacterial growth and acid production process. A neural-net-based model was developed to predict the solubilization of six heavy metals, Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, and Zn, from sewage sludge using the bioleaching process. The only input parameters required are the type of sludge, initial metal concentrations in the sludge, and the sludge pH. The model yielded satisfactory predictions of metal solubilization when tested with a number of actual experimental data.