Glatt with PHOS4green in the collaborative project “RePhoRM”

Large-scale implementation of the further developed PHOS4green technology for P-recovery from sewage sludge ash in Industriepark Höchst

The joint project “RePhoRM” develops and implements a technological as well as organisational joint solution for phosphorus recycling in the Rhine-Main area. Based on the mono-sludge incineration capacity and its potential expansion in the Frankfurt Rhine Main metropolitan region, a cooperative phosphorus recovery from sewage sludge ash is to be implemented. In accordance with the Hessian resource protection strategy, a fertiliser granulate is produced as a phosphorus recyclate which can be used directly to close the regional nutrient cycle in agriculture. When implementing phosphorus recycling, the particular interests of the partners in the network must be taken into account with regard to the technology for phosphorus recovery and the formation of a phosphorus recycling network. From a technological point of view, the aim is to remove heavy metals from the sewage sludge ash before the actual phosphorus recovery. Therefore, the project will further develop the PHOS4green technology for the production of fertiliser granules by removing heavy metals from (input) sewage sludge ash and implement the process on a large scale in Industriepark Höchst. In addition to an economic and ecological study of phosphorus recycling, the integrated solution will be legally assessed and organised.

The overall objectives of the “RePhoRM” project are:

• Large-scale implementation of the further developed PHOS4green technology for P-recovery from sewage sludge ash in Industriepark Höchst.
• Inter-state collaborative solution for P-recycling in the Frankfurt Rhine Main metropolitan region, taking into account the key operators of mono-sludge incineration and wastewater treatment plants.

Focus of work

• Quantitative and qualitative recording and balancing of the sewage sludge ash flows in the context of a superordinate integrated solution
• Recording and balancing of heavy metal inputs into the sewerage system and the wastewater treatment plants of the Frankfurt am Main municipal wastewater treatment plant
• Development of possible recommendations for action to minimize the input of heavy metals into the municipal wastewater
• Investigation of the dissolution and separation of heavy metals from sewage sludge ashes in laboratory and demonstration scale
• Optimization of spray granulation to the changed conditions caused by the removal of heavy metals
• Evaluation of the fertilizer conformity of the obtained fertilizer granulate against the background of recycling aspects and acceptance in agriculture
• Accompanying life cycle assessment of the technical development for the removal of heavy metals and life cycle assessment of phosphorus recycling
• Development of a legal and organizational framework for the design of a phosphorus recycling network
• Economic analysis of the integrated solution and preparation of a business case
• Large-scale implementation of phosphorus recycling as an integrated solution in the Rhein-Main area

Glatt Ingenieurtechnik GmbH, based in Weimar, Germany, is contributing its expertise to two subprojects: planning and construction of a container plant at Industriepark Höchst and studies on spray granulation of purified secondary phosphorus.