New Sludge Decanter Offers 40% Power Savings

The ALDEC G3 decanter centrifuge from Alfa Laval (UK) provides power savings of up to 40% coupled with reduced environmental impact thanks to significant savings in overall C02 emissions. Developed for sewage sludge dewatering operations, its innovative design combines peak performance at all times with reliable and controllable operation. The Slim-line design significantly improves solids handling and helps maximize performance. The bowl incorporates specially developed power plates that harness and exploit the energy in the centrate discharge to contribute to the bowl rotation, thereby reducing overall power requirements.

In addition, Alfa Laval’s unique 2Touch control system ensures simple, reliable process optimisation.

The ALDEC G3 design includes features like a steep cone angle and a progressive pitch conveyor design which combined with the unique baffle disk design delivers superior performance. A strain gauge torque measurement provides a very accurate, instantaneous torque reading which helps improve the process performance of the decanter.

Separation takes place along the entire length of the cylindrical part of the bowl. A dam between the baffle disk and the bowl wall enhances the hydraulic effect and the scrolling of solids through the bowl. As a result, only the driest fraction of the sludge cake passes from the bowl into the casing through the 360° solids discharge openings. Clarified liquid leaves the bowl by flowing over adjustable plate dams into the casing.

A major feature of the ALDEC G3 decanter centrifuge is that key operations can be tailored to meet specific sludge requirements. For instance, the bowl speed can be varied to achieve the G force necessary for a given level of separation efficiency. In addition, by varying the conveyor speed and the pond depth it is possible to obtain the best balance between cake dryness and liquid clarity. Consequently, the ALDEC G3 can be supplied in a range of sizes designed to handle a wide variety of flow rates.