'Sludge Harmless Treatment And Resource Utilization At Mayu Community Wastewater Treatment Plant' Led By Associate Prof. Xiao Keke From GTIIT Has Officially Been Implemented

Mayu Island is a famous attraction in Shantou, often called the “Mother Island” by the local people and highly favored by tourists both home and abroad. It has a permanent population of just over a thousand, but during peak tourism seasons, it receives up to ten thousand visitors a day. This leads to a large amount of domestic sewage and waste that needs proper disposal, with sludge dewatering and waste-to-value transformation being a crucial part of the process.

Recently, the project named “Sludge Harmless Treatment and Resource Utilization at Mayu Community Wastewater Treatment Plant” led by Associate Prof. Xiao Keke from GTIIT has officially been implemented.

Adopting innovative ideas and technical routes, the project aims to resourcefully treat and dispose of sludge from the wastewater treatment plant, achieving "zero waste". The specific plan involves first using a self-made, highly efficient sludge dewatering agent in combination with plate-and-frame filter press to deeply dewater the sludge, reducing its moisture content from an initial 95-99% to a final dewatered cake with ≤60% water content. Based on this, the dewatered sludge is then composted and will be used as soil for landscaping, with parallel efforts in technology promotion.

Compared to traditional incineration techniques, this project allows for the efficient on-site resource and energy conversion of sludge, turning waste into treasure. The composted sludge, used as a soil conditioner for landscaping, can increase organic matter, improve soil structure, reduce both the use of fertilizer and potential soil erosion.

Implementing and promoting such “waste-to-treasure” projects can bring significant social and economic benefits. It helps avoid environmental harm from landfill-produced greenhouse gases (e.g. methane) and toxic gases (dioxins) from incineration, while recycling organic matter and nutrients (like nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium) into landscaping. It will significantly improve soil structure and reduce chemical fertilizer use, thus boosting the circular economy. Plus, its composting process has notable carbon sequestration, aiding the city in achieving “dual carbon” goals, advancing the “waste-free city” initiative, and enhancing the city’s sustainable development.

Associate Prof. Xiao Keke has been dedicated to sludge treatment research for over a decade. Her innovative improvements in sludge deep-dewatering technology have significantly reduced sludge volume, alleviating the pressures of sludge transportation and storage, and making sludge cakes easier for subsequent processing. Her technical solutions have been applied both domestically and internationally, yielding substantial social and economic benefits. Up to now, she has published over 140 SCI papers, including 10 in the top environmental journal "Water Research" as the first or corresponding author. She has received 1 provincial first-class science and technology progress award and applied for 9 innovation patents (Chinese and Singaporean) as first inventor with 4 granted.

In recent years, GTIIT has organized five rounds of training for fine chemical engineering talents, benefiting over 200 trainees. It has innovated the application of drone technology and material science and technology, undertaking two major Shantou municipal sci-tech projects in offshore wind power – atmospheric particle measurement and anti-corrosion monitoring. Three startups based on GTIIT’s technologies have been registered on campus. In coordination with Shantou Science and Technology Bureau’s large-scale research equipment sharing service platform, GTIIT has fully opened its major research laboratories including the Electron Microscopy Center to serve enterprise needs. Meanwhile, the cooperation between GTIIT and local companies is continuously enriched through diversified partnership models.

Looking ahead, GTIIT will remain true to its founding mission and “write the paper on the land of China”, making its unique contribution to the development of new quality productive forces.