Resources, Conservation and Recycling 45 (2005) 18–30

Properties and microstructure of lightweight

aggregate produced from sintered
sewage sludge ash
C.R. Cheeseman ∗ , G.S. Virdi
Centre for Environmental Control and Waste Management, Department of Civil and Environmental
Engineering, Imperial College London SW7 2BU, UK

Received 30 November 2003; accepted 2 December 2004

Available online 2 March 2005

Abstract

The properties of lightweight aggregate (LWA) manufactured from the ash produced by fluidised bed
incineration of sewage sludge have been investigated. The ash was mixed with a clay binder, formed
into approximately spherical pellets and rapidly sintered in a rotary tube furnace at temperatures
between 1020 and 1080 ◦ C. Selected physical properties of sintered ash pellets relevant to use as
lightweight aggregate have been determined, including density (apparent specific gravity), water
absorption and compressive (crushing) strength. These have been compared to the properties of a
commercially available lightweight aggregate (Lytag). Sewage sludge ash (SSA) pellets sintered over
a range of temperatures were found to have lower densities than Lytag and low water absorption
when fired between approximately 1050 and 1080 ◦ C. Individual pellet strengths were comparable
to Lytag. Major crystalline phases present in both as-received and sintered sewage sludge ash were
quartz (SiO2 ), the calcium magnesium phosphate mineral whitlockite (Ca7 Mg2 P6 O24 ) and hematite
(Fe2 O3 ). Manufacturing lightweight aggregate from sewage sludge ash may become increasingly
viable as landfill disposal costs continue to increase and the costs of alternative natural aggregates
obtained from increasingly distant locations also increase. Sewage sludge incinerators tend to be
situated in urban areas, close to where construction activity is occurring. The results indicate the
potential for manufacturing high quality lightweight aggregate from the sterile, inert ash produced by
sewage sludge incineration, using relatively simple processing and low temperature sintering.
© 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Lightweight aggregate; Sewage sludge ash; Sintering; Waste reuse; Incineration

∗ Corresponding author. Tel.: +44 20 7594 5971; fax: +44 20 7594 1511.
E-mail address: c.cheeseman@imperial.ac.uk (C.R. Cheeseman).

0921-3449/$ – see front matter © 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.resconrec.2004.12.006
 C.R. Cheeseman, G.S. Virdi / Resources, Conservation and Recycling 45 (2005) 18–30 19

1. Introduction

Sewage sludge results from the accumulation of solids from the unit processes of chemi-
cal coagulation, flocculation and sedimentation during wastewater treatment. It is a complex
and variable mixture of organic and inorganic substances in aqueous suspension and so-
lution, and may contain viable pathogens and parasites as well as a variety of potentially
toxic elements and compounds. It is highly putrescible and requires stabilisation to reduce
odour and vector attraction. In the UK, the production of sewage sludge is currently at
slightly over 1 million tonnes (dry solids) per annum. This figure is expected to increase in
the future, as wastewater treatment methods become more effective and greater volumes of
micro organisms and solids are removed from the sewage effluent. The disposal of treated
sewage sludge requires careful consideration if it is to be managed in an environmentally
acceptable and sustainable manner.
The proportion of sewage sludge used in agriculture increased in most EU countries
during the 1990s and over half of all sludge is now used on land in Austria, Belgium,
France and the UK, while around 40% is used in Germany and Sweden. However, there
are concerns over continued application of sludge to land and the Swiss government has
recently banned land spreading on grazing land and market gardens, and will ban spreading
on all land from October 2005. This is because land spreading may be associated with
long-term risks for the environment and public health, as sludge contains heavy metals,
pathogens and organic pollutants that have potential to be transmitted to plants, livestock
and humans (Spinosa and Veslind, 2001).
Incineration is a viable alternative to both land spreading and disposal to landfill for
sewage sludge. The use of sludge incineration is not widespread in the UK and incineration
is currently used to dispose of approximately 19% of the total sludge generated (Williams,
1998). The dried solids content of sludge has relatively high calorific value (20–40 MJ/kg)
and if the moisture content is reduced by pressing or centrifuging then autothermic com-
bustion occurs.
There are currently two sewage sludge fluidised bed incinerator plants operating in East
London, where this was considered the best practicable environmental option (BPEO) for
the sludge generated by the Beckton and Crossness waste water treatment plants, following
the ban on sludge disposal to the North Sea in 1998. The Beckton and Crossness sludge
incinerators have a combined capacity to process 373,000 tonnes of dewatered sewage
sludge per year and approximately 1% of the original mass of sludge forms the sterile
and inert sewage sludge ash (SSA). This is transported off-site and landfilled, as it is not
currently considered hazardous waste. However, landfill disposal is not ideal and tightening
legislation and increasing costs are providing increasing incentives to develop alternative
economically viable reuse and recycling options.
These alternatives include the use of SSA in agriculture. SSA can be used as a liming
agent on acid soil and may also bring agronomic benefits, although there are concerns over
high heavy metal contents (Zhang et al., 2002a,b).
A significant amount of work has also investigated processing SSA to form new ceramic
materials. This has included extensive work in Japan and Germany on the use of SSA as a
partial replacement for clay in the manufacture of bricks (Anderson et al., 1996; Trauner,
1993; Wiebusch and Seyfried, 1997; Wiebusch et al., 1998), and a plant is reported to be
20 C.R. Cheeseman, G.S. Virdi / Resources, Conservation and Recycling 45 (2005) 18–30

operating near Tokyo that manufactures bricks from 100% SSA (Okonu and Takahashi,
1997).
Research has also been reported on the production of glass-ceramics from SSA (Endo
et al., 1997; Suzuki et al., 1997), the effects of adding SSA to cement mortars (Bhatty and
Reid, 1989a; Monzó et al., 1999; Pan et al., 2003) and the use of SSA in asphalt paving
mixes (Al Sayed et al., 1995).
The extraction of natural aggregates for use in construction is associated with significant
adverse environmental effects. As a result, the UK government has introduced a tax on
the extraction of natural aggregates, sand, rock and gravel (with some exceptions). This
is expected to increase the viability and use of alternative ‘secondary’ or waste derived
manufactured aggregates (H.M. Customs and Excise, 2002).
The production of lightweight aggregate (LWA) from certain types of fine mineral wastes
and combustion residues represents a particularly attractive reuse application as LWA have
higher value than normal weight aggregates (Owens and Newman, 1999a,b). Natural aggre-
gates typically have particle densities of 2.4–2.8 g cm−3 , while LWA densities range from
0.8 to 2.0 g cm−3 . LWAs are, therefore, used to produce lightweight concrete, lightweight
blocks and other lightweight construction products. The low density also provides addi-
tional benefits such as higher thermal insulation and thermal inertia, and they are also
used in other applications such as lightweight geotechnical fill, insulation products, soil
engineering, hydro-culture, drainage, roof gardens and filters.
There are numerous types of commercially available LWA. These are either naturally
occurring low-density materials such as pumice, scoria, volcanic cinders or diatomite, or
they can be manufactured by thermally treating clays, shale, siliceous rock or slate (Liapor,
Optiroc, Buildex, Stalite, Haydite, Perlite, Norlite and Solite). LWA is also manufactured
from industrial by-products such as fly ash, paper mill sludge, sewage sludge and expanded
blast furnace slag. Lytag, the major LWA produced in the UK, is manufactured by sintering
pulverised fuel ash from coal fired power stations (Owens, 1993).
Manufacturing LWA from SSA is potentially viable in the UK because:
(i) The cost of disposing of SSA to landfill is increasing due to the Landfill Tax and the
requirements of the EU Landfill Directive.
(ii) The costs of primary, natural aggregates have increased due to the imposition of an
aggregates levy that is charged on each tonne of extracted aggregate.
(iii) There is a shortage of readily available aggregate in some regions of the UK and
particularly where extensive house building is taking place such as in London and the
SE England. As a result natural aggregates are increasingly being transported over
large distances to this region with implications for sustainability.
(iv) Sewage sludge incinerator plants producing SSA tend to be situated in urban areas
close to where construction activity is occurring. A potential source of LWA is therefore
available close to where these materials are needed.
(v) The availability of low-cost waste derived LWA offers opportunities for developing
products with improved thermal and sound insulation properties.
The sintering and leaching characteristics of milled and compacted SSA have previously
been reported (Cheeseman et al., 2003). Sintering produced potentially useful ceramic mate-
rials with maximum densities resulting when samples were fired between 1000 and 1020 ◦ C.
 C.R. Cheeseman, G.S. Virdi / Resources, Conservation and Recycling 45 (2005) 18–30 21

Earlier work has also demonstrated the potential for LWA production from SSA (Bhatty
and Reid, 1989b; Yip and Tay, 1999). The objective of this research was to characterise
the properties and microstructure of lightweight aggregate produced by pelletising and sin-
tering SSA produced by the Beckton sludge incinerator. The SSA was used ‘as-received’
without any particle size reduction by milling and the effects of sintering temperature on key
physical and microstructural characteristics are reported and the properties of the sintered
SSA pellets compared to those of Lytag.

2. Experimental

2.1. Materials

The Beckton sludge incinerator has a total throughput of 4.5 tonnes of dry solids per
hour and has three operating streams each with a bed area of 20 m2 . Maximum electric-
ity generation rate of 11.4 MW and the plant produces approximately 21.6 tonnes per day
of SSA that is landfilled. A representative batch of SSA was collected from the Beckton
incinerator. This appeared to be a homogenous fine powder that did not contain any signifi-
cant lumps or agglomerates. Data on the average concentrations of heavy metals present in
SSA obtained from 23 samples collected over a 14-month period are given in Table 1. The
SSA contains relatively high concentrations of a range of metals of potential environmental
concern including Zn, Cu, Pb, Mn, Cr, Ni and Cd.

2.2. Sewage sludge ash characterisation

The average moisture content of the as-received SSA was measured by heating samples
to 105 ◦ C for 24 h. Loss on ignition was determined by heating 10 g samples to 775 ◦ C for

Table 1
Average concentration of heavy metals in Beckton sewage sludge ash (SSA)
Element Average* (mg kg−1 DS) Standard deviation (n = 23)
Fe 35272 8355
Zn 2848 636
Cu 1503 304
Pb 1175 325
Mn 474 90
Sn 183 90
Cr 172 51
Ni 112 27
V 66 26
Sb 35 11
As 29 9
Co 19 16
Cd 15 6
Hg 7 3
* Based on data from 23 analyses of SSA.
22 C.R. Cheeseman, G.S. Virdi / Resources, Conservation and Recycling 45 (2005) 18–30

24 h. The particle size distribution of the as-received SSA was analysed by laser diffraction
(Beckman Coulter LS-100) in the range from 0.4 to 900 ␮m. Crystalline phases present in
dried SSA were determined by X-ray diffraction (XRD) using a Phillips PW 1830 diffrac-
tometer system with 40 mA and 40 kV, Cu K␣ radiation.

2.3. Preparation of LWA pellets from SSA

The SSA was thoroughly mixed with different amounts (1–16 wt%) of dry London clay
to aid pellet formation. A 1 wt% addition of an organic binder (Alcotac CB6, Ciba Speciality
Chemicals) was also used to replace the clay binder in later mixes. A controlled amount of
water was added until the mix consistency allowed formation of approximately spherical,
8–10 mm diameter pellets. The pellets were then sintered by passing them through a rotary
electric tube furnace (Carbolite). The tube had an internal diameter of 7.7 cm and was 150 cm
long, with a 90 cm heated zone. The speed of rotation was 2.8 revolutions per minute and
the angle of tilt was held constant at 2◦ . To control pellet traverse through the furnace a
series of baffles were fitted inside the tube. The average pellet traverse time under these
conditions was 10 min 35 s (standard deviation, 2 min, n = 30).

2.4. Characterisation of sintered specimens

The dry density (apparent specific gravity) and water absorption properties of sintered
SSA pellets were determined by measuring the dry mass mdry , immersed mass mimm and
24 h saturated surface-dry mass msat of pellets (Neville, 1994). Using Archimedes’ principle
individual particle densities were calculated from:
mdry
g cm−3
msat − mimm
and the 24 h water absorption value calculated from:
msat − mdry
× 100%
mdry
Individual pellets were been loaded to fracture between two parallel plates. Stress analysis
shows that when spheres are compressed on diametrically opposed points the compressive
strength S is given by (Yashima et al., 1987):
2.8Pc
S=
πX2
where X is the distance between loading points and Pc is the fracture load. Mean values of
the strength were calculated from tests completed on a minimum of 10 pellets prepared at
each sintering temperature.
The physical properties (particle density (n = 12), water absorption (n = 12) and com-
pressive strength (n = 10)) of the commercially manufactured lightweight aggregate Lytag
have also been determined using identical test techniques to those for sintered SSA pellets.
Crushed SSA sintered samples were ground to <150 ␮m to determine the crystalline
phases present by XRD using identical conditions to those for characterising the as-received
 C.R. Cheeseman, G.S. Virdi / Resources, Conservation and Recycling 45 (2005) 18–30 23

SSA. Fracture surfaces (Au coated) of samples have also been examined using scanning
electron microscopy (JEOL JSM-5610LV) to investigate sintered microstructures.

3. Results

3.1. As-received SSA properties

The residual moisture content present in the as-received SSA was found to be 0.14 wt%.
Loss on ignition consistently gave weight losses of around 1.3% and this is believed to be
due to oxidation and volatilisation of residual organic carbon present in the ash.
Particle size analysis of different sub-samples of SSA is shown in Fig. 1. This indicates a
fairly consistent material with a mean particle size of approximately 100 ␮m and a relatively
broad particle size distribution.
XRD data of as-received SSA shown in Fig. 2 (bottom trace) indicated that the major
crystalline phases present were quartz SiO2 , the calcium magnesium phosphate mineral
whitlockite Ca7 Mg2 P6 O24 and some hematite Fe2 O3 .

3.2. Sintered SSA pellet physical properties

The variation in fired density with sintering temperature is shown in Fig. 3. Water ab-
sorption data are shown in Fig. 4 and both these figures include comparative test data for
Lytag.
Maximum density occurred for samples sintered between 1040 and 1060 ◦ C, with higher
temperatures resulting in reduced densities. Firing above 1080 ◦ C produced pellets that
tended to agglomerate in the furnace and this, therefore, represents an upper limit on the
sintering temperature.
SSA pellets fired below 1000 ◦ C were weak, with loosely bound particles on the pellet
surface. The SSA could be sintered to give pellets with appropriate densities for use as
lightweight aggregate over a relatively wide range of temperatures.
The water absorption of lightweight aggregate pellets should ideally be as low as
possible. Water absorption data for sintered SSA continuously decreased with increasing

Fig. 1. Particle size distribution data for as received ISSA.

24 C.R. Cheeseman, G.S. Virdi / Resources, Conservation and Recycling 45 (2005) 18–30

Fig. 2. XRD data for as-received ISSA and ISSA sintered at 1020 and 1070 ◦ C.

Fig. 3. Effect of sintering temperature on density.

 C.R. Cheeseman, G.S. Virdi / Resources, Conservation and Recycling 45 (2005) 18–30 25

Fig. 4. Effect of sintering temperature on water absorption.

firing temperature indicating a reduction in the volume of water accessible surface con-
nected porosity. It appears that SSA needs to be sintered at around 1050 ◦ C to have similar
water absorption properties to Lytag, and sintering above 1060 ◦ C produces pellets with very
low water absorption. Comparing the density and water absorption data clearly indicates a
change in the nature of the porosity as the sintering temperature increases. At temperatures
below the peak in density, pellets contain significant continuous, surface connected, water
accessible porosity. As the temperature increases the porosity becomes discontinuous and
isolated, resulting in low density, low water absorption products.
Fig. 5 shows the effect of sintering temperature on compressive strength. Lytag is con-
sidered a relatively high strength lightweight aggregate and sintered SSA produces pellets
with comparable strengths when fired between 1050 and 1070 ◦ C.

3.3. Microstructural analysis of sintered SSA

Comparison of XRD data for as-received SSA and SSA pellets sintered at 1020 ◦ C
(Fig. 2, middle trace) and 1070 ◦ C (Fig. 2, top trace) demonstrated that no significant
crystallographic changes had occurred. The major crystalline phases present were again
quartz, whitlockite (Ca7 Mg2 P6 O24 ) with some hematite (Fe2 O3 ).
Fig. 6 shows SEM micrographs of fracture surfaces of SSA lightweight aggregate pellet
samples prepared using the organic binder that were sintered at 1020, 1060 and 1070 ◦ C.
These clearly show the microstructural changes induced by increasing the sintering tem-
perature.
26 C.R. Cheeseman, G.S. Virdi / Resources, Conservation and Recycling 45 (2005) 18–30

Fig. 5. Effect of sintering temperature on individual pellet compressive strength.

Sintering at 1020 ◦ C produced a fine granular material that is relatively poorly sintered
(Fig. 6a). Fracture occurs primarily between particles and there is evidence of extensive
intergranular connected porosity. This is in agreement with the high water absorption and
low compressive strength data obtained for this type of sample.
The sintered microstructure at 1060 ◦ C (Fig. 6b) shows a well-formed, dense matrix
material that contains a significant volume of isolated approximately spherical porosity.
These pores appear to be predominantly in the 1–10 ␮m diameter range, although there
is evidence of some much larger pores. Sintering at this temperature produced samples
with relatively low densities, although these were higher than those obtained by sintering
at either lower or higher temperatures. The samples also had low water absorption due to
the closed nature of the porosity and high strength due to the relatively small pore size
and the strong matrix material. This combination of properties is ideal for this material
to be used as lightweight aggregate in a range of applications. The microstructure results
from extensive liquid phase sintering with partial softening of the glassy phase, together
with some decomposition reactions producing internal pore pressure that causes the finely
bubbled microstructure observed.
The microstructure of SSA sintered at 1070◦ (Fig. 6c) is dominated by the presence
of larger isolated pores that have begun to coalesce and form irregular shaped voids. The
water absorption is low for these samples because the porosity remains closed, but as the
pores become larger the strength inevitably reduces. The material is effectively expanding
or bloating at this temperature and this is thought to be due to gas evolving decomposition
 C.R. Cheeseman, G.S. Virdi / Resources, Conservation and Recycling 45 (2005) 18–30 27

Fig. 6. Fracture surfaces of ISSA LWA pellets containing no clay sintered at: (a) 1020 ◦ C, (b) 1060 ◦ C and (c)
1070 ◦ C.
28 C.R. Cheeseman, G.S. Virdi / Resources, Conservation and Recycling 45 (2005) 18–30

reactions occurring in a low viscosity glassy matrix. The material still retains relatively high
strength and the combination of properties means this material is also suitable for use as
lightweight aggregate.

4. Discussion

Individual lightweight aggregate pellets should ideally have:

• A strong but low density, porous, sintered ceramic core.
• A dense continuous surface layer to inhibit ingress of water that should be pozzolanic to
produce a strong aggregate-cement bond in concrete.
• A near-spherical shape to improve fresh concrete properties.
The results obtained in this study are particularly encouraging, as sintered SSA pel-
lets can be produced with fundamental properties such as density, water absorption and
compressive strength similar or superior to those of commercially available LWA such as
Lytag. The properties depend on the sintering temperature and processing conditions, but
the results indicate that production of low density, low water absorption, and relatively high
strength sintered pellets is feasible using simple processing methods involving pelletising
and relatively low temperature sintering.
The microstructure of manufactured lightweight aggregates normally contains isolated
spherical voids formed by the evolution of gases at temperatures where a glassy phase
has low viscosity. It seems likely that similar reactions occur during sintering SSA above
approximately 1040 ◦ C, and this produces the combination of physical properties and mi-
crostructural characteristics observed.
Further work is needed to more fully characterise sintered SSA pellets, reduce the sin-
tering temperatures and investigate effects of variations in chemical composition of SAA,
as the work reported has only investigated SSA obtained from one UK sewage sludge incin-
erator plant (Beckton incinerator). The potential for producing lightweight aggregate using
SSA obtained from other plants therefore needs to be investigated.
The overall economic viability of lightweight aggregate production from SSA is clearly
dependent on a number of factors. However, the results to date combined with recent changes
in legislation and increasing costs of landfill disposal indicate the potential for using SSA
to manufacture a high quality lightweight product.
The SSA used in this research was collected from a modern sludge incinerator that
produces approximately 22 tonnes of SSA per day. Current landfill disposal costs in the
UK range from £35 to approximately £65 per tonne depending on the site and location,
and this is expected to increase in the next few years. Therefore, landfill disposal of SSA
represents a significant cost. LWA typically sells in the UK for between £40 and 180 per
tonne depending on grade, quantity, application and location. Therefore, there is significant
scope to cover the processing costs involved in pelletising and relatively low temperature
sintering associated with LWA manufacture from SSA. These costs will vary depending on
the exact processing methods used and the potential for using by-product energy from the
sludge incineration process. However, there appears to be potential to manufacture LWA
from SSA, particularly as disposal costs increase and demand for LWA increases. The aim
 C.R. Cheeseman, G.S. Virdi / Resources, Conservation and Recycling 45 (2005) 18–30 29

of ongoing research is to further optimise processing of SSA to produce low-cost LWA at

pilot plant scale, so that this increasingly important waste can be beneficially reused as a
potential resource.

5. Conclusions

• Sewage sludge ash from the Beckton sewage sludge incinerator in London UK appears
to be a homogenous material with a mean particle size of ∼100 ␮m. Major crystalline
phases present are quartz (SiO2 ), the calcium magnesium phosphate mineral whitlockite
(Ca7 Mg2 P6 O24 ), with some hematite (Fe2 O3 ).
• Spherical pellets of sintered SSA rapidly fired in a rotary furnace have properties com-
parable to Lytag, a leading commercially available lightweight aggregate.
• Sintering SSA at 1060 ◦ C produced pellets with mean densities of 1.35 g/cm3 , a wa-
ter absorption of approximately 8% and comparable crushing strengths to Lytag. For
comparison Lytag had mean densities of 1.43 g/cm3 and water absorption of ∼13%.
• The effect of increasing the clay addition to SSA had negligible effect on sintered prop-
erties. Lightweight pellets could be formed either using a clay or 1 wt% addition of an
organic binder.
• The results indicate significant potential for the manufacture of high quality LWA from
sewage sludge ash that is currently disposed of to landfill.

Acknowledgements

Thames Waste Management is acknowledged for providing sewage sludge incinerator

ash from the Beckton sludge incinerator plant for use in this research programme. Penny
Yapp is also acknowledged for previous work in the field. Martin Gill (Natural History
Museum, London) and Nick Royall (Materials Department, Imperial College London) are
also thanked for assistance with XRD and SEM analysis.

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