Inactivation of enteric viruses in wastewater sludge through dewatering by evaporation

Journal Article · Tue Nov 01 04:00:00 EST 1977 · Appl. Environ. Microbiol.; (United States)

OSTI ID:5134881

Ward, R L; Ashley, C S

The effect of dewatering on the inactivation rates of enteric viruses in sludge was determined. For this study, water was evaporated from seeded raw sludge at 21/sup 0/C, and the loss of viral plaque-forming units was measured. Initial results with poliovirus showed that recoverable infectivity gradually decreased with the loss of water until the solids content reached about 65 percent. When the solids content was increased from 65 to 83 percent, a further, more dramatic decrease in virus titer of greater than three orders of magnitude was observed. This loss of infectivity was due to irreversible inactivation of poliovirus because viral particles were found to have released their RNA molecules which were extensively degraded. Viral inactivation in these experiments may have been at least partially caused by the evaporation process itself because similar effects on poliovirus particles were observed in distilled water after only partial loss of water by evaporation. Coxsackievirus and reovirus were also found to be inactivated in sludge under comparable conditions, which suggests that dewatering by evaporation may be a feasible method of inactivating all enteric viruses in sludge.

• Research Organization: Sandia Labs., Albuquerque, NM
• OSTI ID: 5134881
• Journal Information: Appl. Environ. Microbiol.; (United States), Journal Name: Appl. Environ. Microbiol.; (United States) Vol. 34:5; ISSN AEMID
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

32 ENERGY CONSERVATION, CONSUMPTION, AND UTILIZATION
320604 -- Energy Conservation
Consumption
& Utilization-- Municipalities & Community Systems-- Municipal Waste Management-- (1980-)
550700* -- Microbiology
59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
EVAPORATION
HYDROGEN COMPOUNDS
LIQUID WASTES
MANAGEMENT
MICROORGANISMS
NUCLEIC ACIDS
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
PARASITES
PHASE TRANSFORMATIONS
POLIO VIRUS
PROCESSING
REMOVAL
RNA
SLUDGES
VIRUSES
WASTE MANAGEMENT
WASTE PROCESSING
WASTE WATER
WASTES
WATER
WATER REMOVAL