Chemical Composition of Municipal Sewage Sludge: A Tool for Risk Assessment of Agricultural Land Application

Rabia Cherfouh; Samira Si- Belkacem; Fatima Sekai; Si Ammar Kadi; Azeddine Mouhous; Ali Bouzourene; Zahia Dorbane; Nacima Zimbri- Zirmi; Houci Guermah; Farid Djellal; Idir Moualek

doi:10.55549/epstem.1754727

Chemical Composition of Municipal Sewage Sludge: A Tool for Risk Assessment of Agricultural Land Application

Abstract

A number of studies have shown that the application of sewage sludge to agricultural soils has a positive effect on plant nutrition. However, frequent application has been shown to result in soil contamination with potentially toxic metallic elements. The present research was conducted with the objective of establishing the chemical composition of sewage sludge from three urban wastewater treatment plants in Algerian’s north region. We determined chemical parameters that account for their nutrient concentration and total content of Cr, Cu, N and Pb.The analysis revealed that the municipal sludge collected exhibited a high organic content, as well as significant concentrations of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. This finding suggests that the use of sludge for agricultural purposes may be a beneficial application. The total contents of the five metals in the sludges were found to be significantly lower than the limit values that would be considered suitable for agricultural soil. However, it was observed that Ni concentration was already above the standards set by AFNOR, while Cr was found to be equivalent to 50% of the limit. Furthermore, the results obtained by means of the sequential extraction protocol demonstrate that a significant proportion of the total content of Cu and Pb is associated with fractions (acid-soluble, carbonates, oxides, organic matter) exhibiting higher levels of bioavailability under soil conditions. In contrast, Ni and Cr have been found to be bound to the residual fraction in up to 80–90% of the total concentration, making it the least bioavailable form for environmental impact.The results indicated that regulatory guidelines require refinement to account for the bioavailability of heavy metals in relation to soil properties.

Keywords

References

Cherfouh R., Si Belkacem, S., Sekai, F., Kadi, S.A., Mouhous A., Bouzourene, A., Dorbane, Z., Zirmi-Zembri N., Guermah H., Djellal F., & Moualek, I. (2025). Chemical composition of municipal sewage sludge: A tool for risk assessment of agricultural land application. The Eurasia Proceedings of Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics (EPSTEM), 34, 304-309.

Details

Primary Language

English

Subjects

Chemical Engineering (Other)

Journal Section

Conference Paper

Authors

Rabia Cherfouh This is me
Algeria

Samira Si- Belkacem This is me
Algeria

Fatima Sekai This is me
Algeria

Si Ammar Kadi This is me
Algeria

Azeddine Mouhous This is me
Algeria

Ali Bouzourene This is me
Algeria

Zahia Dorbane This is me
Algeria

Nacima Zimbri- Zirmi This is me
Algeria

Houci Guermah This is me
Algeria

Farid Djellal This is me
Algeria

Idir Moualek This is me
Algeria

Early Pub Date

August 1, 2025

Publication Date

August 1, 2025

Submission Date

February 8, 2025

Acceptance Date

March 20, 2025

Published in Issue

Year 2025 Volume: 34

DOI

https://doi.org/10.55549/epstem.1754727

IZ

https://izlik.org/JA37YU57EM

Cite

RIS / Bibtex

APA

Cherfouh, R., Si- Belkacem, S., Sekai, F., Kadi, S. A., Mouhous, A., Bouzourene, A., Dorbane, Z., Zimbri- Zirmi, N., Guermah, H., Djellal, F., & Moualek, I. (2025). Chemical Composition of Municipal Sewage Sludge: A Tool for Risk Assessment of Agricultural Land Application. The Eurasia Proceedings of Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics, 34, 304-309. https://doi.org/10.55549/epstem.1754727