Guodian Power Pilots Coal Sludge Treatment to Advance Zero-Waste Operations

Guodian Power’s Jingjie Plant has entered the trial phase of a new coal sludge treatment system designed to support its “zero-waste enterprise” goals.

Original By NLS

Guodian Power’s Jingjie Plant has entered the trial phase of a new coal sludge treatment system designed to support its “zero-waste enterprise” goals. The project enables efficient recovery and reuse of coal sludge, which can be blended into boiler fuel via co-firing—turning waste into a resource. It eliminates environmental risks caused by sludge accumulation while advancing goals of waste reduction, hazard mitigation, and resource recovery.

The system uses an integrated process: wastewater collection, high-frequency screening, thickening, high-pressure filter pressing, and clean water reuse. It replaces traditional open-air drying with inclined-tube thickeners and ultra-high-pressure filter presses. This setup removes impurities, reduces sludge volume, and separates clean water. The resulting sludge cakes have a moisture content below 20%, suitable for boiler co-firing, while the recovered water exceeds industrial reuse standards.

Capable of treating over 50 cubic meters of wastewater per hour, the system is expected to reduce annual sludge accumulation by 2,000–5,000 tons and recover refined coal worth over RMB 200,000. Moisture content drops from 60% to below 20%, effectively eliminating the pollution risks tied to traditional drying practices.

To tackle the technical challenges, Guodian Power assembled a specialized team to conduct field studies across nearby power plants, coal preparation plants, and mines. By analyzing sludge characteristics and processing bottlenecks, the team developed and refined an innovative solution through multiple technical reviews. After a year of R&D and implementation, the project has now been successfully completed.