Sludge Volume Calculator

Daily Solids Production is a mass figure driven by raw water turbidity and coagulant dose — it doesn't depend on how concentrated the settled sludge is. Sludge Solids Content only comes into play when converting that fixed mass into a liquid volume: a higher solids percentage means the same mass of solids occupies less volume, which is why raising it lowers Daily Sludge Volume even though Daily Solids Production stays the same.

Across their full input ranges, Raw Water Turbidity has the larger effect on Daily Solids Production, since it can vary by several orders of magnitude between clear and highly turbid source water, while Plant Flow Rate typically varies over a narrower practical range. Both move solids production in the same direction — more turbidity or more flow, more solids — but turbidity swings are usually the bigger driver.

It changes only the coagulant-derived portion of solids, using a different mass-of-solids-per-mg/L factor for alum, ferric chloride, and ferric sulfate. The raw-turbidity-derived portion of your solids stays the same regardless of coagulant choice, so the overall swing from switching coagulants at a fixed dose is smaller than the swing from changing flow rate or raw turbidity.

No — they use fixed illustrative solids concentrations (3% for thickened sludge, 20% for dewatered cake) applied to your calculated solids mass, rather than your specific thickening or dewatering equipment's real performance. Use them as a general sizing reference and confirm against your actual process solids capture and concentration data.

Those are fixed default assumptions used to translate your daily sludge volume into an illustrative lagoon footprint, not values pulled from your specific permit. Many facilities have different required storage durations and lagoon depths set by their state permit conditions, so treat the Lagoon Size figure as a starting estimate to verify against your actual design and regulatory requirements.