TS EN 12832

TS EN 12832 is a vocabulary standard for sludge characterisation in the context of sludge utilisation and disposal. Its role is to establish a common technical language for terms used across storm water handling, night soil, urban wastewater collection and treatment, industrial wastewater discharged to urban systems, water supply treatment plants, and water distribution systems.

What this vocabulary helps distinguish

The standard is useful because sludge is not a single, uniform material. In general technical terms, sludge is a semi-solid mixture of water and solids whose behaviour, handling and end use depend strongly on its origin and treatment history. Sludge from municipal wastewater systems, septic sources, storm water management or water-treatment operations may share broad characteristics, yet they are managed differently in practice. A controlled vocabulary helps engineers, operators and specifiers describe those differences consistently.

Another important boundary is the exclusion of hazardous industrial sludges. That distinction matters because sludge terminology is often linked to collection systems, treatment routes, reuse options and disposal pathways, but hazardous industrial materials are governed by different technical and regulatory considerations. This document therefore serves as a terminology reference for the specified water and wastewater sectors rather than as a process or performance standard.

• Based on the sludge terms in the scope of CENT/TC 308.
• Covers urban wastewater collecting systems and treatment plants.
• Includes terms for water supply treatment plants and distribution systems.
• Includes industrial wastewater discharged to urban wastewater systems as defined in Directive 91/271/EEC.
• Excludes hazardous sludges from industry.