Background Mounting difficulties in the use of sludge in agriculture and landfill disposal has made incineration an attractive solution for sludge disposal. In April 2000, the Commission published a work document on sludge that included new proposed limits of organic contaminants for the agricultural use of sludge. The implementation in Italy of the Landfill Directive has meant that is no longer possible to dispose of biodegradable waste in landfill. The Directive also requires Member States to reduce by 35% (compared with 1995 figures) the amount of biodegradable waste disposed in landfill within 15 years. Alternative solutions, especially for those types of sludge that are not suitable for agricultural use, are urgently needed. Sewage sludge is a poor material in terms of calorific value, thus limiting the convenience of electric energy recovery when it is finally disposed by incineration. Sludge incineration plants also have lower incineration capacities than equivalent municipal solid waste (MSW) plants. Furthermore, since sludge incineration plants need to use a continuous - rather than batch - process to avoid refractory stress, this corresponds to high operational costs. Objectives The main objective of the project was to overcome the specific problems and costs of sludge incineration produced from the textile industry. It aimed to develop a new technology that uses a high-tech furnace that can withstand the thermal shocks that are induced by the frequent shutdowns at night and start ups during the day. The project also aimed to: Demonstrate that the electrical energy produced by this system is feasible and convenient for plants of medium capacity; Demonstrate that ashes produced from sludge incineration are suitable for CO2 sequestration at the end of the process when the exhaust gases are cool; Provide wastewater treatment plant operators, public authorities and other stakeholders with extensive information on a full-scale plant equipped with innovative technological solutions for sludge incineration; Demonstrate that sludge incineration is both environmentally friendly and cost effective in comparison with other available solutions; Produce a study on diffusion of airborne pollutants; and Produce a lifecycle assessment (LCA) of sludge incineration. This would compare the new process both with a conventional one in which sludge is disposed in a landfill site and with the current incineration system presently carried out with a multiple hearth furnace.Results Since non of the foreseen objectives were achieved, the project was terminated in December 2010.