Roy Posmanik

Prospects for energy recovery during hydrothermal and biological processing of waste biomass.

Thermochemical and biological processes represent promising technologies for converting wet biomasses, such as animal manure, organic waste, or algae, to energy. To convert biomass to energy and bio-chemicals in an economical manner, internal energy recovery should be maximized to reduce the use of external heat and power. In this study, two conversion pathways that couple hydrothermal liquefaction with anaerobic digestion or catalytic hydrothermal gasification were compared. Each of these platforms is followed by two alternative processes for gas utilization: 1) combined heat and power; and 2) combustion in a boiler. Pinch analysis was applied to integrate thermal streams among unit processes and improve the overall system efficiency. A techno-economic analysis was conducted to compare the feasibility of the four modeled scenarios under different market conditions. Our results show that a systems approach designed to recover internal heat and power can reduce external energy demands and increase the overall process sustainability.

Coupling hydrothermal liquefaction and anaerobic digestion for energy valorization from model biomass feedstocks

Hydrothermal liquefaction converts food waste into oil and a carbon-rich hydrothermal aqueous phase. The hydrothermal aqueous phase may be converted to biomethane via anaerobic digestion. Here, the feasibility of coupling hydrothermal liquefaction and anaerobic digestion for the conversion of food waste into energy products was examined. A mixture of polysaccharides, proteins, and lipids, representing food waste, underwent hydrothermal processing at temperatures ranging from 200 to 350°C. The anaerobic biodegradability of the hydrothermal aqueous phase was examined through conducting biochemical methane potential assays. The results demonstrate that the anaerobic biodegradability of the hydrothermal aqueous phase was lower when the temperature of hydrothermal processing increased. The chemical composition of the hydrothermal aqueous phase affected the anaerobic biodegradability. However, no inhibition of biodegradation was observed for most samples. Combining hydrothermal and anaerobic digestion may, therefore, yield a higher energetic return by converting the feedstock into oil and biomethane.

Phases’ characteristics of poultry litter hydrothermal carbonization under a range of process parameters

The aim of this work was to study the hydrothermal carbonization of poultry litter under a range of process parameters. Experiments were conducted to investigate the effect of HTC of poultry litter under a range of operational parameters (temperature, reaction time, and solids concentration) on the formation and characteristics of its phases. Results showed production of a hydrochar with caloric value of 24.4MJ/kg, similar to sub-bituminous coal. The gaseous phase consisted mainly of CO2. However, significant amounts of H2S dictate the need for (further) treatment. The process also produced an aqueous phase with chemical characteristics suggesting its possible use as a liquid fertilizer. Temperature had the most significant effect on processes and product formation. Solids concentration was not a significant factor once dilution effects were considered.

Integrating electrochemical, biological, physical, and thermochemical process units to expand the applicability of anaerobic digestion

Anaerobic digestion (AD) is a mature biotechnology-production platform with millions of installations at homes, farms, and industrial/municipal settings. Large-scale industrial, agricultural, and municipal waste-treatment systems may observe novel integration with electrochemical, biological, physical, and thermochemical process units to make AD more attractive. Without governmental subsidies, AD has often only a relatively low economic return or none at all. Diversification of products besides methane in biogas may help to change this. Here, several sections discuss different process units to: 1) upgrade biogas into biomethane; 2) convert carbon dioxide in biogas to more biomethane; 3) generate cooling power from process heat; 4) produce bio-crude oil (bio-oil) from organic matter; and 5) produce a liquid biochemical product from organic matter. This is not meant to be an exhaustive list, but rather a selection of particularly promising process units from a technological view, which are already integrated with AD or close to full-scale integration.

Seasonal and soil-type dependent emissions of nitrous oxide from irrigated desert soils amended with digested poultry manures

Expansion of dryland agriculture requires intensive supplement of organic fertilizers to improve the fertility of nutrient-poor desert soils. The environmental impact of organic supplements in hot desert climates is not well understood. We report on seasonal emissions of nitrous oxide (N2O) from sand and loess soils, amended with limed and non-limed anaerobic digestate of poultry manure in the Israeli Negev desert. All amended soils had substantially higher N2O emissions, particularly during winter applications, compared to unammended soils. Winter emissions from amended loess (10-175mgN2Om-2day-1) were markedly higher than winter emissions from amended sand (2-7mgN2Om-2day-1). Enumeration of marker genes for nitrification and denitrification suggested that both have contributed to N2O emissions according to prevailing environmental conditions. Lime treatment of digested manure inhibited N2O emissions regardless of season or soil type, thus reducing the environmental impact of amending desert soils with manure digestate.