Management of biological sewage sludge: Fertilizer nitrogen recovery as the solution to fertilizer crisis

Chojnacka, K.; Skrzypczak, Dawid; Szopa, Daniel; Izydorczyk, Grzegorz; Μουστάκας, Κωνσταντίνος; Witek‐Krowiak, Anna

doi:10.1016/j.jenvman.2022.116602

Cited by 56 publications

(13 citation statements)

References 69 publications

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“…The excessive supply of nutrients can harm crops and causes soil degradation and aquifer contamination ( Solgi et al., 2018 ; Ashitha et al., 2021 ). Moreover, the price of fertilizers has soared in the last two years, driven by the scarcity of raw materials ( IndexBox, 2022 ; MordorIntelligence, 2022 ; Chojnacka et al., 2023 ; Lahmiri, 2017 ). For instance, the price of simple inorganic fertilizers rose from 0.60 EUR in 2021 to 1.60 EUR in 2022 in Spain ( IndexBox, 2022 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evaluation of an autonomous smart system for optimal management of fertigation with variable sources of irrigation water

et al. 2023

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Modern irrigation technologies and tools can help boost fertigation efficiency and sustainability, particularly when using irrigation water of varying quality. In this study, a high-tech irrigation head using a new fertigation optimization tool called NutriBalance, which is designed to manage feed waters of different qualities, has been evaluated from technical and economic perspectives. NutriBalance computes the optimal fertigation dose based on specific data about the equipment, the crop, the irrigation water, and the fertilizers available, in order to enable autonomous and accurate water and fertilizer supply. The system was trialed in a grapefruit orchard irrigated with fresh and desalinated water for several values of crop nutritional requirements and considering different fertilizer price scenarios. The results showed the good interoperability between the tool and the irrigation head and the nearly flawless ability (error below 7% for most ions) of the system to provide the prescribed fertigation with different combinations of irrigation water. Fertilizer savings of up to 40% were achieved, which, for the lifespan of the equipment, were estimated to correspond to around 500 EUR/ha/year. The results of this study can encourage the adoption of novel technologies and tools by farmers.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evaluation of an autonomous smart system for optimal management of fertigation with variable sources of irrigation water

et al. 2023

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“…Natural gas shortages and rising prices made nitrogen fertilizers production very expensive. Due to the epidemic and the war in Ukraine, the costs of nitrogen fertilizers have increased, and the price of ammonium nitrate rose from EUR 250 per ton (2021) to EUR 1500 per ton in 2022 [4]. From wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs), renewable nitrogen material is highly available.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…From wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs), renewable nitrogen material is highly available. The nitrogen mainly comes from urea from human urine in municipal wastewater [4]. Human urine contains most of the nutrients, and about 80% of the nitrogen [5].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Life Cycle, PESTLE, and Multi-Criteria Decision Analyses of Novel Process for Nitrogen Recovery from Reject Water: Combining Electroconcentration and Stripping Methods

Nagy,

Do Thi,

Toth

2023

Water

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Reactive nitrogen (Nr) has become an essential nutrient to reclaim and recycle from wastewater. Nitrogen has become a valued resource that is beneficial to recover in the wastewater sector, as nitrogen is a key component in many fertilizers. The main subject of this work is to investigate the environmental consequences of a novel nitrogen recovery process from reject water. In our study, Life Cycle Analysis (LCA), PESTLE, and Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) were used to examine combining electroconcentration and stripping methods, including Monte Carlo simulation. Using SimaPro V9.3 software, the EF 3.0 Method, IPCC 2021 GWP100, ReCiPe 2016, and IMPACT World+ Endpoint were applied with heat and power, electricity high voltage, nuclear energy, and two renewable energies (solar and wind). EF 3.0 was endorsed by the European Commission for environmental footprinting. The operational unit of 1 m3 of reject water was chosen as the output, and “gate-to-gate” analysis was investigated. Our calculations show that the energies derived from natural sources reduce fossil-based environmental impacts and CO2 emissions significantly compared with conventional energy sources. A TOPSIS score was applied to appraise the choices in the case of MCDA. For the Australian territory, for the place of implementation of the technology, the most beneficial option was discovered to be wind energy offshore, with a score of 0.95, and the next was solar energy at 0.87.

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“…Research on the use of treated sewage [22,23] and dried sludge [24,25] as a fertilizer has been conducted worldwide. Recently, the widespread use of hydroponic cultivation has also brought attention to the use of treated sewage as liquid fertilizer for the sustainable use and recycling of fertilizer ingredients [26].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of Sewage Treatment Water Supply on Leaf Development and Yield of Tuberous Roots in Multilayered Sweet Potato Cultivation

et al. 2023

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To develop a way to mass-produce sweet potatoes (Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam.) as an energy crop to replace fossil fuels, the effects of using a sewage supply as a fertilizer and heat source were investigated. When 25 pots planted with sweet potato vine seedlings were arranged in three layers and cultivated for 160 days from June to November by supplying treated sewage to the root zone, the yield of tuberous roots reached 19.5 kg m−2 due to the massive growth of leaves. In addition, when sweet potato seedlings were replanted in December and treated sewage was supplied to maintain the irrigation water temperature above 15 °C even in winter, overwintering cultivation was successful and 8.4 kg m−2 of tuberous roots were harvested in July. As a result, the annual production rate for 12 months increased to 25.3 kg m−2, about 10 times the national average of 2.4 kg m−2 for open-field cultivation. The results far exceed previously reported maximum production of resource crops, such as sugarcane and eucalyptus, suggesting that the mass production of sweet potatoes by supplying treated sewage could provide an alternative to fossil fuels on a large scale.

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Management of biological sewage sludge: Fertilizer nitrogen recovery as the solution to fertilizer crisis

Cited by 56 publications

References 69 publications

Evaluation of an autonomous smart system for optimal management of fertigation with variable sources of irrigation water

Evaluation of an autonomous smart system for optimal management of fertigation with variable sources of irrigation water

Life Cycle, PESTLE, and Multi-Criteria Decision Analyses of Novel Process for Nitrogen Recovery from Reject Water: Combining Electroconcentration and Stripping Methods

Effects of Sewage Treatment Water Supply on Leaf Development and Yield of Tuberous Roots in Multilayered Sweet Potato Cultivation

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