Prospective LCA to provide environmental guidance for developing waste-to-PHA biorefineries

Oso, Mateo Saavedra del; Mauricio‐Iglesias, Miguel; Hospido, Almudena; Steubing, Bernhard

doi:10.1016/j.jclepro.2022.135331

Cited by 11 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 54 publications

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“…Nevertheless, ex ante LCAs can provide valuable insights for decision-makers, enabling them to make informed choices about the development and adoption of new technologies or processes with a focus on sustainability. 22,23 Even though some articles regarding the use of mechanochemistry or wet milling as an example of avoiding other environmentally intensive processes have been recently published, 24−27 the scientific literature is scarce of LCAs of these processes. A comprehensive literature review of research articles performing LCA of fiber separation methods of wood chips by WMP or CDP was conducted using a rigorous search methodology by strings:…”

Section: ■ Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…As it deals with future scenarios, results are estimative, and uncertainties may be higher compared to retrospective LCAs, which assess existing products or processes. Nevertheless, ex ante LCAs can provide valuable insights for decision-makers, enabling them to make informed choices about the development and adoption of new technologies or processes with a focus on sustainability. , …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Wood Chips Components Separation with a New Wet-Milling Process Compared to Chemical Depolymerization: A Technical, Economic, and Environmental Comparison

Arfelis,

Malpartida,

Bala

et al. 2024

ACS Sustainable Chem. Eng.

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This article evaluates two processes, wet milling and chemical depolymerization, for the end-of-life of wood waste in terms of environmental performance (ex ante life cycle assessment), energy balance, and economic analysis of the operating costs. Cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin are essential components with numerous applications. The study provides valuable insights for industry stakeholders, policymakers, and researchers of the wet milling process (WMP), which is scarcely reported in the literature. The chemical depolymerization process (CDP) is discontinuous and more energy-intensive, while the WMP is a continuous reaction demanding milder conditions and shorter times. However, the milling process requires a pretreatment to reduce the wood chip size. Economic analysis shows that the CDP has lower operational costs when considering the average European electricity price in 2019. This is a result of the price differences between steam and electricity. For lower electricity prices such as in France or using utility-scale solar photovoltaics, the WMP has lower operational costs. The WMP also outperforms the CDP in most environmental indicators, such as global warming potential, particularly when using green electricity technologies.

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Section: ■ Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Wood Chips Components Separation with a New Wet-Milling Process Compared to Chemical Depolymerization: A Technical, Economic, and Environmental Comparison

Arfelis,

Malpartida,

Bala

et al. 2024

ACS Sustainable Chem. Eng.

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“…In this setting, environmental and economic considerations limit the scale-up of this type of process. A major contributor in both environmental and economic terms is the energy cost, which is largely derived from the insufflation of air to maintain aerobic conditions [20,21].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Influence of Aeration Rate on Uncoupled Fed Mixed Microbial Cultures for Polyhydroxybutyrate Production

Castagnoli,

Falcioni,

Touloupakis

et al. 2024

Sustainability

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The use of residual streams as feedstock for the production of polyhydroxyalkanoates (PHAs) is growing steadily, as it allows the valorization of waste and nutrients otherwise disposed of and the potential production of a biodegradable bioplastic. To date, the environmental and economic costs associated with this process limit its scale-up, which is why it is important to identify possible solutions and optimize the costliest steps. With this in mind, a laboratory-scale sequenced batch reactor (SBR, 5 L) was constructed to allow the selection of a mixed microbial culture able to convert volatile fatty acids (VFAs) into PHA. The reactor is fed with synthetic water containing VFAs, ammonium, phosphate, and micronutrients, typical compounds of fermented streams of certain wastes, such as cheese whey, food waste, or wastewater sludge. The biomass selected and produced by this first reactor is sent to an accumulation reactor, which is fed with a solution rich in VFAs, allowing the accumulation of PHAs. The role of aeration and its impacts on the main process parameters were analyzed. Three scenarios corresponding to different aeration rates were analyzed: 0.08, 0.16, and 0.32 vvm. The SBR was operated at an organic load rate of 600 mgCOD L−1d−1, under a dynamic feeding regime (feast–famine) and a short hydraulic retention time (HRT; 1 day). The results obtained showed that a value of 0.32 enabled better selection and better settling of the sludge. Furthermore, a potential correlation between aeration rate and VFA and NH4+ consumption rates was identified. The resulting biomass was able to accumulate up to 0.15 ± 0.02 g PHAgVSS−1.

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Ex-Ante Life Cycle Assessment of Emerging and Novel Technologies

Müller-Carneiro,

Rodrigues,

Figueirêdo

et al. 2024

Reference Module in Earth Systems and Environmental Sciences

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Prospective LCA to provide environmental guidance for developing waste-to-PHA biorefineries

Cited by 11 publications

References 54 publications

Wood Chips Components Separation with a New Wet-Milling Process Compared to Chemical Depolymerization: A Technical, Economic, and Environmental Comparison

Wood Chips Components Separation with a New Wet-Milling Process Compared to Chemical Depolymerization: A Technical, Economic, and Environmental Comparison

Influence of Aeration Rate on Uncoupled Fed Mixed Microbial Cultures for Polyhydroxybutyrate Production

Ex-Ante Life Cycle Assessment of Emerging and Novel Technologies

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