Search

In this paper we examine whether food residue biomass can be used as secondary fuel in the cement industry and how we may setup a pilot-scale plant for its processing. We gather samples from household waste in collaboration with the municipality of Haladri. The food residue is shredded and dried, leading to a high homogenous product. Using well-established international standards, we then measure certain key physicochemical properties such as its net calorific value, its concentration in heavy metals and chlorine content. The characterization allows assessment of its suitability as an alternative fuel in terms of economic and technical feasibility as well as environmental impact. This study concludes that food residue biomass is a good candidate as a secondary fuel for the cement industry. Keywords: cement industry, alternative fuel, co-processing, Food Residue Biomass (FORBI).

The main concept of the HORIZON 2020 Waste4Think project is to introduce and promote 20 eco-innovative solutions that cover the whole waste value chain. These solutions will be applied and assessed in 4 European cities: a) Zamudio (Basque Country, Spain); b) Halandri (Greece); c) Seveso (Italy); and d) Cascais (Portugal) (Waste4Think, 2015). The eco-innovative solutions will provide: IT tools, apps for citizens, educational materials and serious games, tools for citizen, changes based on economic instruments and social actions, and finally implementation, valorization and reuse of alternatives for the recovery of high-grade materials., The data set of the publication can be accessed at: http://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.3906241

The scope of the current research work was to produce and evaluate an adsorbent generated by pyrolysis/activation of a biomass product, FORBI (Food Residue Biomass), which is produced by drying and shredding source-collected Household Food Waste. A two-step chemical activation process was used. Pyrolysis conditions (temperature, duration) and activation parameters (chemical agents, impregnation ratio, soak time) affect the properties of the resultant adsorbent significantly. The adsorbent was prepared by chemical activation with KOH. Pyrolysis and activation were conducted at a temperature of 800˚C. The sample was impregnated with the chemical agents and then activated at 800˚C under constant N2 flow. The impregnation ratio of carbon / KOH was 1:4. Pyrolysis was carried out in a metallic-tube pyrolytic furnace. FORBI was placed into a metallic carrier located close to the nitrogen inlet. The heating profile in the metallic tube is monitored by a NiCr/Ni thermocouple. Thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) was used in order to assess the thermal stability of biomass (measuring weight loss as a function of temperature or time in a controlled atmosphere). TGA was carried out in a thermal analyzer under dynamic nitrogen (N2) atmosphere as purge gas, with a flow rate of 10 - 20 cm3/min. The sample (~60 mg) was placed in a cylindrical crucible made of quartz and then heated with a constant heating rate of 10 °C/min from ambient temperature to 1000°C. The information on dynamic residual weight and derivative thermogravimetry (DTG) with temperature was analyzed to determine the decomposition rate and thermal stability. The obtained adsorbent was characterized by measuring its porosity, pore size distribution and BET surface area. The surface chemical characteristics were determined by FT-IR. The microstructure of the produced activated carbon/adsorbent was examined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). In the sequel, the potential of using the generated adsorbent for hexavalent chromium as well as COD removal was examined. Langmuir and Freundlich isotherms were determined.

In this study, the use of a dual chamber microbial fuel cell (MFC) for the production of bioelectricity from a food residue biomass (FORBI) product was investigated. FORBI was produced by drying and shredding the pre-sorted fermentable fraction of household food waste collected door-to-door in the Municipality of Halandri, Athens, Greece. Different organic loads of FORBI were examined (0.7, 0.9, 1.4, 2.8, 6 and 14 g COD L-1 respectively). It was observed that an increase of the initial concentration of the final extract resulted in a corresponding increase in the operating time. The MFC potential increased from 33.3 mV to 46 mV as the concentration was increased from 0.7 to 14 g COD L-1. The best performance in terms of maximum power density (29.6 mW m-2) corresponding to a current density of 88 mA m-2) was observed for 6 g COD L-1. Setting the external resistance at its optimal value (Rext = 2 kΩ) as determined by polarization experiments , Pyield drastically increased to 13.7 and 17.3 Joule (g FORBI)-1 in two consecutive cycles. The results demonstrate that readily biodegradable substrates such as FORBI can be effectively used for enhanced bioelectricity harvesting in an MFC.