Anaerobic Digestion of Organic Municipal Solid Waste
Abstract:
With the introduction of municipal green bin programs, a new facility will be needed to process the household organic waste for the three largest municipalities in Southwestern Ontario. In order to create valuable products without the negative impact of releasing carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, anaerobic digestion is the selected processing method. The anaerobic digestion process will produce the following: nutrient-rich water and fertilizer that can both be used for agriculture, renewable natural gas that can be added to the natural gas line, and a pure carbon dioxide stream which can be used for a variety of processes. All of the end products have commercial value while still being overall carbon neutral. The process uses innovative technologies such as micro-aeration in anaerobic digestion and membrane separation for biogas upgrading. This process also has recognized technologies with proven safety records such as a high-solids stackable anaerobic digestion, biogas desulfurization using activated carbon, and controlled in-vessel composting
Students:
Nikita Gupta, Kimberley Hemme, Balsam Mudathir, Abram Robiso
