Is phytoremediation without biomass valorization sustainable? — Comparative LCA of landfilling vs. anaerobic co-digestion

Vigil, Miguel; Pérez, Milagros Fernández; Huerta, Gemma Martínez; Cabal, Valeriano Álvarez

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2014.10.047

Cited by 77 publications

(36 citation statements)

References 33 publications

(40 reference statements)

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“…This type of analyses was used to assess the combination of phytoremediation of contaminated soils with energy production by Witters et al (2012) and Kuppens et al (2015) for willow, rapeseed and maize, and by Nsanganwimana et al (2014) for Miscanthus x giganteus. Vigil et al (2015) confirmed that biomass valorization was necessary to make this soil remediation technique sustainable. In the case of Niagromining, studies applying LCA to assess the environmental impact of this process are rare.…”

Section: Environmental Assessmentmentioning

confidence: 77%

Developing Sustainable Agromining Systems in Agricultural Ultramafic Soils for Nickel Recovery

Kidd

Bani

Benizri

et al. 2018

Front. Environ. Sci.

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Ultramafic soils are typically enriched in nickel (Ni), chromium (Cr), and cobalt (Co) and deficient in essential nutrients, making them unattractive for traditional agriculture. Implementing agromining systems in ultramafic agricultural soils represent an ecological option for the sustainable management and re-valorisation of these low-productivity landscapes. These novel agroecosystems cultivate Ni-hyperaccumulating plants which are able to bioaccumulate this metal in their aerial plant parts; harvested biomass can be incinerated to produce Ni-enriched ash or "bio-ore" from which Ni metal, Ni ecocatalysts or pure Ni salts can be recovered. Nickel hyperaccumulation has been documented in ∼450 species, and in temperate latitudes these mainly belong to the family Brassicaceae and particularly to the genus Odontarrhena (syn. Alyssum pro parte). Agromining allows for sustainable metal recovery without causing the environmental impacts associated with conventional mining activities, and at the same time, can improve soil fertility and quality and provide essential ecosystem services. Parallel reductions in Ni phytotoxicity over time would also permit cultivation of conventional agricultural crops. Field studies in Europe have been restricted to Mediterranean areas and these only evaluated the Ni-hyperaccumulator Odontarrhena muralis s.l. Two recent EU projects (Agronickel and LIFE-Agromine) have established a network of agromining field sites in ultramafic regions with different edapho-climatic characteristics across Albania, Austria, Greece and Spain. Soil and crop management practices are being developed so as to Kidd et al. Sustainable Agromining Systems for Nickel Recovery optimize the Ni agromining process; field studies are evaluating the potential benefits of fertilization regimes, crop selection and cropping patterns, and bioaugmentation with plant-associated microorganisms. Hydrometallurgical processes are being up-scaled to produce nickel compounds and energy from hyperaccumulator biomass. Exploratory techno-economic assessment of Ni metal recovery by pyrometallurgical conversion of O. muralis s.l. shows promising results under the condition that heat released during incineration can be valorized in the vicinity of the processing facility.

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Section: Environmental Assessmentmentioning

confidence: 77%

Developing Sustainable Agromining Systems in Agricultural Ultramafic Soils for Nickel Recovery

Kidd

Bani

Benizri

et al. 2018

Front. Environ. Sci.

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“…(), harvested aquatic plants can be used in biopetrol and biochar production by being subjected to the pyrolysis treatment, thus recovering the discharged wastes. Also, the different uses include animal fodder, cellulosic‐derived bioproducts, construction of building materials and plant fibre/plastic composites, paper industry and bio‐sourced biochemistry such as the production of γ‐Valero lactone, Cue cocatalyst and potential fertilizers (compost, biochar, litter) (Idris et al ., ; Evangelou et al , ; Nsanganwimana et al ., ; Vigil et al ., ; Arslan Topal et al ., ; Oustriere et al ., ). It should be born in mind that the type of pollutants removed by the plants will be a crucial factor for the utilization of the biomass after harvest.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Removal of tetracycline antibiotic by Lemna gibba L. from aqueous solutions

Topal

Öbek

Şenel

et al. 2018

Water & Environment J

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In this study, the efficiency of Lemna gibba L. on tetracycline (TC) removal from the solutions prepared at various initial TC concentrations (50, 100 and 300 µg/L) was investigated. The study was conducted in the reactors planted with Lemna gibba L. plants. Lemna gibba L. plants in the reactors were harvested at various hydraulic retention times. Then, the concentrations of TC were determined by using LC/‐MS‐MS. The maximum removal efficiencies for the TC50, TC100 and TC300 in the planted reactors were 99.8 ± 4.1; 99.9 ± 4.9 and 99 ± 4.9%, respectively. The harvesting times for Lemna gibba L. at TC50, TC100 and TC300 concentrations were determined to be 12, 8 and 12 hours, respectively. First‐, second‐ and pseudo‐first‐order kinetics are determined in the planted reactors (with Lemna gibba L.). According to the study results, second‐order kinetics were obtained at TC50, TC100, TC300 concentrations. As a result, the Lemna gibba L. plant can be used as an alternative treatment method to other advanced treatment methods and it can be done with a cheap method by adapting to existing treatment plants. Lemna gibba L. plants can be used to remove pollutants by applying them to polluted lakes and water bodies.

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“…The final single-score indicator is calculated as a weighted sum of the normalized midpoint impact scores, depending on the relative importance of each category [43]. Since their development in 2008, ReCiPe scores have been broadly used to assess the life cycle impact [17,[44][45][46][47], as this method encompasses both midpoint and endpoint indicators harmonizing previous popular approaches at each level, enabling the LCA to be flexible and more uniform [43].…”

Section: Life Cycle Impact Assessmentmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sustainability Analysis of Active Packaging for the Fresh Cut Vegetable Industry by Means of Attributional & Consequential Life Cycle Assessment

et al. 2020

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In order to enlarge the shelf life and avoid the waste of fresh-cut (FC) products, novel packaging techniques with antimicrobial properties have been proposed. In this work, we analyzed the potential environmental benefits of using films reinforced with bactericidal ZnO nanoparticles (NP) for FC produce packaging, when compared to the traditional polypropylene (PP) films. A biodegradable, polylactic acid (PLA) package and a non-biodegradable, polypropylene package, both coated with ZnO NP, were considered as novel technologies. The eco-profile of the considered alternatives was assessed via two life cycle assessments (LCAs). Firstly, an attributional LCA was performed in order to compare the materials in terms of their production and end of life (EOL) processes, allowing us to extend the conclusions to different food products. Secondly, a consequential LCA was performed taking into account the whole life cycle of the fresh vegetable, with special attention to the environmental implications of the produce losses among the chain. The uncertainties of the models were assessed via Monte Carlo approach. In both cases, the scenarios concerning the PLA and PP active packages with ZnO NP showed a better profile than the traditional techniques, specifically when considering the full supply chain of the FC vegetables in the consequential LCA. As agricultural production is the main contributor to the environmental impact of the cycle, the avoidance of wastes by extending the shelf life through the novel packages leads to the impact reduction of FC products.

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Is phytoremediation without biomass valorization sustainable? — Comparative LCA of landfilling vs. anaerobic co-digestion

Cited by 77 publications

References 33 publications

Developing Sustainable Agromining Systems in Agricultural Ultramafic Soils for Nickel Recovery

Developing Sustainable Agromining Systems in Agricultural Ultramafic Soils for Nickel Recovery

Removal of tetracycline antibiotic by Lemna gibba L. from aqueous solutions

Sustainability Analysis of Active Packaging for the Fresh Cut Vegetable Industry by Means of Attributional & Consequential Life Cycle Assessment

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