Life-Cycle Assessment of Activated Carbon From Woody Biomass

Gu, Hongmei; Bergman, Richard; Anderson, Nathaniel; Alanya-Rosenbaum, Sevda

doi:10.22382/wfs-2018-024

Cited by 73 publications

(51 citation statements)

References 28 publications

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“…The CED for the production of BMC and BWC (30 and 15 MJ kg -1, respectively) was notably lower than for CC (53 MJ kg −1 ). Our data differ widely from results of other studies, which found CED values between 158 and 241 MJ kg −1 for woodchip and coal-based AC, respectively (Bayer et al 2005, Gu et al 2018. The lower CED for BMC and BWC production in our study was mainly caused by the efficient pyrolysis and activation processes as well as by recovered electricity from anaerobic digestion of press liquids.…”

Section: Cumulative Energy Demand (Ced)contrasting

confidence: 99%

“…The low GWP in our study can be attributed to the efficient pyrolysis and activation process, whereby the combustion of pyrolysis gas provided more heat than was required. While pyrolysis was reported to account for 30%-47% of the total GWP in other studies (Hjaila et al 2013, Gu et al 2018, it only contributed 7% in the present study. Furthermore, electricity generation from the IFBB press fluid reduced the energy demand for production and, consequently, the GWP.…”

Section: Global Warming Potentialcontrasting

confidence: 58%

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Sustainability assessment of activated carbon from residual biomass used for micropollutant removal at a full-scale wastewater treatment plant

Joseph

Kaetzl

Hensgen

et al. 2020

Environ. Res. Lett.

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Activated carbon (AC), used for removal of organic micropollutants in European wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs), is usually produced from non-renewable resources that need to be transported over long distances. Utilising local residual biomass as a raw material may be advantageous in terms of sustainability. This study investigated the environmental and energy balances of using biowaste and biomass from landscape management for micropollutant removal at a commercial scale WWTP. Both residual biomasses were processed using the integrated generation of solid fuel and biogas from biomass (IFBB) technique to obtain a press cake that was used as feedstock for AC production. The results showed a lower global warming potential (GWP) and cumulative energy demand in comparison to a fossil-based conventional AC Differences in GWP between residual and fossil ACs were enhanced when the end-of-life incineration step was considered, and residual AC had a lower social risk associated with its production. Energy efficiency of AC production was substantially increased by utilising waste heat generated in the pyrolysis process of biochar production and by using electricity generated in a combined heat and power plant using biogas from the methanation of IFBB press fluids. Converting residual biomass into activated carbon using IFBB and a state-of-the-art pyrolysis and activation unit along with energy recovery would improve WWTP sustainability and self-sufficiency in terms of the raw materials required.

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Section: Cumulative Energy Demand (Ced)contrasting

confidence: 99%

Section: Global Warming Potentialcontrasting

confidence: 58%

Sustainability assessment of activated carbon from residual biomass used for micropollutant removal at a full-scale wastewater treatment plant

Joseph

Kaetzl

Hensgen

et al. 2020

Environ. Res. Lett.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…The CED for the production of BMC and BWC (30 and 15 MJ kg -1 respectively) was notably lower than for CC (53 MJ kg -1 ). Our data differ widely from results of other studies, which found CED values between 158 and 241 MJ kg -1 for woodchip and coalbased AC respectively (Bayer et al, 2005;Gu et al, 2018). The lower CED for BMC and BWC production in our study was mainly caused by the efficient pyrolysis and activation processes as well as by recovered electricity from anaerobic digestion of press liquids.…”

Section: Cumulative Energy Demand (Ced)contrasting

confidence: 99%

“…The low GWP in our study can be attributed to the efficient pyrolysis and activation process, where the combustion of pyrolysis gas provided more heat than needed. While pyrolysis was reported to account for 30-47 % of the total GWP (Gu et al, 2018;Hjaila et al, 2013), it was only 7% in the present study. Further, electricity generation from the IFBB press fluid reduced the energy demand for production and, consequently, the GWP.…”

Section: Global Warming Potentialcontrasting

confidence: 53%

Sustainability Assessment of Activated Carbon from Residual Biomass used for Micropollutant Removal at a Full-Scale Wastewater Treatment Plant

Joseph¹,

Kaetzl²,

Hensgen³

et al. 2020

Preprint

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Activated carbon (AC) used for removal of organic micropollutants in European wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) is usually produced from non-renewable resources that need to be transported over long distances. Utilising local residual biomass as a raw material may be advantageous in terms of sustainability. This study investigated the environmental and energy balances of using biowaste and biomass from landscape management for micropollutant removal at a commercial scale WWTP. Both residual biomasses were processed using the integrated generation of solid fuel and biogas from biomass (IFBB) technique to obtain a press cake that was used as feedstock for AC production. The results showed a lower global warming potential (GWP) and cumulative energy demand in comparison to a fossil-based conventional AC. Differences in GWP between residual and fossil ACs were enhanced when the end-of-life incineration step was considered, and residual AC had a lower social risk associated with its production. Energy efficiency of AC production was substantially increased by utilising waste heat generated in the pyrolysis process of biochar and by using electricity generated in a combined heat and power plant using biogas from the methanation of IFBB press fluids. Converting residual biomass into activated carbon using IFBB and a state-of-the-art pyrolysis and activation unit along with energy recovery would aid WWTPs to become self-sufficient in terms of raw materials and improve the sustainability of WWTPs.

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“…Stemwood is the best feedstock material based on the low ash content. Previous studies have investigated the forest management, harvest, transport, and processing of biomass, as well as the biomass pyrolysis [42]. The emissions from harvest and transport of biomass are low for short distance transportation and can be neglected if these emissions are biogenic [75].…”

Section: Biomass Pretreatmentmentioning

confidence: 99%

Life Cycle Assessment of Renewable Reductants in the Ferromanganese Alloy Production: A Review

2021

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This study examined the literature on life cycle assessment on the ferromanganese alloy production route. The environmental impacts of raw material acquisition through the production of carbon reductants to the production of ferromanganese alloys were examined and compared. The transition from the current fossil fuel-based production to a more sustainable production route was reviewed. Besides the environmental impact, policy and socioeconomic impacts were considered due to evaluation course of differences in the production routes. Charcoal has the potential to substantially replace fossil fuel reductants in the upcoming decades. The environmental impact from current ferromanganese alloy production can be reduced by ≥20% by the charcoal produced in slow pyrolysis kilns, which can be further reduced by ≥50% for a sustainable production in high-efficient retorts. Certificated biomass can ensure a sustainable growth to avoid deforestation and acidification of the environment. Although greenhouse gas emissions from transport are low for the ferromanganese alloy production, they may increase due to the low bulk density of charcoal and the decentralized production of biomass. However, centralized charcoal retorts can provide additional by-products or biofuel and ensure better product quality for the industrial application. Further upgrading of charcoal can finally result in a CO2 neutral ferromanganese alloy production for the renewable power supply.

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Life-Cycle Assessment of Activated Carbon From Woody Biomass

Cited by 73 publications

References 28 publications

Sustainability assessment of activated carbon from residual biomass used for micropollutant removal at a full-scale wastewater treatment plant

Sustainability assessment of activated carbon from residual biomass used for micropollutant removal at a full-scale wastewater treatment plant

Sustainability Assessment of Activated Carbon from Residual Biomass used for Micropollutant Removal at a Full-Scale Wastewater Treatment Plant

Life Cycle Assessment of Renewable Reductants in the Ferromanganese Alloy Production: A Review

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