Valorization of solid waste in sugar factories with possible applications in India : A review

Sugar production is a major agro-based industry in India that generates various solid wastes viz. sugarcane trash, bagasse, press mud and bagasse fly ash. This work examines the state-of-the-art in innovative value added products that can be obtained from the transformation of these wastes. Challenges in implementing these waste valorization solutions are also highlighted. It is observed that the extent of research and adoption of these solutions vary considerably. Both industry involvement as well as government encouragement is required in translating the research findings into commercial products.     

Predicting future quantities of obsolete household appliances in Nanjing by a stock-based model

China has become one of the largest producers of obsolete household appliances (HAs) in the world. However, information on discarded HAs in China is deficient owing to the unavailability of reliable data. The estimation of future obsolete streams is a crucial issue for the establishment of efficient waste collection and recycling systems. The present study describes a prediction model to forecast future obsolete HAs on the basis of information of in-use stocks of HAs in households. The model was applied to a forecasting analysis of quantities of obsolete HAs from 2009 to 2050 in Nanjing, China. The results show that a total of about 76 million units (2.8 million tonnes) of obsolete HAs will be generated in Nanjing over the next 40 years. Discarded air conditioners, color TV sets, and personal computers will be the major contributors. The total discarded amount of major kinds of HAs will increase from nearly 1.0 million units in 2009 to a maximum of 2.1 million units in 2040, and then decrease slightly to 2.0 million units in 2050. Urban households will generate significantly more obsolete HAs (about 56 million units) than rural households, due to the difference in their HA possession levels. The results of this study should help the Nanjing municipality to develop the collection and recycling systems and facilities needed for the obsolete HAs generated in the future. From a methodological perspective, the stock-based model provides a suitable tool to predict the generation of discarded HAs in the future.     

The causes of food waste in the supplier-retailer interface: Evidences from the UK and Spain

Food and drink waste is a significant problem for economic, environmental and food security reasons. Government efforts have focused on diverting waste away from landfill through regulation, taxation and public awareness. However, efforts to understand why waste occurs have been limited, particularly in the interface between retailers and suppliers. This research aims to address this problem by identifying the main root causes of waste in the supplier-retailer interface.The research is exploratory in nature as there is a paucity of studies focusing on food waste across the supply chain. Data were collected through 43 interviews with managers in food manufacturing, wholesaling and retailing in two countries: the UK (24) and Spain (19). Data from the interviews and supplementary documentation were analyzed using causal maps. This approach helped to identify the main root causes of waste which were categorized into three groups: (1) mega-trends in the marketplace, (2) natural causes related to the products and processes, and (3) management root causes on which practitioners have a direct impact.The paper discusses the root causes of food waste and good practices identified from the interviews. Differences between the UK and Spain are discussed, presenting potential learning opportunities for practitioners in these countries and highlighting opportunities for further research.     

Effects of reductive inorganics and NOM on the formation of chlorite in the chlorine dioxide disinfection of drinking water

Chlorine dioxide (ClO₂) disinfection usually does not produce halogenated disinfection by-products, but the formation of the inorganic by-product chlorite (ClO₂^–) is a serious consideration. In this study, the ClO₂^– formation rule in the ClO₂ disinfection of drinking water was investigated in the presence of three representative reductive inorganics and four natural organic matters (NOMs), respectively. Fe²⁺ and S^2– mainly reduced ClO₂ to ClO₂^– at low concentrations. When ClO₂ was consumed, the ClO₂^– would be further reduced by Fe²⁺ and S^2–, leading to the decrease of ClO₂^–. The reaction efficiency of Mn²⁺ with ClO₂ was lower than that of Fe²⁺ and S^2–. It might be the case that MnO₂ generated by the reaction between Mn²⁺ and ClO₂ had adsorption and catalytic oxidation on Mn²⁺. However, Mn²⁺ would not reduce ClO₂^–. Among the four NOMs, humic acid and fulvic acid reacted with ClO₂ actively, followed by bovine serum albumin, while sodium alginate had almost no reaction with ClO₂. The maximum ClO₂^– yields of reductive inorganics (70%) was higher than that of NOM (around 60%). The lower the concentration of reductive substances, the more ClO₂^– could be produced by per unit concentration of reductive substances. The results of the actual water samples showed that both reductive inorganics and NOM played an important role in the formation of ClO₂^– in disinfection.     

Enhanced nitrogen removal upon the addition of volatile fatty acids from activated sludge by combining calcium peroxide and low-thermal pretreatments

This study investigated a combined low-thermal and CaO₂ pretreatment to enhance the volatile fatty acid (VFA) production from waste activated sludge (WAS). The fermentative product was added to a sequencing batch reactor (SBR) as an external carbon source to enhance nitrogen removal. The results showed that the combined pretreatment improved WAS solubilization, releasing more biodegradable substrates, such as proteins and polysaccharides, from TB-EPS to LB-EPS and S-EPS. The maximum VFA production of 3529 ± 188 mg COD/L was obtained in the combined pretreatment (0.2 g CaO₂/g VS + 70 °C for 60 min), which was 2.1 and 1.4-fold of that obtained from the sole low-thermal pretreatment and the control test, respectively. Consequently, when the fermentative liquid was added as an external denitrification carbon source, the effluent total nitrogen decreased to Class A of the discharge standard for pollutants in rural wastewater treatment plants in most areas of China.     

利用回转窑焚烧废物简述

本文介绍了回转窑的类型、结构和及其工艺特点,并对国内外利用回转窑焚烧危险废物的实验情况进行了综述,为我国废物焚烧领域的工作者提供借鉴。     

Potential world garbage and waste carbon sequestration

To offset the carbon dioxide released by fossil fuels, a proposed sequestration strategy relies on burying garbage and waste in landfills. This paper roughly estimates the current annual world supply of carbonaceous waste to be 35.5 billion metric tons and to contain about 18 billion metric tons of carbon. If landfills received all of this waste, sequestration of more than 5.6 billion metric tons of carbon seems theoretically possible—an amount well in excess of the 3.3 billion metric tons which the atmosphere is currently gaining.     

Microplastics removal strategies: A step toward finding the solution

• Physical, chemical and biological methods are explored for MPs removal. • Physical methods based on adsorption/filtration are mostly used for MPs removal. • Chemical methods of MPs removal work on coagulation and flocculation mechanism. • MBR technology has also shown the removal of MPs from water. • Global policy on plastic control is lacking. Microplastics are an emerging threat and a big challenge for the environment. The presence of microplastics (MPs) in water is life-threatening to diverse organisms of aquatic ecosystems. Hence, the scientific community is exploring deeper to find treatment and removal options of MPs. Various physical, chemical and biological methods are researched for MPs removal, among which few have shown good efficiency in the laboratory. These methods also have a few limitations in environmental conditions. Other than finding a suitable method, the creation of legal restrictions at a governmental level by imposing policies against MPs is still a daunting task in many countries. This review is an effort to place all effectual MP removal methods in one document to compare the mechanisms, efficiency, advantages, and disadvantages and find the best solution. Further, it also discusses the policies and regulations available in different countries to design an effective global policy. Efforts are also made to discuss the research gaps, recent advancements, and insights in the field.     

New insights into different surfactants’ impacts on sludge fermentation: Focusing on the particular metabolic processes and microbial genetic traits

• The promoting effects for VFA generation follow the order of APG>SDBS>HTAB. • Surfactants improve the WAS solubilization/hydrolysis and acidification processes. • The VFA promotion is associated with surfactants’ distinctive characteristics. • Surfactants induce the enrichment of functional bacteria for VFA biosynthesis. • The vital genes for substrates delivery, metabolism, and VFA yields are upregulated. Surfactants were expected to exhibit positive effects on the waste activated sludge (WAS) disposal. However, the systematic comparison of different categories of surfactants on the WAS fermentation and the functional mechanisms, especially microbial metabolic traits, have not yet been precisely explored. This study revealed the positive effects of different surfactants on the volatile fatty acid (VFA) production, which followed the order of alkyl polysaccharides (APG)>sodium dodecylbenzene sulfonate (SDBS)>hexadecyl trimethyl ammonium bromide (HTAB). Mechanistic exploration found that the presence of different surfactants improved solubilization and hydrolysis steps, and then contributed to the subsequent acidification with different efficiencies. The functional microorganisms associated with VFA generation were enriched in surfactant-conditioned reactors. Metagenomic analysis further indicated that the key genes involved in the particular process of VFA generation were over-expressed. The simultaneous bioavailable substrate improvement, functional bacterial enrichment, and metabolic activity upregulation induced by different surfactants jointly contributed to VFA promotion during WAS fermentation. This study could provide a comprehensive realization of surfactants’ impacts on the WAS fermentation process, and more importantly, it reminded the public to discern the distinct interplaying effects induced by different chemicals in regulating the WAS disposal and resource recovery.