Biogas production from sewage sludge as a distributed energy generation element: A nationwide case study for Turkey

Abstract

Sewage sludge is outcome of the wastewater treatment process. It contains hazardous biological and chemical compounds that need to be stabilized. Anaerobic digestion is among the stabilization methods of sewage sludge. Digestion process destroys organic fraction of sewage sludge and produces biogas (%65 Methane, %34 CO₂ and etc.). Biogas is burned in internal combustion engines to produce electricity. Digested residue can be used fertilizer. In this study, the total electricity production that can be obtained by anaerobic digestion of all wastewater treatment plants throughout the country is examined. Main objective of this study is preliminary evaluation of energy potential of biogas from sewage sludge anaerobic digestion. Since Wastewater Treatment Plants are distributed in the various regions of a city, above mentioned biogas plants should be considered as distributed generation equipment. Use of small scale energy production plants near the consumers is called distributed generation. Energy transmission losses and related infrastructure cost can be reduced or delayed by means of distributed generation. Within a smart grid approach, mentioned plants can support electricity grid. They can also serve as local emergency power plants. As a nationwide scenario WWTP are evaluated. Biogas energy capacity potential of 234 plants is calculated. Capacities less than 100 kWe are assumed to be non-feasible due to scale economy. It is evident that 91 plants can be installed with an average capacity of 660 kWe.

Keywords

• biogas,sewage sludge,distributed generation,waste to energy

References

1. [1] Z. Abdmouleh, A. Gastli, L. Ben-Brahim, M. Haouari, and N. A. Al-Emadi, “Review of optimization techniques applied for the integration of distributed generation from renewable energy sources,” Renew. Energy, vol. 113, pp. 266–280, 2017.J. Clerk Maxwell, A Treatise on Electricity and Magnetism, 3rd ed., vol. 2. Oxford: Clarendon, 1892, pp.68–73.
2. [2] I. F. S. Dos Santos, R. M. Barros, and G. L. Tiago Filho, “Electricity generation from biogas of anaerobic wastewater treatment plants in Brazil: An assessment of feasibility and potential,” J. Clean. Prod., vol. 126, pp. 504–514, 2016.
3. [3] A. Tathyana et al., “Analysis of biogas produced by the anaerobic digestion of sludge generated at wastewater treatment plants in the South of Minas Gerais, Brazil as a potential energy source,” Sustain. Cities Soc., 2018.
4. [4] M. C. Samolada and A. A. Zabaniotou, “Comparative assessment of municipal sewage sludge incineration, gasification and pyrolysis for a sustainable sludge-to-energy management in Greece,” Waste Manag., vol. 34, no. 2, 2014.
5. [5] T. Murakami et al., “Combustion characteristics of sewage sludge in an incineration plant for energy recovery,” Fuel Process. Technol., vol. 90, no. 6, pp. 778–783, 2009.
6. [6] D. Lechtenberg and M. V. W. Lechtenberg, “Dried sewage sludge as an alternative fuel,” no. April, pp. 36–39, 2011.
7. [7] J. Sadhukhan, “Distributed and micro-generation from biogas and agricultural application of sewage sludge: Comparative environmental 122, pp. 196–206, 2014.
8. [8] L. Appels, J. Baeyens, J. Degrève, and R. Dewil, “Principles and potential of the anaerobic digestion of waste-activated sludge,” Prog. Energy Combust. Sci., vol. 34, no. 6, pp. 755–781, 2008.

9. [9] V. Paolini et al., “Characterisation and cleaning of biogas from sewage sludge for biomethane production,” J. Environ. Manage., vol. 217, pp. 288–296, 2018.[10] C. Bougrier, J. P. Delgenès, and H. Carrère, “Effects of thermal treatments on five different waste activated sludge samples solubilisation, physical properties and anaerobic digestion,” Chem. Eng. J., vol. 139, no. 2, pp. 236–244, 2008.
10. [10] C. Bougrier, J. P. Delgenès, and H. Carrère, “Effects of thermal treatments on five different waste activated sludge samples solubilisation, physical properties and anaerobic digestion,” Chem. Eng. J., vol. 139, no. 2, pp. 236–244, 2008.
11. [11] K. Gorazda, B. Tarko, S. Werle, and Z. Wzorek, “Sewage sludge as a fuel and raw material for phosphorus recovery: Combined process of gasification and P extraction,” Waste Manag., vol. 3, 2017.
12. [12] S. Werle and R. K. Wilk, “A review of methods for the thermal utilization of sewage sludge: The Polish perspective,” Renew. Energy, vol. 35, no. 9, pp. 1914–1919, Sep. 2010.
13. [13] a. Sever Akdağ, a. Atımtay, and F. D. Sanin, “Comparison of fuel value and combustion characteristics of two different RDF samples,” Waste Manag., 2015.
14. [14] G. K. Parshetti, Z. Liu, A. Jain, M. P. Srinivasan, and R. Balasubramanian, “Hydrothermal carbonization of sewage sludge for energy production with coal,” Fuel, vol. 111, pp. 201–210, 2013.
15. [15] M. Ragazzi, E. C. Rada, and R. Ferrentino, “Analysis of real-scale experiences of novel sewage sludge treatments in an Italian pilot region,” Desalin. Water Treat., vol. 55, no. 3, pp. 783–790, 2015.
16. [16] Y. Cao and A. Pawłowski, “Life cycle assessment of two emerging sewage sludge-to-energy systems: Evaluating energy and greenhouse gas emissions implications,” Bioresour. Technol., vol. 127, pp. 81–91, 2013.
17. [17] J. Werther and T. Ogada, “Sewage sludge combustion,” Prog. Energy Combust. Sci., vol. 25, no. 1, pp. 55–116, 1999.
18. [18] S. Donatello and C. R. Cheeseman, “Recycling and recovery routes for incinerated sewage sludge ash (ISSA): A review,” Waste Manag., vol. 33, no. 11, pp. 2328–2340, 2013.
19. [19] I. Kliopova and K. Makarskiene, “Improving material and energy recovery from the sewage sludge and biomass residues,” Waste Manag., vol. 36, pp. 269–276, 2015.
20. [20] K. Gorazda et al., “Fertilisers production from ashes after sewage sludge combustion – A strategy towards sustainable development,” Environ. Res., vol. 154, no. July 2016, pp. 171–180, 2017.
21. [21] H. Weigand, M. Bertau, W. Hübner, F. Bohndick, and A. Bruckert, “RecoPhos: Full-scale fertilizer production from sewage sludge ash,” Waste Manag., vol. 33, no. 3, pp. 540–544, 2013.
22. [22] M. Tomasi Morgano, H. Leibold, F. Richter, D. Stapf, and H. Seifert, “Screw pyrolysis technology for sewage sludge treatment,” Waste Manag., vol. 73, pp. 487–495, 2017.
23. [23] N. Gao, J. Li, B. Qi, A. Li, Y. Duan, and Z. Wang, “Thermal analysis and products distribution of dried sewage sludge pyrolysis,” J. Anal. Appl. Pyrolysis, vol. 105, pp. 43–48, 2014.
24. [24] V. Frišták, M. Pipíška, and G. Soja, “Pyrolysis treatment of sewage sludge: A promising way to produce phosphorus fertilizer,” J. Clean. Prod., vol. 172, pp. 1772–1778, 2018.
25. [25] H. S. Kambo and A. Dutta, “A comparative review of biochar and hydrochar in terms of production, physico-chemical properties and applications,” Renew. Sustain. Energy Rev., vol. 45, pp. 359–378, 2015.
26. [26] N. Mills, P. Pearce, J. Farrow, R. B. Thorpe, and N. F. Kirkby, “Environmental & economic life cycle assessment of current & future sewage sludge to energy technologies,” Waste Manag., vol. 34, no. 1, pp. 185–195, Jan. 2014.
27. [27] A. Kumar and S. R. Samadder, “A review on technological options of waste to energy for effective management of municipal solid waste,” Waste Manag., vol. 69, pp. 407–422, 2017.
28. [28] B. Groß et al., “Energy recovery from sewage sludge by means of fluidised bed gasification,” Waste Manag., vol. 28, no. 10, pp. 1819–1826, 2008.
29. [29] S. Werle, “Modeling of the reburning process using sewage sludge-derived syngas,” Waste Manag., vol. 32, no. 4, pp. 753–758, 2012.
30. [30] L. Fiori, D. Basso, D. Castello, and M. Baratieri, “Hydrothermal carbonization of biomass: Design of a batch reactor and preliminary experimental results,” Chem. Eng. Trans., vol. 37, pp. 55–60, 2014.
31. [31] M. Escala, T. Zumbühl, C. Koller, R. Junge, and R. Krebs, “Hydrothermal carbonization as an energy-efficient alternative to established drying technologies for sewage sludge: A feasibility study on a laboratory scale,” Energy and Fuels, vol. 27, no. 1, pp. 454–460, 2013.
32. [32] Metcalf & Eddy et al., Wastewater engineering : treatment and resource recovery.
33. [33] Commitee, “Management of Residential/Urban WWT Sludge” 2010. Available: http://webdosya.csb.gov.tr/db/cygm/editordosya/IP_1.pdf [Accessed: May. 31, 2018]