Valorizing spent mushroom substrate into syngas by the thermo-chemical process

Suppression of carbon footprint through the CO2-assisted pyrolysis of livestock waste

Concentrated animal feeding operation facility in modern livestock industry is pointed out as a point site causing environmental pollution due to massive generation of manure. While livestock manure is conventionally treated through biological processes, composting and anaerobic digestion, these practices pose difficulties in achieving efficient carbon utilization. To address this, this study suggests a pyrolytic valorization of livestock manure, with a focus on enhancing syngas production. Hen manure was particularly chosen due to its abundance of calcium carbonate (CaCO3) compared to other mammalian livestock, exhibiting distinctive thermolytic behaviours. The thermolysis of CaCO3 in hen manure releases carbon dioxide (CO2), simultaneously served as a partial oxidant for the carbon monoxide (CO) enhancement. To further evaluate the effectiveness of CO2, hen manure was pyrolyzed under the presence of CO2. The use of CO2 demonstrated a gas-phase interaction with hen manure-derived volatiles, re-allocating the pyrogenic products into CO-rich syngas. To accelerate the reaction kinetics of CO2, catalytic pyrolysis over a supported Ni catalyst was conducted, further enhancing CO-rich syngas. To assess the environmental advantages, the carbon footprints under various pyrolysis conditions were estimated by confirming the energy consumption and CO2 mitigation potential of pyrogenic products. Therefore, this study highlights that the CO2-mediated pyrolysis of hen manure globally generated offers a potential to mitigate 934.67 million tons of CO2 in annual.

Fabrication of Fe-doped biochar for Pb adsorption through pyrolysis of agricultural waste with red mud

Synthesis of metal-doped biochar have gained prominence due to their adsorption capability for heavy metal(loid)s. In this study, iron-doped biochar (Fe-BC) was fabricated through pyrolysis of waste mushroom substrate (WMS) with red mud (RM). The synthesised Fe-BC was employed as an adsorbent for Pb removal. During pyrolysis of WMS, introducing RM contributed to the enhanced syngas formation, this observation was attributed to the catalytic function of Fe species in RM. The Fe-BCs were made at three different temperatures (500, 600, and 700 °C), and their adsorption capabilities for Pb were evaluated. Among the prepared Fe-BCs, Fe-BC fabricated at 700 °C (Fe-BC-700) demonstrated the highest Pb adsorption performance (243.07 mg g-1). This performance primarily stemmed from the presence of zero-valent Fe and surface functional groups (-OH) in Fe-BC-700. Pb removal by Fe-BC-700 was dominated by surface precipitation and complexation mechanisms. Therefore, this study highlights a promising approach for producing an effective adsorbent for Pb removal from industrial wastewater by utilizing wastes such as RM and WMS.

Pyrolytic conversion of cattle manure and acid mine drainage sludge into biochar for oxidative and adsorptive removal of the antibiotic nitrofurantoin

Antibiotics in aquatic environments can foster the development of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, posing significant risks to both living organisms and ecosystems. This study explored the thermo-chemical conversion of cattle manure (CM) into biochar and assessed its potential as an environmental medium for removing nitrofurantoin (NFT) from water. The biochar was produced through the co-pyrolysis of CM and acid mine drainage sludge (AMDS) in a N2 condition. The gaseous and liquid products generated during pyrolysis were quantified and characterized. The biochar exhibited both catalytic and adsorptive capability in NFT removal. It effectively activated persulfate to drive oxidative degradation of NFT via radical (SO4•- and •OH) and non-radical (1O2) pathways. NFT adsorption on the biochar involved multiple binding mechanisms, including electrostatic, hydrogen bonds, and π-π EDA interactions, as evidenced by XPS analysis before and after the reaction. Furthermore, the biochar's performance stability was demonstrated through five cycles of reuse and leaching tests. These findings present a viable approach to generate energy from waste by co-pyrolyzing of livestock manure and metal-containing industrial waste, while also producing environmental media capable of removing antibiotics from wastewater through diverse mechanisms.

Establishment of circular economy by utilising textile industry waste as an adsorbent for textile dye removal

This study explored the use of waste from the textile industry (silkworm byproducts) as a promising raw feedstock for the production of carbon-based adsorbents (biochar). The silk excreta biochar generated at 600 and 700 °C (referred to as SEB-600 and SEB-700, respectively) were evaluated in terms of their efficacy in adsorbing cationic (methylene blue) and anionic (Congo red) textile dyes. Although the functional groups on the surfaces of SEB-600 and SEB-700 were not significantly different, the specific surface area of SEB-700 was greater than that of SEB-600. The dye adsorption capacity of SEB-700 was higher than that of SEB-600. The adsorption of methylene blue and Congo red on SEB-700 followed Freundlich isotherms (R2 ≥ 0.963) and pseudo-second-order kinetics (R2 = 0.999), indicating chemisorption with multilayer characteristics. The mechanism for the adsorption of methylene blue on SEB-700 may involve interactions with the negatively charged functional groups on the surface and the mesopores of SEB-700. For the adsorption of Congo red, the mesopores in the biochar and the electrostatic interaction between biochar (positively charged because of the dye solution pH < pHzpc) and the anionic dye could affect adsorption. The maximum adsorption capacities of SEB-700 for methylene blue and Congo red were determined to be 168.23 and 185.32 mg g-1, respectively. Utilising the waste generated from the textile industry to remove pollutants will build a sustainable loop in the industry by minimising waste generation and pollutant emissions.

Sustainable valorisation of sewage sludge via carbon dioxide-assisted pyrolysis

The escalating volume of sewage sludge (SS) generated poses challenges in disposal, given its potential harm to the environment and human health. This study explored sustainable solutions for SS management with a focus on energy recovery. Employing CO2-assisted pyrolysis, we converted SS into flammable gases (H2 and CO; syngas). Single-stage pyrolysis of SS in a CO2 conditions demonstrated that CO2 enhances flammable gas production (especially CO) through gas phase reactions (GPRs) with volatile matter (VM) at temperatures ≥520 °C. Specifically, the CO2 partially oxidized the VM released from SS and concurrently underwent reduction into CO. To enhance the syngas production at temperatures ≤520 °C, multi-stage pyrolysis setup with additional heat energy and a Ni/Al2O3 catalyst were utilized. These configurations significantly increased flammable gas production, particularly CO, at temperatures ≤520 °C. Indeed, the flammable gas yield in the catalytic pyrolysis of SS increased from 200.3 mmol under N2 conditions to 219.2 mmol under CO2 conditions, representing a 4.4-fold increase compared to single-stage pyrolysis under CO2 conditions (50.0 mmol). By integrating a water-gas-shift reaction, the flammable gases produced from CO2-assisted catalytic pyrolysis were expected to have the potential to generate revenue of US$4.04 billion. These findings highlight the effectiveness of employing CO2 in SS pyrolysis as a sustainable and effective approach for treating and valorising SS into valuable energy resources.

Thermochemical conversion of silkworm by-product into syngas

This study explored the valorisation of silkworm by-product, a major by-product of the silk industry (sericulture), which amounts to 16 million tonnes annually. The focus was on transforming waste into energy resources through pyrolysis under CO2 conditions. In one-stage pyrolysis, the evolution of syngas under N2 was found to be comparable to that under CO2. A notable allocation of carbon to biocrude rather than syngas was observed. The two-stage pyrolysis resulted in increased syngas production. However, achieving a homogeneous reaction between CO2 and the volatiles liberated from silkworm byproduct proved challenging. Indeed, the reaction kinetics governing CO2 reactivity was not fast although the temperature windows of the reaction were aligned in the two-stage pyrolysis. To address this issue, pyrolysis was performed using a Ni-based catalyst to expedite the reaction kinetics. Consequently, syngas formation, particularly CO formation, was significantly enhanced under CO2 conditions compared to that under N2 conditions. The syngas yield under CO2 was 36.42 wt% which was 2-fold higher than that of N2. This suggested the potential of CO2 altering the carbon distribution from biocrude to syngas. This strategy would contribute to the establishment of sustainable production of silk by converting sericulture by-product into energy/chemical resources.