1. Identifying the Greenhouse Gas reduction potential of Autogenerative High Pressure Digestion
- Author
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Veen, M.P. van, Junginger, H.M. (Thesis Advisor), Veen, M.P. van, and Junginger, H.M. (Thesis Advisor)
- Abstract
The mass and energy flows of the entire process of wastewater treatment, including the water-, sludge- and biogas line, are modelled in this research. This model is based on input data of the Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) Amsterdam West. Connecting the entire system made it possible to make changes to the technologies within one part of the system, and to calculate the corresponding effect on the mass and energy flows of the entire system. This system model is used to provide input data for a consequential Life Cycle Assessment (cLCA) on the Global Warming Potential (GWP) of the WWTP Amsterdam West in combination with different technologies to capture and digest sludge. This cLCA includes biogenic carbon dioxide, in contrast to current practices in LCA, showing all emissions in wastewater treatment and indicating the remaining potential of Carbon Capture and Utilisation (CCU). Four scenarios are created, which differ from each other in the technologies used. First, a baseline scenario is created, which consists of the current technologies used at the WWTP Amsterdam west. The second scenario (A-trap scenario) consists of an A-trap instead of a Pre-Settling Tank (PST). An A-trap captures more sludge from the wastewater than a PST, resulting in a reduced sludge flow through the waterline and an increased sludge output towards the sludge line. The third scenario (AHPD scenario) consists, in addition to an A-trap, of Autogenerative High Pressure Digestion (AHPD) instead of Anaerobic Digestion (AD). AHPD is a new technology that directly produces biomethane with a methane content between 90% and 95% (Lindeboom et al., 2014). It is expected that the biomethane can be directly injected into the gas grid, in contrast to low calorific biogas from AD. The fourth scenario (AH2PD scenario) is like the AHPD scenario, but also includes the injection of hydrogen. This leads to the conversion of hydrogen and carbon dioxide into methane. The cLCA resulted in a total GWP for the e
- Published
- 2020