Source: NORTH CAROLINA A&T STATE UNIV submitted to
BIOLOGICAL PROCESSING OF AGRICULTURAL AND FOOD WASTES TO RECOVER ENERGY, NUTRIENTS AND WATER FOR SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION
Sponsoring Institution
National Institute of Food and Agriculture
Project Status
COMPLETE
Funding Source
EVANS-ALLEN
Reporting Frequency
Annual
Accession No.
1003263
Grant No.
(N/A)
Cumulative Award Amt.
(N/A)
Proposal No.
(N/A)
Multistate No.
(N/A)
Project Start Date
Oct 1, 2014
Project End Date
Sep 30, 2017
Grant Year
(N/A)
Program Code
[(N/A)]- (N/A)
Project Director
Wang, LI.
Recipient Organization
NORTH CAROLINA A&T STATE UNIV
1601 EAST MARKET STREET
GREENSBORO,NC 27411
Performing Department
Natural Resources & Environmental Design
Non Technical Summary
Agricultural production requires large amounts of energy, fertilizers and water. The supply of energy, fertilizers and water for agricultural production is becoming a constraint to the food security and environmental sustainability. The agricultural production and food processing meanwhile generate substantial amounts of solid wastes and wastewater. Current practices of managing agricultural and food wastes can result in serious pollution of water and air. This project is to develop an integrated biological approach to efficiently and economically recover energy, nutrients and water from agricultural and food wastes for sustainable agricultural production. The biological process includes four main unit operations: (1) anaerobic digestion of different agricultural and food wastes, (2) activation of solid digested residues, (3) microalgae cultivation on digestion effluent, and (4) adsorption of residual nutrients in wastewater and CO2 in biogas onto activated carbon. The nutrients concentrated and supported on activated carbon will be used as a fertilizer. The CO2 captured on activated carbon will be used for algal cultivation. The project will establish scientific and engineering tools to optimize the four unit operations of the biological process, analyze the economics and evaluate the environmental impacts of the process for sustainable agricultural production. Introduction of a well-understood biological system developed by this project will improve the economies and sustainability of agricultural production by reducing waste treatment costs, generating additional revenues from the wastes, and supplying energy, nutrients and clean water for agricultural production in a sustainable way. This project is designated to address two national priorities of USDA-NIFA: sustainable energy and climate change. This project will also support the two research initiatives of School of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences at North Carolina A&T State University (NC A&T): (1) sustainable energy by producing energy and fertilizers from wastes, and (2) climate change by treating agricultural and food wastes. This project will provide comprehensive research opportunities for the students at NC A&T to conduct research for their dissertation, thesis, senior design, and undergraduate research experience. This project will strengthen our research capacity in the areas of bioenergy and wastes-to-energy.
Animal Health Component
30%
Research Effort Categories
Basic
60%
Applied
30%
Developmental
10%
Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)Subject of Investigation (SOI)Field of Science (FOS)Percent
5112150202020%
5114099106020%
5115210202020%
4020210202020%
4030210202020%
Knowledge Area
511 - New and Improved Non-Food Products and Processes; 403 - Waste Disposal, Recycling, and Reuse; 402 - Engineering Systems and Equipment;

Subject Of Investigation
4099 - Microorganisms, general/other; 0210 - Water resources; 2150 - Aquatic plants; 5210 - Fertilizers;

Field Of Science
2020 - Engineering; 1060 - Biology (whole systems);
Goals / Objectives
The goal of this project is to develop an integrated biological process to recover nutrients, energy and water from the agricultural and food wastes for sustainable agricultural production. Specific objectives include:Objective 1: Investigate the biology and process of anaerobic co-digestion of animal manure, crop residues, food wastes and wastewater for producing methane;Objective 2: Cultivate microalgae on digestion effluent for producing biofuels and fertilizers;Objective 3: Convert the digested residues into activated carbon for the enhancement of anaerobic digestion, biogas cleaning, algal cultivation and wastewater treatment; andObjective 4: Analyze the economic and environmental impacts of the biological process for the recovery of energy, nutrients and water from agricultural and food wastes.
Project Methods
This project is to develop a biological process to recover nutrients, energy and water from the agricultural and food wastes for sustainable agricultural production. The biological process includes four main unit operations: (1) anaerobic digestion of different agricultural and food wastes, (2) activation of solid digested residues, (3) microalgae cultivation on digestion effluent, and (4) adsorption of residual nutrients in wastewater and CO2 in biogas onto activated carbon. The nutrients concentrated and supported on activated carbon will be used as a fertilizer. The CO2 captured on activated carbon will be used for algal cultivation. 1 will be focused on anaerobic co-digestion (AD) of agricultural and food wastes for the production of methane. Study 2Algae cells will be harvested and analyzed for the contents of lipid, protein and carbohydrates. Study 3 will be focused on production of activated carbon from the digested residue. The digested residue will be used to produce activated carbon by a steam and CO2 activated process. The activated carbon will be further modified by different surface functionalization such as acid treatment for three purposes: (1) to immobilize the microorganisms and adsorb ammonia produced by the AD; (2) to capture CO2 in biogas and supply CO2 for the growth of microalgae; and (3) to further treat the wastewater from microalgal cultivation. activated carbon on the performance of AD. Study 4 will be focused on the analysis of the economic and environmental impacts of the biological process. An economic model will be developed to analyze the economics of the biological process at different scales. will be used to identify and quantify the potential environmental impacts of the biological processing system used for the treatment of agricultural and food wastes and the recovery of energy, nutrients and water from the wastes.The research results will be published in peer-reviewed journals and present at national and international conferences such as the ASABE annual meeting, the AIChE annual meeting, and the Biennial Research Symposium of the Association of 1890 Research Directors, Inc. The PI and Co-PIs of this project will form a steering committee, which will provide overall organizational guidance for the entire project. The research group of this project which includes two faculty members, one research associate, two Ph.D. students and three undergraduate students will have a 1-hour weekly meeting to discuss the progress of the research activities assigned to individual researchers. We will also discuss the progress and our methodologies of this project, and potential collaboration with external experts in the fields who will be invited to visit our labs during the project duration. Their suggestions and recommendations will be implemented to revise our research methodologies to achieve our proposed research goal and objectives.

Progress 10/01/14 to 09/30/17

Outputs
Target Audience:The target audience includes: Farmers and food manufacturers: We demonstrated the agricultural wastes-based biorefinery to about 150 small-farm owners at the 16th annual Small Farms Field Day, June 15th 2017 at the N.C. A&T University Farm. Bioenergy companies: We established contacts with several companies and universities for technologies of anaerobic digestion, algal cultivation and thermochemical conversion of biomass into bioenergy products. Students at all levels of training in algal cultivation, anaerobic digestion, agricultural wastes treatment and bioenergy technologies. The project directly supported 11 students to obtain research experience. The group comprised three Ph. D. students, one master's student and five undergraduate students; two high-school students from the college's 2016 and 2017 Research Apprenticeship Program, were also included. We demonstrated the developed technologies to more than 500 K-12 students during the University Energy Day in 2016 and 2017. Professionals, researchers and legislators: The PI, Co-PIs and students presented the research results at the ASABE Annual Meetings in 2015-2017, and at the 18th Research Symposium of the Association of 1890 Research Directors Inc. (ARD). The results were distributed to a broad group of audiences in the fields. The PI (Lijun Wang) and Ph.D. student (Gail Joseph) presented the research results of this project to state legislators and professionals during North Carolina Graduate Education Day in Raleigh, N.C. on May 24, 2016. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?1. The project has been used to support and train four graduate students during this report period: M.S. student, Bekoe Dominic, Agricultural and Environmental Systems, Thesis title: Aerobic and anaerobic treatment of swine manure for the enhancement of algal cultivation; graduation date: September 201 Ph.D., Gail Joseph, Energy and Environmental Systems, Dissertation topic: Investigation of bacterial pre-treatment and microbial community for enhanced biogas production by anaerobic digestion of agricultural and food wastes, graduation date: May 201 Ph.D., Emmanuel Ansah, Energy and Environmental Systems, Dissertation topic: Pyrolysis of biomass to fuels and chemicals: experimental study and process modeling, graduation date: September 2017. Ph.D., Hossein Amini, Computational Science and Engineering, Numerical and experimental investigation of a microalgae cultivation system for wastewater treatment and bioenergy production, Graduation date: July 2016. 2. The project supported and trained two undergraduate students in biological engineering during this report period, KarinaLei Relatado and Morris Armstrong II, and created a capstone design project for another three undergraduate students in biological engineering. 3. Two high school students were able to learn the knowledge of anaerobic digestion (AD) and microalgal technologies in the summers of 2016 and 2017. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?During the three-year project period, the project resulted in 1 patent application, nine peer-reviewed publications including two manuscripts under review, four book chapters, and 13 presentations at national and international conferences. The results were presented to the communities at the ASABE annual Meetings, the ARD meeting, the university energy day, the university farmers' field day and the state graduate education day. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Nothing Reported

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? During this project period, we worked on all four proposed research objectives, to: (1) investigate the biology and process of anaerobic co-digestion of animal manure, crop residues, food wastes and wastewater for producing methane; (2) cultivate microalgae on digestion effluent for producing biofuels and fertilizers; (3) convert the digested residues into activated carbon and (4) analyze the economic and environmental impacts. Three graduate students conducted their dissertation or thesis research on a full-time basis supported by this project. We have generated significant amounts of knowledge in anaerobic digestion of various agricultural and food wastes, treatment of the wastes to enhance anaerobic digestion, recovery of nutrients from the wastes to grow microalgae, and conversion of microalgae into biofuels and fertilizers. Specifically, we have accumulated knowledge in performing long-term thermophilic anaerobic co-digestion of swine manure and biomass. A 10 L anaerobic digester was constructed and continuously used to treat swine wastes and biomass (corn stover and cattails) since February 2016. We have studied the effects of feedstocks and operating conditions on biogas productivity during anaerobic co-digestion. We have accumulated knowledge in aerobic treatment of animal manure to enhance anaerobic digestion and remove ammonium in the manure for algal cultivation. The off-gas from the manure treatment unit was used to enhance microalgal cultivation. With the off-gas input, the microalgal biomass yields were improved by 130%-300%. We have accumulated knowledge in catalytic dry reforming of methane (biogas) to produce syngas for eventually synthesizing liquid transportation fuels from biogas via a Fisher-Tropsch process. A molybdenum carbide (Mo2C) nanoparticle catalyst was developed and used for dry reforming of methane. We have invented an integrated process to produce hydrocarbons and fertilizers from microalgae. The knowledge obtained through this project helped us develop an efficient and economic biological process to recover energy, nutrients and water from agricultural and food wastes for sustainable agricultural production. With the knowledge, we designed and demonstrated the agricultural wastes-based biorefinery to about 150 small farm owners at the 16th Annual Small Farms Field Day on June 15, 2017 at the N.C. A&T University Farm. This knowledge provided a scientific foundation for us to comprehensively address three key issues in the modern agricultural industry: (1) animal wastewater treatment, (2) sustainable production of biofuels, and (3) supply of fertilizers. Introducing a well-developed biological process into rural areas can promote rural economics by value-added processing agricultural and food wastes, and promotes sustainable agricultural production by reducing the consumption of fossil-based fuels and fertilizers in farming, and increasing water-use efficiency in the agricultural industry. The financial support and research activities provided by this project have enabled us to train graduate and undergraduate students, the future workforce in the field, in wastes-to-energy technologies.

Publications

  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Under Review Year Published: 2017 Citation: Zhang, B., Wang, L., Li, R., Xiu, S., Shahbazi, A. Methane reforming for syngas production. Current Organic Chemistry. (under review)
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Under Review Year Published: 2017 Citation: Ansah, E., Wang, L.J., Zhang, B., Eshun, J., Rahman, Q., Shahbazi, A. and Schimmel, K. 2017. Catalytic pyrolysis of raw and hydrothermally carbonized Chlamydomonas debaryana Microalgae for denitrogenation and production of aromatic hydrocarbons. Fuel (under review).
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Awaiting Publication Year Published: 2018 Citation: Chen, J., Wang, L.J., Zhang, B., Li, R. and Shahbazi, A. 2018. Enhancement of Hydrothermal Liquefaction of Dairy Manure with Ammonium Hydroxide, Phosphoric Acid and Glycerol for Co-production of Bio-oil and Biochar. Sustainability (in press).
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Awaiting Publication Year Published: 2018 Citation: Amini, H., Wang, L.J., Shahbazi, A., Bikdash, M., KC, D. and Yuan, W. 2018. Mathematical Modeling and Experimental Validation of Microalgal Cultivation in Open Raceway Ponds. Computer and Electronics in Agriculture (in press).
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Bekoe, D., Wang, L., Zhang, B., Todd, M.S., and Shahbazi, A. (2018). Aerobic treatment of swine manure to enhance anaerobic digestion and microalgal cultivation. Journal of Environmental Science and Health, Part B, 53(2), 145-151.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Zhang, B., Wang, L., Li, R., Rahman, Q. M., and Shahbazi, A. (2017). Catalytic Conversion of Chlamydomonas to Hydrocarbons via the Ethanol-Assisted Liquefaction and Hydrotreating Processes. Energy & Fuels, 31(11), 12223-12231.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Zhang, B., Wang, L., Riddicka, B., Li, R., Able, J., Boakye-Boaten, N., and Shahbazi, A. 2016. Sustainable Production of Algal Biomass and Biofuels Using Swine Wastewater in North Carolina, US. Sustainability, 8(5), 477.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Amini, H., Hashemisohi, A., Wang, L., Shahbazi, A., Bikdash, M., Kc, D., and Yuan, W. 2016. Numerical and experimental investigation of hydrodynamics and light transfer in open raceway ponds at various algal cell concentrations and medium depths. Chem. Eng. Sci., 156, 11-23.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Amini, H., Wang, L., and Shahbazi, A. 2016. Effects of harvesting cell density, medium depth and environmental factors on biomass and lipid productivities of Chlorella vulgaris grown in swine wastewater. Chem. Eng. Sci., 152, 403-412.
  • Type: Book Chapters Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Joseph, G. and Wang, L.J. 2018. Chapter 12 Production of biofuels from biomass by fungal whole-cell biocatalysts, In: Kumar, S., Dheeran, P., Taherzadeh, M. and Khanal S. (eds), Fungal Biorefineries. Cham, Switzerland: Springer International Publishing AG.
  • Type: Books Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Zhang, B., Wang, L. J., and Li, R. 2018. Bioconversion and chemical conversion of biogas for fuel production. In: M. Hosseini (ed.) Handbook of Biotechnology for Renewable Fuels: Technology Assessment, Emerging Industrial Applications, and Future Outlooks, Elsevier, Netherlands.
  • Type: Book Chapters Status: Published Year Published: 2018 Citation: Wang, L.J., Zhang, B. and Joseph, G. 2018. Chapter 13 Biogas production and quality control, In: Konur O. (editor), Bioenergy and Biofuels, CRC Press, PP.357-385.


Progress 10/01/15 to 09/30/16

Outputs
Target Audience: Farmers are a part of the target audience for processing agricultural wastes and animal manure to recover energy, nutrient and water using the technology developed by this project Food manufacturers are the target audience for value-added processing of food processing wastes into energy and organic fertilizer products using the technology developed by this project Bioenergy companies are a part of the target audience for technologies of anaerobic digestion, algal cultivation and thermochemical conversion of biomass into bioenergy products Students at all levels are a part of the target audience for training in algal cultivation, anaerobic digestion, agricultural wastes treatment and bioenergy technologies. The project was directly used to support 9 students to obtain research experience, which include 2 Ph.D. students in energy and environmental systems (dissertation research), 1 M.S. student in agricultural and environmental systems (thesis research) and 5 undergraduate students in biological engineering (2 of them were undergraduate research assistants and 3 of them participated in a capstone design project) and 1 high school student in 2015/2016. The project directors and an MS student demonstrated the technologies developed by this project to more than 200 K-12 students during the Energy Day of North Carolina A&T State University on April 6, 2016. Professionals, researchers and legislature are a part of the target audience. The project directors presented research results at the 2016 ASABE Annual Meeting in Orlando, FL on July 17-20. The results were distributed to a broad group of audiences in the fields of algal cultivation, anaerobic digestion, agricultural wastes management and bioprocess engineering. The project director and a Ph.D. student presented research results of this project to state legislators and professionals during North Carolina Graduate Education Day in Raleigh NC in May 24, 2016. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?1. The project has been used to support and train three graduate students during this report period: MS student in Agricultural and Environmental Systems, Thesis title: Aerobic and anaerobic treatment of swine manure for the enhancement of algal cultivation, graduation date: May 201 Ph.D. student in Energy and Environmental Systems, Dissertation topic: Investigation of bacterial pre-treatment and microbial community for enhanced biogas production by anaerobic digestion of agricultural and food wastes, graduation date: May 201 Ph.D. student in Energy and Environmental Systems, Dissertation topic: Pyrolysis of biomass to fuels and chemicals: experimental study and process modeling, Expected graduation date: May 2017. 2. The project was used to support and train two undergraduate students in biological engineering during this report period. 3. One high school student was able to learn the knowledge of anaerobic digestion (AD) and microalgal technologies in the summer of 2016. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?During 2016, the project resulted in 1 patent application, 3 peer-reviewed publications, 7 manuscripts (3 under review and 4 in preparation), 2 book chapters, and 8 presentations at the National and international conferences. The results were presented to the communities at the 2016 ASABE annual Meeting, the university energy day and the state graduate education day. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Tasks are currently ongoing, and most of them will be done within the next three months. Tasks regarding Goal 4 will be done within next six months.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? During this reporting period, researchers worked on all four proposed research objectives: (1) investigate the biology and process of anaerobic co-digestion of animal manure, crop residues, food wastes and wastewater for producing methane; (2) cultivate microalgae on digestion effluent for producing biofuels and fertilizers; (3) convert the digested residues into activated carbon; and (4) analyze the economic and environmental impacts. Three graduate students are conducting their dissertation or thesis research on a full-time basis supported by this project. Researchers have generated significant amounts of knowledge in anaerobic digestion of various agricultural and food wastes, treatment of the wastes to enhance anaerobic digestion, recovery of nutrients from the wastes to grow microalgae, and conversion of microalgae into biofuels and fertilizers. Specifically, researchers have accumulated knowledge in performing long-term thermophilic anaerobic co-digestion of swine manure and biomass. A 10 L anaerobic digester was constructed and continuously used to treat swine wastes and biomass (corn stover and cattails) since February 2016. We have studied the effects of feedstocks and operating conditions on biogas productivity during anaerobic co-digestion. Researchers have accumulated knowledge in aerobic treatment of animal manure to enhance anaerobic digestion and remove ammonium in the manure for algal cultivation. The off-gas from the manure treatment unit was used to enhance microalgal cultivation. With the off-gas input, the microalgal biomass yields were improved by 130-300%. We have accumulated knowledge in catalytic dry reforming of methane (biogas) to produce syngas for eventually synthesizing liquid transportation fuels from biogas via a Fisher-Tropsch process. A molybdenum carbide (Mo2C) nanoparticle catalyst was developed and used for dry reforming of methane. We have invented an integrated process for the production of hydrocarbons and fertilizers from microalgae. The knowledge obtained is helping to eventually develop an efficient and economic biological process to recover energy, nutrients and water from agricultural and food wastes for sustainable agricultural production. This knowledge provided a scientific foundation for researchers to comprehensively address three key issues in the modern agricultural industry: (1) animal wastewater treatment, (2) sustainable production of biofuels, and (3) supply of fertilizers. Eventual introduction of a well-developed biological process into rural area will promote the rural economics by value-added processing agricultural and food wastes, and sustainable agricultural production by reducing the consumption of fossil-based fuels and fertilizers in farming, and increasing water use efficiency in the agricultural industry. With the financial support and research activities provided by this project, researchers have also trained graduate and undergraduate students in wastes-to-energy technologies, who will be the future workforce in the field.

Publications

  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Zhang, B., Wang, L., Riddicka, B., Li, R., Able, J., Boakye-Boaten, N., and Shahbazi, A. 2016. Sustainable Production of Algal Biomass and Biofuels Using Swine Wastewater in North Carolina, US. Sustainability, 8(5), 477.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Amini, H., Hashemisohi, A., Wang, L., Shahbazi, A., Bikdash, M., KC, D., and Yuan, W. 2016. Numerical and experimental investigation of hydrodynamics and light transfer in open raceway ponds at various algal cell concentrations and medium depths. Chemical Engineering Science, 156, 11-23.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Amini, H., Wang, L., and Shahbazi, A. 2016. Effects of harvesting cell density, medium depth and environmental factors on biomass and lipid productivities of Chlorella vulgaris grown in swine wastewater. Chemical Engineering Science, 152, 403-412.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Under Review Year Published: 2017 Citation: Amini, H., Wang, L.J., Shahbazi, A., Bikdash, M., KC, D. and Yuan, W. 2017. Mathematical Modeling and Experimental Validation of Microalgal Cultivation in Open Raceway Ponds. Chemical Engineering Science.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Under Review Year Published: 2017 Citation: Chen, J.Y., Zhang, B., Li, R., Wang, LJ. 2017. Co-production of chemicals and biochar via hydrothermal treatment of dairy manure in different dilute solutions, Waste Management.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Under Review Year Published: 2017 Citation: Ansah, E., Wang, L.J., Eshun, J., Zhang, B., Rahman, Q., Amini, H., Shahbazi, A. and Schimmel, K. 2017. Catalytic pyrolysis of microalgae: effect of hydrothermal pretreatment and plastic waste addition on product profile, Energy Conversion and Management.
  • Type: Books Status: Under Review Year Published: 2017 Citation: Zhang, B., Wang, L. J., and Li, R. 2017. Bioconversion and Chemical Conversion of Biogas for Fuel Production. Handbook of Biotechnology for Renewable Fuels: Technology Assessment, Emerging Industrial Applications, and Future Outlooks, M. Hosseini, ed., Elsevier, Netherlands.
  • Type: Books Status: Under Review Year Published: 2017 Citation: Joseph, G. and Wang, L.J. 2017. Production of biofuels from biomass by fungal whole-cell biocatalysts. Fungal Biorefineries, Sachin Kuma ed., Springer, Berlin, Germany.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2016 Citation: Wang, L.J., Zhang, B., and Shahbazi, A. 2016. A biorefinery for the production of biodiesel and organic fertilizer from microalgae grown on swine wastewater. The USDA-NIFA 1890 Institution Teaching Research and Extension Capacity Building Grants Program Project Director Meeting, Virginia Beach, VA, Sept. 19-20.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2016 Citation: Zhang, B. and Wang, L.J. 2016. Thermophilic solid-state anaerobic digestion of cattails with different pretreatments. ASABE Annual Meeting, Orlando, Florida, July 17-20.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2016 Citation: Zhang, B. and Wang, L.J. 2016. Conversion of microalgal biomass to green diesel via the simultaneous extraction- transesterification and hydrotreating processes. ASABE Annual Meeting, Orlando, Florida, July 17-20.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2016 Citation: Joseph, G. and Wang, L.J. 2016. Anaerobic digestion of food and agricultural wastes, Invited presentation at North Carolina Graduate Education Day, Raleigh NC May 24, 2016 (Joseph, G. is one of the three graduate representatives from NC A&T).
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2016 Citation: Li, R., Shahbazi, A., Wang, L.J., and Zhang, B. 2016. Syngas production via dry reforming of biogas over molybdenum carbides on biochar, Orlando, Florida, July 17-20.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2016 Citation: Wang, L.J., Zhang, B., Shahbazi, A., and Bekoe, D. 2016. Algal cultivation for wastewater treatment and biofuel production, the Energy Day of NC A&T State University, April 6.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2016 Citation: Joseph, G. and Wang, L.J. 2016. Impact of biological pre-treatment on agricultural waste for biogas production, the EES Doctoral Seminar, March 3.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Other Year Published: 2016 Citation: Rahman, Q.M. and Wang, L.J. 2016. Production of biodiesel and organic fertilizers from wet microalgae through fermentation and simultaneous extraction and transesterification (SET) process, the EES Doctoral Seminar, March 18.


Progress 10/01/14 to 09/30/15

Outputs
Target Audience:The target audiences for this project would include, but not be limited to: Farmers for processing agricultural wastes and animal manure to recover energy, nutrient and water Food manufacturers for value-added processing of food processing wastes into energy and organic fertilizer products Bioenergy companies for technologies of anaerobic digestion, algal cultivation and thermochemical conversion of biomass into bioenergy products Students at all levels for training in algal cultivation, anaerobic digestion, agricultural wastes treatment and bioenergy technologies. The project was directly used to support 9 students to obtain research experience, which include 2 Ph.D. students in energy and environmental systems, 1 M.S. student in agricultural and environmental systems and 5 undergraduate students in biological engineering and 1 high school student in 2014/2015. Professionals and researchers are included in the target audience. The PI and Co-PIs presented the research results at the 2015 ASABE Annual Meeting in New Orleans, LA July 26-29 and the 5th International Conference on Algal Biomass, Biofuels and Bioproducts in San Diego, CA, June 7-10, 2015. The results were distributed to a broad group of audiences in the fields of algal cultivation, agricultural wastes management and bioprocess engineering. The PI and Co-PIs visited the anaerobic digestion lab at North Carolina State University and discussed the project with the researchers there. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?The project was used to support and train three graduate students in between 2014-2015: Bekoe Dominic, M.S. student in Agricultural and Environmental Systems, Thesis title: Aerobic and Anaerobic Treatment of Swine Manure for the Enhancement of Algal Cultivation, expected graduation date: October 2017 Gail Joseph, Ph.D. student in Energy and Environmental Systems, Dissertation topic: Investigation of Microbial Community Structure and Kinetics of Anaerobic co-Digestion of Agricultural and Food Wastes, expected graduation date: June 2018. Emmanuel Ansah, Ph.D. student in Energy and Environmental Systems, Dissertation topic: Multiscale investigation of biomass pyrolysis for the production of biofuels and biochemical, expected graduation date: December 2016. The project was used to hire two undergraduate research assistants in and provide support to a senior team with three students from biological engineering to conduct capstone design on anaerobic digestion This project provided opportunities to train one high school student and three NC A&T early college students to learn anaerobic digestion (AD) and microalgal cultivation technologies. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?During 2014-2015, the project resulted in 1 peer-reviewed publication, 1 manuscript, 1 book chapter, and 3 presentations at the national and international conferences. The results were presented to the communities at the 2015 ASABE annual Meeting and the 5th Conference on Algal Biomass, Biofuels and Bioproducts. The PI and co-PIs were invited to give one seminar at the Appalachian State University and another seminar at the Ohio State University. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?1.Three graduate students will continue to work on their dissertations and thesis supported by this project (1. M.S. thesis: Aerobic and Anaerobic Treatment of Swine Manure for the Enhancement of Algal Cultivation; 2. Ph.D. dissertation: Investigation of Microbial Community Structure and Kinetics of Anaerobic co-Digestion of Agricultural and Food Wastes; and 3. Ph.D. dissertation: Multiscale investigation of biomass pyrolysis for the production of biofuels and biochemicals) PIs will continue to develop an economic and life cycle assessment model to analyze the economics and environmental impact of the biorefinery for the animal wastes treatment and microalgae cultivation.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Researchers are currently working on all four specific research goals in this project: Goal 1 (ongoing): Investigate the biology and process of anaerobic co-digestion of animal manure, crop residues, food wastes and wastewater for producing methane. Goal 2 (ongoing): Cultivate microalgae on digestion effluent for producing biofuels and fertilizers: The byproducts from anaerobic digestion were used to enhance algal growth. So far the effect of off-gas was investigated. The research will be continuously conducted using effluents and other products. Goal 3 (ongoing): Convert the digested residues into activated carbon. Goal 4 (ongoing): Analyze the economic and environmental impacts. The major accomplishments are summarized as follows: Accomplishment 1:Researchers established a lab to perform anaerobic digestion. The construction of pilot-scale digesters is on-going at the A&T farm.Initial tests on manure treatments were done. Initial tests on concepts showed that manure treatment could effectively remove total solid (TS), total phosphorus (TP), total nitrogen (TN) contents, and microalgal growth can be enhanced by utilizing the off-gas from the manure digestion unit. Accomplishment 2: Researchers have accumulated knowledge in aerobic manure treatment. Total solid (TS), total phosphorus (TP), total nitrogen (TN) contents of swine manure and treated manure were analyzed. Initial content of swine manure in the solution was 4-4.5%. The TS content was reduced to ~2% in 30 days. TP and TN were removed from the manure solutions. Accomplishment 3: Researchers have accumulated knowledge in improving the algal biomass yield using the off-gas from manure treatment and flue-gas. Microalgal biomass yield was enhanced by utilizing off-gas from the manure treatment unit. The final biomass yield reached 3 g/L, and the typical biomass yield of this species in swine wastewater is between 0.6-1.5 g/L. Meanwhile, the off-gas brought P, N and CO2 into algal growth media. When simulated flue gas was used to grow algae, a 5 vol% supply increased the biomass yields by 3 times. Accomplishment 4: Researchers have accumulated knowledge in designing bench-top anaerobic digesters and pilot-scale digesters. Four 1 L bench-top anaerobic digesters were constructed in our lab. Another 55 gal digester was constructed at the NC A&T farm, and continuously used to treat swine and cattle manures, food wastes, and cellulosic materials. Accomplishment 5: Researchers have accumulated knowledge in catalytic conversion of manure to bio-oil and biochar. Dairy manure was liquefied at 200-350oC for 30 min with additional NH3·H2O, H3PO4, and Glycerol. Glycerol and NH3-assisted liquefaction could result in the bio-oil with higher energy density, and adding NH3 resulted in biochar with the highest surface area of 41.80 m3/g. The highest biochar yield of 50.6% was achieved when treating dairy manure (20%w/w solid content) at 225oC for 40 min.

Publications

  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Accepted Year Published: 2016 Citation: Zhang, B., Shahbazi, A., Wang, L., and Whitmore, A. 2016. Effect of magnesium chloride on fractionation and enzymatic digestibility of cattails. Energy Sources, Part A: Recovery, Utilization, and Environmental Effects, 38(1), 1-7. DOI: 10.1080/15567036.2012.741656
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Under Review Year Published: 2016 Citation: Zhang, B., Wang, L.J., Riddick, B.A., Li, R., Able, J. and Shahbazi, A. 2016. Prospects of using local microalga Chlamydomonas debaryana for bioenergy production and swine wastewater treatment in North Carolina (under review)
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Under Review Year Published: 2015 Citation: Amini, H., Wang, L.J., Shahbazi, A. and Hashemisohi, A. 2015. Effects of harvesting cell density, medium depth and environmental factors on biomass and lipid productivities of Chlorella vulgaris in swine wastewater (under review)
  • Type: Book Chapters Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Zhang, B., Wang, L., and Li, R. (2015). Chapter 2 Production of Biogas from Aquatic Plants. In: Aquatic Plants: Composition, Nutrient Concentration and Environmental Impact, (Ed. Crystal Eveline Rodney) Nova Science Publishers, Inc., New York. ISBN: 978-1-63484-042-2
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Wang, L.J., and Zhang, B. 2015. Combined aerobic and anaerobic treatment of swine manure and wastewater for enhancement of algal cultivation. The ASABE Annual Meeting, New Orleands, Louisiana, July 26-29.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Zhang, B. and Wang, L.J. 2015. Utilization of off-gas from manure treatment for the improvement of algal biomass yield. The ASABE Annual Meeting, New Orleands, Louisiana, July 26-29.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Wang, L.J., Zhang, B., and Shahbazi, A. 2015. Life Cycle Assessment of a Microalgae Biorefinery for the Treatment of Swine Wastewater and Production of Biodiesel and Organic Fertilizers. The 5th International Conference on Algal Biomass, Biofuels and Bioproducts, San Diego, CA, June 7-10.