Der Beitrag Jörg zu Dohna is a guest at the “Hope for change” Talk by ProSieben TV erschien zuerst auf PYREG GmbH.

Since 2015, PYREG has been installing its proven, sustainable and scalable biochar production plants at Waste Water Treatment Plants (WWTP) throughout Germany, Denmark, Czech Republic, Sweden, as well in the United States.  PYREG’s modular Systems have a small / compact footprint, which allows for integration with existing WWTP equipment such as sludge digesters, drying equipment, etc.

A significant revenue opportunity

Furthermore, the recovery of phosphorus in the wastewater treatment process ensures independence from costly mineral phosphorus imports that pollute the environment and the climate. Hence, what may seem like an additional financial burden for local authorities, is in reality, a significant revenue opportunity, as the carbonization recycling process not only produces P-fertilizer biochar, but also provides regenerative energy and enables valuable CO₂ removal certificates.  Hence, WWTPs can benefit from three revenue streams, whilst eliminating significant costs, such as sewage sludge transportation.

PYREG plants are now in operation at more than 50 locations around the world. And they also serve national environmental authorities, such as the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), as study and reference plants; an example is the PYREG plant operated at the Silicon Valley Clean Water (SVCW) WWTP, near San Francisco, California.

Biomass cycles

The heating of biomass in a low oxygen environment is called pyrolytic carbonization. In this process, organic carbon compounds are converted into a process gas and solid elemental carbon. While organic carbon compounds are degradable and natural decomposition releases greenhouse gases such as CO₂ or methane (CH₄) into the atmosphere, elemental carbon is stable for thousands of years. As long as this carbon is not burned, it does not react with any element and remains in its stable form as C. Thus, it can be considered a permanent carbon sink, when it is used as a soil amendment in arable farming.

The characteristics of the carbonization process

– A temperature and a process duration, high and long enough, respectively, to remove important impurities of the starting material such as viruses or micropollutants to “decompose” or “volatilize”
– The retention of important nutrients such as phosphorus in the solid phase.
– The ability to retain most of the carbon contained in the feedstock into stable carbon in the resulting biochar, thus providing a stable carbon sink. This process is referred Biochar Carbon Removal (BCR)

Autothermal carbonization

The PYREG process enables the conversion of organic residues to biochar with simultaneous recovery of thermal energy. The core of our technology is the PYREG reactor in combination with the downstream FLOX combustion chamber (“FLOX” stands for flameless oxidation). In the reactor, the raw material is heated largely in the absence of air at high temperatures of around 500 to 700 °C for several minutes.  The computer-controlled process parameters – such as speed of conveyance of the feed material, temperature and air supply, is the key to recycling success. The sewage sludge is almost completely pyrolytically carbonized in a controlled process. In the process, the phosphorus remains completely available for plants.

The volatile components are freed from entrained particles by hot gas filtration and burned flamelessly as hot process gas in the combustion chamber. The resulting combustion heat is partly used to heat the reactor, so that the process is thermally self-sufficient after the start-up phase.  Hence, PYREG Systems do not produce residues such as pyrolytic oil, which are costly and problematic to dispose of.

The FLOX combustion, with flue gas recirculation, in conjunction with hot gas filtration, allows very low flue gas emissions – especially low amounts of nitrogen oxides and dust – while simultaneously creating biochar and usable waste heat. Thus, PYREG Systems represent a NetZero technology, as they require significantly less energy to operate than the renewable energy they produce themselves.

Valuable output

The resulting excess heat is used for preparatory drying of the raw material or fed into heating networks. Alternatively, it can be used to generate electricity should that be a goal. The resulting biochar can be used as a high-quality fertilizer. This is possible because the carbonization process at more than 500 °C sanitizes and decontaminates the dried sludge. And: The phosphate recovery rate with this process is more than 98 %.

High fertilizing effect

The commitment to resource conservation requires us to recover phosphorus from sewage sludge to make it available to farmers. Of the methods for phosphorus recovery, carbonization at temperatures of 500 to 700 °C is among the most carbon efficient and results in a product that can used directly as a fertilizer for soil applications without further chemical extraction. In 2021, the Hessian State Laboratory (LHL) in Giessen, commissioned by the Hessian Ministry of the Environment conducted a trial to compare the plant availability of ten recycled phosphates with that of triple superphosphate (TSP) and with that of sewage sludge. The recyclates differed in terms of their production, composition and product form.
TSP is a calcium dihydrogen phosphate-containing fertilizer, which has a converted content of more than 46 diphosphorus pentoxide (P₂O₅). The phosphorus availability of the PYREG carbonate reached almost 90 % of the effect of the TSP (regrowth performance). This TSP fertilizer with 46% P₂O₅ costs currently between 700 and 800 €/t. Thus, municipalities will be able to generate revenues instead of incurring significant costs.

Climate protection benefits

Compared to conventional fertilizer, sewage sludge carbonates have a negative global warming potential. A study by the German Federal Environment Agency from 2019 comes to the conclusion that conventional fertilizer production in Germany emits about +1.2 kg CO₂-equivalents per kg of P₂O₅ [1]. Phosphate recovery processes such as precipitation in digested sludge or centrate or sewage sludge ash cause CO₂ emissions. Compared to the greenhouse gas potential of these processes PYREG carbonates from sewage sludge have a negative global warming potential of -4.01 kg CO₂ equivalents per kg P₂O₅. Consequently, the recovery of phosphate in the Pyreg process and the final application of the biochar contributes to the fight against global warming and to advance our goal of net zero.

In addition, the phosphate – recovery rate of the sewage sludge carbonates is more than 98%, which is within the range of other thermal treatments and is far better than that of precipitation processes with a recovery rate of less than 40 %.

No microplastics

Still the direct application of sewage sludge onto arable land is still a preferred method in some European countries. Researchers showed that sewage sludge contains significant amounts of microplastics. The elimination of microplastic contamination can only be achieved by high temperatures during treatment and a sufficiently long retention time. Ni et al. 2020 [2] stated that “polyethylene and polypropylene, the two most common microplastics in sewage sludge, are completely degraded at a carbonization temperature of 450 °C.”

No pathogens

Sewage sludge mainly consists of human excreta and naturally contains pathogens which by their very nature, are a significant risk to public health. The process conditions of pyreg carbonization of more than 500 °C for more than ten minutes are more extreme than those of the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
According to the Steam Sterilization Disinfection and sterilization guidelines of the CDC, the minimum sterilization conditions are as follows 132 °C for four minutes or 250 °C to remove pathogens such as bacterial endotoxins under dry conditions (dry heat sterilization).

No contaminants

In a study published by the Federal Environmental Agency in 2019 pharmaceutical residues of various biosolids were analysed after pyrolytic treatments at over 500 °C[3]. After carbonization, all the parameters of the of the analysed pharmaceuticals were below the detection limit. The authors concluded that thermochemical treatments such as carbonization achieve complete destruction of the drug residues.

No PFASs

Another example: perfluorinated and polyfluorinated alkyl substances (PFAS) are very persistent, long-lived and accumulate in the environment and in our bodies. For this reason they are often referred to as “Forever Chemicals”. In this regard, a study by the US EPA from the year 2021 shows that the integrated carbonization and combustion process of the PYREG plant operated near San Francisco successfully eliminates PFASs [4].

Conclusion

The CO₂-emitting incineration of sewage sludge or the untreated application to soils  is no longer justifiable from the point of view of climate, environmental and health aspects. Instead, carbonization is a profitable process for recycling the valuable raw material(s) from sewage sludge and supplying it to agriculture as refined biochar.
For municipalities, this has several positive effects: they close material cycles, meet their decarbonization targets, generate significant amounts of renewable energy and create a high-quality, safe and environmentally friendly end product, which they can sell as an alternative to phosphorus fertilizer.

Sources:

1. Umweltbundesamt, „Ökobilanzieller Vergleich der P-Rückgewinnung aus dem Abwasserstrom mit der Düngemittelproduktion aus Rohphosphaten unter Einbeziehung von Umweltfolgeschäden und deren Vermeidung“, UBA Texte 13/2019, ISSN 1862–480
2. Ni et al., 2020, „Microplastics Mitigation in Sewage Sludge through Pyrolysis: The Role of Pyrolysis Temperature“, Environ. Sci. Technol. Lett. 2020, 7, 12, 961–967, https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.estlett.0c00740
3. Umweltbundesamt, „Arzneimittelrückstände in Rezyklaten der Phosphorrückgewinnung aus Klärschlämmen“, UBA Texte 31/2019
4. Environmental Protection Agency, „PFAS innovative treatment team (PITT) findings on PFAS destruction technologies“, February 17, 2021, https://www.epa.gov/chemical-research/pfas-innovative-treatment-team-pitt

Der Beitrag Waste-to-Value: From Sewage Sludge to Natural Fertilizer and Carbon Capture erschien zuerst auf PYREG GmbH.

The three-day, virtual event will focus on quantifying biochar’s true climate solution impacts, as well as provide an update on the state-of-play for the global biochar industry. This is a wonderful opportunity to learn and engage with various experts from the biochar space and other aligned industries through group and one-one networking!

Register here. As an IBI member and sponsor for the symposium, PYREG is pleased to offer a 15% discount registration code:  IBI2022

Der Beitrag Raising Climate Ambitions with Biochar – a symposium by IBI erschien zuerst auf PYREG GmbH.

Our motto for RWM is “turn positive now – the best way to recycle your residuals, protects the climate and creates economic value”. Let´s meet at the RWM Expo, which takes place on 22-23 September 2021 at the NEC, Birmingham. You are very welcome to arrange appointments with us in advance.
You will find us at the booth 5-Q102

Der Beitrag Join us at RWM Expo, UK’s largest Recycling, Resource & Waste Management event! erschien zuerst auf PYREG GmbH.

A cross-disciplinary collaboration at Cornell University found that a majority of the U.S. public is supportive of soil carbon storage as a climate change mitigation strategy, particularly when that and similar approaches are seen as “natural” strategies.

The team analyzed results from a survey of 1,222 U.S. adults who reported believing in climate change at least “somewhat,” to estimate public support for soil carbon storage and how it compares to other leading carbon dioxide removal strategies. It solicited respondents’ perceptions of naturalness and policy support for five CO₂ removal strategies: afforestation and reforestation; bioenergy plus carbon capture and storage; direct air capture; soil carbon storage; and soil carbon storage with biochar.

In the final analysis, perceived naturalness was a strong indicator of support for soil carbon storage as a climate change mitigation strategy. Of the five CO₂ removal strategies, support was highest (73%) for afforestation and reforestation; soil carbon storage ranked second, supported by 62% of those polled.

Cornell University. “People prefer ‘natural’ strategies to reduce atmospheric carbon.” ScienceDaily, 26 May 2021. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/05/210526185839.htm>.

Der Beitrag People prefer ‘natural’ strategies to reduce atmospheric carbon erschien zuerst auf PYREG GmbH.

This is the common carbon cycle. But: We can no longer afford this release of CO₂ nowadays. The global releases are too serious due to rapidly growing forest and peat fires worldwide, as well as the thawing permafrost soils.

To give an impression of the dimensions: Around 44 percent of the waste generated globally in 2016 was organic waste such as food and green waste (Source: Statista 2021). If the global annual emissions from food waste – some 3.3 billion tonnes – were released as a single country, that nation would be the world’s third largest polluter behind China and the United States (Source: © Circular – Magazine for resource and waste professionals 2021).

This is where pyrolysis comes into play: The carbonization of biomass in an oxygen-poor or oxygen-free environment converts about half of the carbon compounds in the biomass into biochar. This carbon-rich material is highly durable and resists biological or chemical decomposition. Left in the soil or used in other durable material applications, this biochar creates a carbon sink. This is, of course, provided that the provision of the biomass does not reduce existing carbon stocks.

These carbon sinks, just like reforestation and humus growth, are without alternative to counteract the climate crisis. After all, emission reductions alone are not enough. To achieve the goal of the European Union, which is to become climate neutral by 2050, the annual sink volume must increase to at least 850 million metric tons of CO₂.

Using the PYREG Standard System PX 1500, an average output of 690 tons of biochar can be produced every year. Incorporated into the soil as a soil improver, this can sequester as much CO₂ per year as 220,800 trees.

PyCCS is evolving into a decisive tool for global carbon governance, supporting both climate change mitigation and the sustainable development goals simultaneously.

Der Beitrag Taking responsibility for CO2 from biomass erschien zuerst auf PYREG GmbH.

In order to achieve climate neutrality by 2050, as called for by the EU, two fundamentally different strands of action are required: on the one hand, the reduction of carbon emissions, and on the other, the creation of carbon sinks.

(source: Glen peters @ https://www.cicero.oslo.no/en/posts/climate-news/stylised-pathways-to-well-below-2c)

In the EU, this would require sequestering a carbon quantity on the order of 15% of 1990 emissions, or about 850 million metric tons of CO₂ equivalent. Without carbon sinks, also known as negative emissions, climate neutrality and thus the Paris climate goals cannot be achieved.

There are a number of viable methods for creating carbon sinks, also known as Negative Emission Technologies (NET), that actively remove CO₂ from the atmosphere. The key to carbon efficiency is sequestration (i.e., storage) over as long a period of time as possible.

(source: EBI White Paper adjusted from MCC)

The European Biochar Certificate (EBC) for quality control was supplemented in June 2020 with a new standard for carbon sink certification (EBC, 2020). This provided a scientifically sound basis for quantifying the overall carbon sink performance of biochar applications. Key elements include:

1. Biomass production must be carbon neutral, i.e., it must not impact existing carbon sinks.
2. Emissions from the entire charring process (pyrolysis) must be subtracted. In particular, this includes emissions associated with the transport and processing of the biomass, any post-treatment, and the energy required to start the pyrolysis process.
3. Emissions from transporting the biochar to the point of use and, if applicable, emissions from further processing of the biochar must also be subtracted.
4. The final use of the biochar determines the durability of the carbon sink. For example, for soil applications, a scientifically based annual decay must be assumed. However, if the biochar is used as a sand replacement in concrete, for example, this is not necessary because the biochar cannot oxidize in the absence of air.

Der Beitrag Biochar as Negative Emission Technology (NET) erschien zuerst auf PYREG GmbH.

That´s the reason why Max Burgers is now converting lobby waste into biochar in a pilot project. Turning waste into biochar and spreading it on farmland means that it will stay there for at least 100 years, while improving the fertility of the soil.

In this project, Skånefrö converts food waste from the Max Burgers restaurant in Ystad into biochar by pyrolysis, with a PYREG Industrial Unit. The PYREG process allows the precise control of the parameters, so that nutrients can be recycled gently. Temperatures of 500-700°C sanitize the waste and eliminate any kind of pollutants, reducing the total quantity significantly. This carbonisation process is designed to be energy efficient, so that excess heat (renewable energy) is extracted for additional purposes (drying, heating).The biochar is then quantified by Ecoera and spread on fields at Skönadals Farm in the area of Österlen. An example of circular economy at its best!

Max Burgers, the most profitable
restaurant chain in Sweden

Max Burgers, the most profitable restaurant chain in Sweden, is family owned and was founded in 1968. By following the world´s independent standard for carbon neutrality – ISO 14021, Max Burgers launched the world’s first climate-positive burgers. How does Max do it? Max measures 100% of their product emissions, reduces emissions and captures at least 110% of emissions. As a result for their work with climate positive products, Max Burgers has received the “Global Climate Action Award” by the UN in 2019.
For further information please find details here.

Der Beitrag Sweden: Max Burgers turns waste into biochar and saves the climate erschien zuerst auf PYREG GmbH.

Not at all. A very ambitious goal, but certainly feasible with these technologies: reforestation, renaturation of forests and rural areas, carbonisation of biomass in industrial processes such as the PYREG process with subsequent capture and storage of the resulting CO₂ and increasing the carbon content in soils. The IPCC refers explicitly to the studies of Claudia Kammann (Geisenheim University of Applied Sciences), Hans-Peter Schmidt (Ithaka Institute) and Constanze Werner and Wolfgang Lucht (Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research). All four researchers have investigated and proven the climate protection potential of biochar in detail.

Biochar binds 3 times its own weight to CO₂. It also counteracts soil humus loss by returning carbon to the soil. In addition, it significantly reduces methane and nitrous oxide emissions (which are 25 times/ 300 times as harmful to the climate as CO₂) when insert into the soil or as a bedding additive in the stable. In addition, not a single tree has to die in the end for biochar: The worldwide quantities of residual biomass such as green waste, slurry & manure, biowaste, nut shells, sieve residues etc. are loosely sufficient to produce biochar in a very sustainable way and to save the climate.

→ LINK: Read more about the latest IPCC report.

→ DOWNLOAD: Learn more about biomass which can be used for biochar.

Der Beitrag CLIMATE PROTECTION: IPCC recommends biochar as CO₂ reservoir erschien zuerst auf PYREG GmbH.