Production of hydrogen gas and biopolymers from forest industrial wastewaters
SEMINAR SERIES ORGANIZED BY THE DEPARTMENT OF ENGINEERING AND CHEMICAL SCIENCES
Meet Dr Maria Sandberg, research in Environmental and energy systems and member of the Pro2BE research environment.
Wastewater from paper production is usually treated with biological methods before being discharged. Sludge produced during the treatment is seen as a waste to be disposed of.
Some of the bacteria in the sludge, however, still have some skills worth considering: the ability to accumulate polyhydroxy-alcanoates (PHA), which can be upgraded to renewable biodegradable bioplastics.
Some pulp and paper mill wastewaters contain hemicellulose, a compound that can be used as food for the fermenting bacteria caldicelulosiruptor, and thus transformed into hydrogen gas and acetic acid. The hydrogen gas is a valuable energy carrier. The acetic acid is a readily degradable organic material suitable for PHA accumulating bacteria.
By combining three biological processes (biological wastwater treatment, PHA accumulation, and fermentation) pulp and paper wastewater can be transformed into valuable products: hydrogen gas and biopolymers.
During this seminar, results from a completed study are presented and a new project will be introduced.