IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jeners/v16y2023i5p2369-d1084890.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

A Scoping Review of Options for Increasing Biogas Production from Sewage Sludge: Challenges and Opportunities for Enhancing Energy Self-Sufficiency in Wastewater Treatment Plants

Author

Listed:
  • Derick Lima

    (School of Electrical and Data Engineering University of Technology Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2007, Australia)

  • Gregory Appleby

    (Sydney Water Corporation, Parramatta, NSW 2150, Australia)

  • Li Li

    (School of Electrical and Data Engineering University of Technology Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2007, Australia)

Abstract

Treating municipal wastewater is a complex and costly process. With rising energy costs and sustainability targets, wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) are looking for alternatives to reduce operating costs and carbon dependence. Anaerobic digestion is the most common and established technology used in WWTPs to treat sludge since it can potentially improve energy recovery and reduce sewage treatment costs, mainly due to the generation of biogas. Biogas is a renewable energy resource and can be used in several applications, including heating and producing electricity. By exploring the biogas potential, WWTPs can reduce their operating costs and energy demands. The objective of this paper is to conduct a scoping literature review in order to provide the key concepts underpinning alternatives to improve biogas production and utilisation in WWTPs. In addition, this study aims to provide an overview of the current state-of-the-art that may serve as a quick reference for the research community, WWTP operators, and engineers, including definitions and a general overview of the current state of biogas technologies around the world. Methods to increase biogas production, including co-digestion, pre-treatment, and biological hydrogen methanation, are reviewed, and the alternatives to using biogas are also summarised. This review has identified that co-digestion was the most efficient technique to improve biogas production and methane yield, while pre-treatment of sludge improved sludge biodegradability and reduced sludge treatment costs but also enhanced biogas production. Although many studies have explored different methods to improve biogas production in WWTPs, there is still a need for further investigation, especially regarding the techno-economic feasibility of these methods in full-scale facilities. The current challenges are mainly related to the need for extra investment and increased operating costs to integrate the new techniques into the current system. There is a great interest in alternatives to improve energy efficiency and self-sufficiency in WWTPs. This work provides an important review of the increasing number of recently published research papers that focus on improving biogas generation from sewage sludge in WWTPs.

Suggested Citation

  • Derick Lima & Gregory Appleby & Li Li, 2023. "A Scoping Review of Options for Increasing Biogas Production from Sewage Sludge: Challenges and Opportunities for Enhancing Energy Self-Sufficiency in Wastewater Treatment Plants," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(5), pages 1-34, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jeners:v:16:y:2023:i:5:p:2369-:d:1084890
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/16/5/2369/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/16/5/2369/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Tabatabaei, Meisam & Aghbashlo, Mortaza & Valijanian, Elena & Kazemi Shariat Panahi, Hamed & Nizami, Abdul-Sattar & Ghanavati, Hossein & Sulaiman, Alawi & Mirmohamadsadeghi, Safoora & Karimi, Keikhosr, 2020. "A comprehensive review on recent biological innovations to improve biogas production, Part 1: Upstream strategies," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 146(C), pages 1204-1220.
    2. Shen, Yanwen & Linville, Jessica L. & Urgun-Demirtas, Meltem & Mintz, Marianne M. & Snyder, Seth W., 2015. "An overview of biogas production and utilization at full-scale wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) in the United States: Challenges and opportunities towards energy-neutral WWTPs," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 50(C), pages 346-362.
    3. Athanasoulia, E. & Melidis, P. & Aivasidis, A., 2012. "Optimization of biogas production from waste activated sludge through serial digestion," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 47(C), pages 147-151.
    4. Georgia-Christina Mitraka & Konstantinos N. Kontogiannopoulos & Maria Batsioula & George F. Banias & Anastasios I. Zouboulis & Panagiotis G. Kougias, 2022. "A Comprehensive Review on Pretreatment Methods for Enhanced Biogas Production from Sewage Sludge," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(18), pages 1-56, September.
    5. Salehiyoun, Ahmad Reza & Di Maria, Francesco & Sharifi, Mohammad & Norouzi, Omid & Zilouei, Hamid & Aghbashlo, Mortaza, 2020. "Anaerobic co-digestion of sewage sludge and slaughterhouse waste in existing wastewater digesters," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 145(C), pages 2503-2509.
    6. Di Maria, Francesco & Sordi, Alessio & Cirulli, Giuseppe & Micale, Caterina, 2015. "Amount of energy recoverable from an existing sludge digester with the co-digestion with fruit and vegetable waste at reduced retention time," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 150(C), pages 9-14.
    7. Pastor, L. & Ruiz, L. & Pascual, A. & Ruiz, B., 2013. "Co-digestion of used oils and urban landfill leachates with sewage sludge and the effect on the biogas production," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 107(C), pages 438-445.
    8. Cano, R. & Pérez-Elvira, S.I. & Fdz-Polanco, F., 2015. "Energy feasibility study of sludge pretreatments: A review," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 149(C), pages 176-185.
    9. Gil, A. & Siles, J.A. & Martín, M.A. & Chica, A.F. & Estévez-Pastor, F.S. & Toro-Baptista, E., 2018. "Effect of microwave pretreatment on semi-continuous anaerobic digestion of sewage sludge," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 115(C), pages 917-925.
    10. Savvas, Savvas & Donnelly, Joanne & Patterson, Tim & Chong, Zyh S. & Esteves, Sandra R., 2017. "Biological methanation of CO2 in a novel biofilm plug-flow reactor: A high rate and low parasitic energy process," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 202(C), pages 238-247.
    11. Ariunbaatar, Javkhlan & Panico, Antonio & Esposito, Giovanni & Pirozzi, Francesco & Lens, Piet N.L., 2014. "Pretreatment methods to enhance anaerobic digestion of organic solid waste," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 123(C), pages 143-156.
    12. Sina Shaddel & Hamidreza Bakhtiary-Davijany & Christian Kabbe & Farbod Dadgar & Stein W. Østerhus, 2019. "Sustainable Sewage Sludge Management: From Current Practices to Emerging Nutrient Recovery Technologies," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 11(12), pages 1-12, June.
    13. Voelklein, M.A. & Rusmanis, Davis & Murphy, J.D., 2019. "Biological methanation: Strategies for in-situ and ex-situ upgrading in anaerobic digestion," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 235(C), pages 1061-1071.
    14. Anna Sobczak & Ewa Chomać-Pierzecka & Andrzej Kokiel & Monika Różycka & Jacek Stasiak & Dariusz Soboń, 2022. "Economic Conditions of Using Biodegradable Waste for Biogas Production, Using the Example of Poland and Germany," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(14), pages 1-18, July.
    15. Kari-Anne Lyng & Lise Skovsgaard & Henrik Klinge Jacobsen & Ole Jørgen Hanssen, 2020. "The implications of economic instruments on biogas value chains: a case study comparison between Norway and Denmark," Environment, Development and Sustainability: A Multidisciplinary Approach to the Theory and Practice of Sustainable Development, Springer, vol. 22(8), pages 7125-7152, December.
    16. Macintosh, C. & Astals, S. & Sembera, C. & Ertl, A. & Drewes, J.E. & Jensen, P.D. & Koch, K., 2019. "Successful strategies for increasing energy self-sufficiency at Grüneck wastewater treatment plant in Germany by food waste co-digestion and improved aeration," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 242(C), pages 797-808.
    17. Seifert, A.H. & Rittmann, S. & Herwig, C., 2014. "Analysis of process related factors to increase volumetric productivity and quality of biomethane with Methanothermobacter marburgensis," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 132(C), pages 155-162.
    18. Hidalgo, D. & Martín-Marroquín, J.M., 2020. "Power-to-methane, coupling CO2 capture with fuel production: An overview," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 132(C).
    19. Zhao, Jiamin & Hou, Tingting & Wang, Qian & Zhang, Zhenya & Lei, Zhongfang & Shimizu, Kazuya & Guo, Wenshan & Ngo, Huu Hao, 2021. "Application of biogas recirculation in anaerobic granular sludge system for multifunctional sewage sludge management with high efficacy energy recovery," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 298(C).
    20. Mirmasoumi, Siamak & Ebrahimi, Sirous & Saray, Rahim Khoshbakhti, 2018. "Enhancement of biogas production from sewage sludge in a wastewater treatment plant: Evaluation of pretreatment techniques and co-digestion under mesophilic and thermophilic conditions," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 157(C), pages 707-717.
    21. Thema, M. & Bauer, F. & Sterner, M., 2019. "Power-to-Gas: Electrolysis and methanation status review," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 112(C), pages 775-787.
    22. Papadias, Dionissios D. & Ahmed, Shabbir & Kumar, Romesh, 2012. "Fuel quality issues with biogas energy – An economic analysis for a stationary fuel cell system," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 44(1), pages 257-277.
    23. Venkatesh, G. & Elmi, Rashid Abdi, 2013. "Economic–environmental analysis of handling biogas from sewage sludge digesters in WWTPs (wastewater treatment plants) for energy recovery: Case study of Bekkelaget WWTP in Oslo (Norway)," Energy, Elsevier, vol. 58(C), pages 220-235.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Luz Marina Ruiz & María Fernández & Ana Genaro & Jaime Martín-Pascual & Montserrat Zamorano, 2023. "Multi-Parametric Analysis Based on Physico-Chemical Characterization and Biochemical Methane Potential Estimation for the Selection of Industrial Wastes as Co-Substrates in Anaerobic Digestion," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(14), pages 1-19, July.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Elalami, D. & Carrere, H. & Monlau, F. & Abdelouahdi, K. & Oukarroum, A. & Barakat, A., 2019. "Pretreatment and co-digestion of wastewater sludge for biogas production: Recent research advances and trends," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 114(C), pages 1-1.
    2. Georgia-Christina Mitraka & Konstantinos N. Kontogiannopoulos & Maria Batsioula & George F. Banias & Anastasios I. Zouboulis & Panagiotis G. Kougias, 2022. "A Comprehensive Review on Pretreatment Methods for Enhanced Biogas Production from Sewage Sludge," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(18), pages 1-56, September.
    3. Budych-Gorzna, Magdalena & Smoczynski, Marcin & Oleskowicz-Popiel, Piotr, 2016. "Enhancement of biogas production at the municipal wastewater treatment plant by co-digestion with poultry industry waste," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 161(C), pages 387-394.
    4. Panepinto, Deborah & Fiore, Silvia & Zappone, Mariantonia & Genon, Giuseppe & Meucci, Lorenza, 2016. "Evaluation of the energy efficiency of a large wastewater treatment plant in Italy," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 161(C), pages 404-411.
    5. Daniarta, S. & Sowa, D. & Błasiak, P. & Imre, A.R. & Kolasiński, P., 2024. "Techno-economic survey of enhancing Power-to-Methane efficiency via waste heat recovery from electrolysis and biomethanation," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 194(C).
    6. Zamri, M.F.M.A. & Hasmady, Saiful & Akhiar, Afifi & Ideris, Fazril & Shamsuddin, A.H. & Mofijur, M. & Fattah, I. M. Rizwanul & Mahlia, T.M.I., 2021. "A comprehensive review on anaerobic digestion of organic fraction of municipal solid waste," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 137(C).
    7. Francesca Valenti & Attilio Toscano, 2021. "A GIS-Based Model to Assess the Potential of Wastewater Treatment Plants for Enhancing Bioenergy Production within the Context of the Water–Energy Nexus," Energies, MDPI, vol. 14(10), pages 1-15, May.
    8. Jensen, M.B. & Ottosen, L.D.M. & Kofoed, M.V.W., 2021. "H2 gas-liquid mass transfer: A key element in biological Power-to-Gas methanation," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 147(C).
    9. Hidalgo, D. & Martín-Marroquín, J.M., 2020. "Power-to-methane, coupling CO2 capture with fuel production: An overview," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 132(C).
    10. Ruggero Bellini & Ilaria Bassani & Arianna Vizzarro & Annalisa Abdel Azim & Nicolò Santi Vasile & Candido Fabrizio Pirri & Francesca Verga & Barbara Menin, 2022. "Biological Aspects, Advancements and Techno-Economical Evaluation of Biological Methanation for the Recycling and Valorization of CO 2," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(11), pages 1-34, June.
    11. Kor-Bicakci, Gokce & Eskicioglu, Cigdem, 2019. "Recent developments on thermal municipal sludge pretreatment technologies for enhanced anaerobic digestion," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 110(C), pages 423-443.
    12. Mirsoleimani Azizi, Seyed Mohammad & Haffiez, Nervana & Mostafa, Alsayed & Hussain, Abid & Abdallah, Mohamed & Al-Mamun, Abdullah & Bhatnagar, Amit & Dhar, Bipro Ranjan, 2024. "Low- and high-temperature thermal hydrolysis pretreatment for anaerobic digestion of sludge: Process evaluation and fate of emerging pollutants," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 200(C).
    13. Andrea Barbaresi & Mirko Morini & Agostino Gambarotta, 2022. "Review on the Status of the Research on Power-to-Gas Experimental Activities," Energies, MDPI, vol. 15(16), pages 1-32, August.
    14. Zhen, Guangyin & Lu, Xueqin & Kato, Hiroyuki & Zhao, Youcai & Li, Yu-You, 2017. "Overview of pretreatment strategies for enhancing sewage sludge disintegration and subsequent anaerobic digestion: Current advances, full-scale application and future perspectives," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 69(C), pages 559-577.
    15. Julia Burmistrova & Marc Beutel & Erin Hestir & Rebecca Ryals & Pramod Pandey, 2022. "Anaerobic Co-Digestion to Enhance Waste Management Sustainability at Yosemite National Park," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(19), pages 1-12, September.
    16. Martin Thema & Tobias Weidlich & Manuel Hörl & Annett Bellack & Friedemann Mörs & Florian Hackl & Matthias Kohlmayer & Jasmin Gleich & Carsten Stabenau & Thomas Trabold & Michael Neubert & Felix Ortlo, 2019. "Biological CO 2 -Methanation: An Approach to Standardization," Energies, MDPI, vol. 12(9), pages 1-32, May.
    17. Yin, Yao & Liu, Ya-Juan & Meng, Shu-Juan & Kiran, Esra Uçkun & Liu, Yu, 2016. "Enzymatic pretreatment of activated sludge, food waste and their mixture for enhanced bioenergy recovery and waste volume reduction via anaerobic digestion," Applied Energy, Elsevier, vol. 179(C), pages 1131-1137.
    18. Yan, Peng & Shi, Hong-Xin & Chen, You-Peng & Gao, Xu & Fang, Fang & Guo, Jin-Song, 2020. "Optimization of recovery and utilization pathway of chemical energy from wastewater pollutants by a net-zero energy wastewater treatment model," Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, Elsevier, vol. 133(C).
    19. Sposób, Michał, 2024. "Optimization of ex-situ biomethanation process in trickle bed reactor: The impact of slight H2/CO2 ratio adjustments and different packing materials," Renewable Energy, Elsevier, vol. 222(C).
    20. Marzena Smol, 2023. "Circular Economy in Wastewater Treatment Plant—Water, Energy and Raw Materials Recovery," Energies, MDPI, vol. 16(9), pages 1-18, May.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jeners:v:16:y:2023:i:5:p:2369-:d:1084890. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.