SusChEM: Algal-Based Resource Positive Sanitation (ARPS) Systems - An Integrated Modeling Framework to Advance Wastewater Infrastructure Sustainability

SusChEM：基于藻类的资源积极卫生 (ARPS) 系统 - 促进废水基础设施可持续性的综合建模框架

• 批准号: 1438667
• 负责人: Jeremy Guest
• 金额: $ 30.95万
• 依托单位: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2014
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2014-08-01 至 2017-07-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1438667&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: SusChEM; Algal; Based; Resource; Positive

1438667This research and associated educational activities will advance the sustainability of municipal and agricultural wastewater infrastructure by establishing a systems-scale modeling framework for algal-based resource recovery technologies, and will leverage this framework to teach Illinois farmers about sustainable wastewater management. Research will pursue financially viable treatment processes capable of nutrient recovery and energy positive wastewater management, and will focus on overcoming critical knowledge gaps that limit our ability to design algal-based resource positive sanitation (ARPS) systems integrating algae cultivation, harvesting, and downstream processing to manage wastewater as a renewable resource. Wastewater management is often viewed as a burden by farmers and municipalities (with good cause). Conventional approaches to sanitation focus on pollutant mitigation, resulting in unsustainable financial models that lead to dilapidated infrastructure and inefficient resource management. This research seeks to re-envision wastewater treatment by developing holistic approaches to nutrient management enabling energy positive nutrient recovery through the design of systems that achieve microalgae cultivation, harvesting, and processing to fuels. The research will focus on the development of an integrated modeling framework that links design decisions, operational decisions, and independent variables (e.g., climate, wastewater composition) with predictions of treatment efficacy, nutrient recovery, and energy production. Research efforts will be integrated with an education plan designed to engage undergraduate students, Illinois farmers, and the public at large (from pre-schoolers to adults). These goals will be achieved by (i) mentoring undergraduate students through on-campus programs targeting underrepresented groups in engineering, (ii) developing a course module for environmental engineering undergraduates, and (iii) partnering with a local farm and farmer education organization to develop a module on sustainable wastewater management. Objectives of this research are (i) to establish an integrated modeling framework that enables dynamic modeling of ARPS and the prediction of water quality, recovered nutrients, and the production of energy, and (ii) to elucidate the mechanisms governing the sustainability of ARPS systems and leverage this information to establish a path forward for ARPS development. Existing models of sub-systems (cultivation, harvesting, downstream processing) will be leveraged to provide a baseline modeling framework, and targeted experimentation will enable the development of novel models for cultivation and hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL; the greatest source of uncertainty in preliminary calculations). This ARPS model will be integrated in a quantitative sustainable design (QSD) framework (including life cycle assessment, life cycle costing, sensitivity and uncertainty analyses) to identify technology targets and enable decision-makers to navigate sustainability trade-offs under uncertainty. The benefits and drawbacks of increasing model complexity will also be evaluated through the development of two new sub-models (one for cultivation, one for HTL). Ultimately, the integration of these models in the QSD framework will enable researchers to more accurately characterize uncertainty, quantify trade-offs in decision-making, identify critical barriers to long-term viability of ARPS systems, and prioritize research and investment to advance such technologies. The research plan will be coupled with an educational plan to engage students, farmers, and the broader public in a discussion related to waste, water, and nutrient management. Undergraduate students will be engaged through educational module development and through undergraduate research opportunities. In partnership with a local farm and a farmer educational program, a module will be developed on sustainable wastewater management and ARPS systems for an immersion school for farmers in central Illinois.

1438667这项研究和相关的教育活动将通过为基于藻类的资源恢复技术建立系统规模的建模框架来提高市政和农业废水基础设施的可持续性，并将利用此框架来教授伊利诺伊州农民有关可持续含水量的可持续废水管理。研究将追求能够营养恢复和能源阳性废水管理的财务可行的治疗过程，并将集中在克服关键知识差距上，以限制我们设计基于藻类的资源阳性卫生系统（ARPS）系统的能力，这些系统将藻类种植，收获和下游处理集成以管理废水作为可再生资源。废水管理通常被认为是农民和市政当局的负担（有充分的理由）。传统的卫生方法集中于污染物缓解措施，从而导致不可持续的财务模型，从而导致基础设施破旧和资源管理效率低下。这项研究试图通过开发整体方法来重新开展废水处理，从而通过设计实现微藻种植，收获和加工到燃料的系统来使能量积极养分恢复。这项研究将重点关注综合建模框架的开发，该框架将设计决策，操作决策和自变量（例如气候，废水组成）与治疗疗效，养分恢复和能源生产的预测联系起来。研究工作将与一项旨在吸引本科生，伊利诺伊州农民和广大公众（从学龄前儿童到成年人）的教育计划。这些目标将通过（i）通过针对工程中代表性不足的群体的校园计划来指导本科生，（ii）为环境工程本科生开发一个课程模块，以及（iii）与当地农场和农民教育组织合作，以开发一个可持续废水管理的模块。这项研究的目标是（i）建立一个集成的建模框架，该框架能够动态建模，预测水质，回收的养分和能源的产生，以及（ii）阐明了管理ARPS系统可持续性的机制，并利用此信息为ARPS开发建立了途径。现有的子系统（种植，收获，下游加工）的现有模型将被利用以提供基线建模框架，而有针对性的实验将使新型培养和水热液化模型的开发（HTL；初步钙化中最大的不确定性来源）。该ARPS模型将集成到定量可持续设计（QSD）框架（包括生命周期评估，生命周期成本，敏感性和不确定性分析）中，以识别技术目标，并使决策者能够在不确定性下导致可持续性权衡。也将通过开发两个新的子模型（一种用于培养，一种用于HTL）来评估增加模型复杂性的好处和缺点。最终，这些模型在QSD框架中的整合将使研究人员能够更准确地表征不确定性，量化决策中的权衡，确定ARPS系统长期可行性的关键障碍，并优先考虑研究和投资以推进此类技术。该研究计划将与一项教育计划结合在一起，以使学生，农民和更广泛的公众参与与废物，水和营养管理有关的讨论。本科生将通过教育模块的发展和本科研究机会参与。与当地农场和农民教育计划合作，将在伊利诺伊州中部农民的沉浸式学校的可持续废水管理和ARPS系统上开发一个模块。