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建立基于藻类的资源回收技术的系统规模的建模框架，推进城市和农业废水基础设施的可持续性，并将利用这一框架来教授伊利诺伊州农民可持续的废水管理。研究将追求经济上可行的处理工艺，能够进行营养物质回收和能源积极的废水管理，并将重点放在克服关键的知识差距，限制我们设计基于藻类的资源积极的卫生（ARPS）系统的能力，将藻类培养，收获和下游处理相结合，以管理废水作为可再生资源。废水管理通常被农民和市政当局视为负担（有充分的理由）。传统的环卫办法侧重于减少污染物，导致不可持续的财政模式，导致基础设施破旧不堪，资源管理效率低下。这项研究旨在通过开发全面的营养管理方法来重新设想废水处理，通过设计实现微藻培养，收获和加工燃料的系统来实现能量正营养回收。该研究将侧重于开发一个集成建模框架，该框架将设计决策、运营决策和独立变量（例如，气候、废水组成），并预测处理效果、营养物回收和能源生产。研究工作将与教育计划相结合，该计划旨在吸引本科生，伊利诺伊州农民和广大公众（从学龄前儿童到成年人）。这些目标将通过以下方式实现：（一）通过针对工程中代表性不足的群体的校园计划指导本科生，（二）为环境工程本科生开发课程模块，以及（三）与当地农场和农民教育组织合作开发可持续废水管理模块。本研究的目标是（一）建立一个综合的建模框架，使动态建模的ARPS和水质的预测，回收的营养物质，和能源的生产，和（ii）阐明的机制，ARPS系统的可持续性和利用这些信息，建立一个前进的道路ARPS的发展。现有的子系统模型（种植，收获，下游加工）将被用来提供一个基线建模框架，有针对性的实验将能够开发用于种植和水热液化的新模型（HTL;初步计算中最大的不确定性来源）。这一ARPS模型将被纳入定量可持续设计（QSD）框架（包括生命周期评估，生命周期成本计算，敏感性和不确定性分析），以确定技术目标，并使决策者能够在不确定性下进行可持续性权衡。增加模型复杂性的好处和缺点也将通过开发两个新的子模型（一个用于种植，一个用于HTL）进行评估。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描述不确定性，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。该研究计划将与教育计划相结合，让学生，农民和更广泛的公众参与与废物，水和养分管理有关的讨论。本科生将通过教育模块开发和本科研究机会参与。与当地农场和农民教育计划合作，将为伊利诺斯州中部的农民沉浸式学校开发一个关于可持续废水管理和ARPS系统的模块。