Biodegradability of superabsorbent polymers under anaerobic conditions in various waste streams

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Liquid waste is one of the main outcomes for many construction sites, such as direction drilling, tunneling, and hydro excavation. Reducing the current cost of liquid waste and improving the safety of these sites is important to mitigate greenhouse gases (GHGs) emissions and minimize transportation cost. MetaFLO is one of the leading providers of innovative, environmentally friendly chemistry and unique reagent delivery systems for the treatment and solidifications of liquid waste streams. MF002 and MF006 are proprietary reagent blends containing surface crosslinked sodium polyacrylate (super absorbent polymer), that immobilize the water in the liquid waste streams. Under the Anaerobic digestion of the waste, various complex chemical bonds may form acids and start damaging the superabsorbent polymer. Therefore, it is important to understand the mechanisms of Anaerobic Digestion (AD) on MetaFLO reagents in different liquid waste streams. The proposed project will be used to resolve and determine a new strategy to apply MetaFLO products into different liquid waste sites. This will be achieved using a lab-scale AD system to understand the potential degradation of MF002 and MF006 under different biological loading rates and the effect of environmental parameters (i.e. nutrient composition and concentration, pH, and the strength of ionic interactions) on the solid waste biodegradation. The proposed project will be used to resolve and determine a new strategy to apply MetaFLO products into different liquid waste sites. This will be achieved using a lab-scale AD system to understand the potential degradation of MF002 and MF006 under different biological loading rates and the effect of environmental parameters (i.e. nutrient composition and concentration, pH, and the strength of ionic interactions) on the solid waste biodegradation.