Reducing contamination risk and increasing yields in the production of platform sugars from UK MSW

Fiberight创造了一种循环经济解决方案，从城市固体废物（MSW）中产生增值产品。这个过程包括对城市生活垃圾进行热机械处理和洗涤，以回收两个主要部分：可回收物和生物质。洗涤阶段产生含有可溶性有机物的洗涤水，可作为高速率厌氧沼气池的饲料，以产生沼气，这是一种可再生能源。洗涤后的剩余固体是一种“清洁”的生物质，富含木质纤维素纤维，可以通过酶水解转化为糖：这些糖构成了基于废物的工业生物炼制中各种产品的基础。该项目将测试新方法，包括在城市生活垃圾洗涤阶段使用专门的添加剂，以提高洗涤纤维素纤维的质量，提高其糖产量，以及一种新的低成本pH控制剂，以减少食物垃圾和营养物质污染的风险，影响下游的糖生产阶段。

Fiberight has created a circular economy solution to generate value-added products from municipal solid waste (MSW). The process involves thermo-mechanically treating and washing the MSW to recover two main fractions: recyclables and biomass. The washing stage generates a washwater containing soluble organic matter which can be a feed for high-rate anaerobic digesters to produce biogas, a source of renewable energy. The residual solid from washing is a 'clean' biomass rich in lignocellulosic fibre that can be converted into sugars via enzyme hydrolysis: these sugars form the building blocks for a wide range of products in a waste-based industrial biorefinery. The project will test novel methods including the use of specialised additives in the MSW washing stage to improve the quality of the washed cellulose fibre and increase its sugar yield, and a new low-cost agent for pH control, to reduce the risks of contamination from food waste and nutrients affecting the downstream sugar production stage.