Electrochemically assisted biotechnologies for resource recovery from organic fraction of municipal solid waste

有机废物约占加拿大产生的生活固体废物的40%。由于包括温室气体排放在内的各种不利环境影响，加拿大大多数市政当局都制定了从垃圾填埋场转移有机废物的目标。因此，人们对有机废物处理的可持续技术越来越感兴趣。拟议的研究将调查新兴的电化学辅助生物技术，如电动辅助消化器和微生物电化学池(MXC)，以促进固体废物有机部分的同时处理和资源回收。 为了开发从有机废物中回收资源的电化学辅助生物技术，申请者将专注于两个研究主题。第一个研究主题将侧重于了解限制电辅助消化生产生物甲烷的过程动力学的基本原理。第二个研究主题将集中在工程方面，包括有机废物的前处理，以及改善电子辅助消化的电极配置的优化。此外，还将研究MXC用于从电动消化器废水中生产化学氧化剂，这可能会抵消有机废物的前处理成本。 这项拟议的研究综合了微生物电化学、微生物学和环境生物技术的广泛方面。研究方法包括实验室规模的实验、先进的电化学技术、先进的工程概念和生物反应器的设计和优化。该计划将允许高素质人员(HQP)获得加拿大非常需要的先进分析技术的实践经验和专业知识，因为生物能源和资源回收行业的就业机会预计将大幅增长。拟议研究的成功完成将极大地刺激从堆填区转移有机废物。最终，这项研究将确保加拿大人有一个可持续和健康的环境。

Organic wastes make up approximately 40 percent of the residential solid waste generated in Canada. Most of the municipalities in Canada set a target to divert the organic waste from landfill due to various adverse environmental effects including emission of greenhouse gases. Hence, there has been a growing interest in sustainable technologies for organic waste treatment. The proposed research will investigate emerging electrochemically assisted biotechnologies, such as electro-assisted digester, and microbial electrochemical cell (MXC) to promote simultaneous treatment and resources recovery from the organic fraction of solid waste. To develop electrochemically assisted biotechnologies for resources recovery from organic waste, the applicant will focus on two research themes. The first research theme will focus on the understanding of the fundamentals limiting process kinetics of electro-assisted digestion for bio-methane production. The second research theme will concentrate on the engineering aspects including organic waste pre-treatment, and optimization of the electrode configuration for improving electro-assisted digestion. Furthermore, MXC will be investigated for chemical oxidant production from electro-assisted digester effluent which can potentially offset the organic waste pre-treatment cost. The proposed research integrates broad aspects of microbial electrochemistry, microbiology, and environmental biotechnology. The research methodology involves laboratory-scale experiments, advanced electrochemical techniques, design and optimization of advanced engineering concepts and bioreactors. This program will allow highly qualified personnel (HQP) to acquire hands-on experience and expertise with the advanced analytical techniques which are highly desirable in Canada, as the number of employment opportunities in bioenergy and resource recovery sectors is expected to grow substantially. The successful completion of the proposed research will significantly stimulate the diversion of organic waste from landfill. Ultimately, this research will ensure a sustainable and healthy environment for Canadians.