Inorganic Nutrient Extraction from Fermentation Beer for Fertilizer
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Solution Overview
Problem
There is a need to efficiently recover residual inorganic nutrients from pretreated biomass in ethanol biorefineries to form a fertilizer composition, reducing waste and eliminating the need for remediation of waste streams containing these nutrients.
Innovation Solution
A method and system for fermenting pretreated biomass to produce fermentation beer, which includes removing inorganic nutrients to form an aqueous fertilizer composition, utilizing various treatments such as thermal, mechanical, and chemical processes to extract and separate these nutrients, and then processing them into a fertilizer suitable for agricultural use.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of substance
If inorganic nutrients are removed from fermentation beer to form fertilizer composition, then waste reduction and resource recovery are improved, but process complexity and equipment requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies extraction by removing inorganic nutrients from fermentation beer through thermal treatment, mechanical separation, and chemical processes. This extracts the valuable inorganic components from the waste stream to form a fertilizer composition, directly addressing the technical contradiction by recovering substances while managing the associated process complexity through systematic separation stages.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent utilizes parameter changes by applying thermal treatment to alter the physical and chemical properties of the fermentation beer, enabling separation of inorganic nutrients. By changing temperature, pressure, and chemical conditions, the process transforms the waste stream into a recoverable fertilizer product, resolving the contradiction between substance recovery and process complexity.
2Productivity
If thermal and chemical treatments are applied to extract inorganic nutrients, then nutrient recovery efficiency is improved, but energy consumption and operational complexity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies preliminary action by conducting thermal treatment and chemical processing before final fertilizer formulation. This preliminary extraction of inorganic nutrients from fermentation beer prepares the material for efficient fertilizer production, improving overall productivity while managing energy consumption through staged processing rather than intensive single-step treatment.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces purely mechanical separation methods with thermal and chemical treatment processes that are more efficient for extracting inorganic nutrients from fermentation beer. This substitution improves productivity by utilizing chemical reactions and thermal energy to facilitate nutrient separation, though it increases energy consumption and operational complexity.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach allows for the efficient recovery of plant-positive nutrients, reducing waste and eliminating the need for remediation, while providing a natural, refined fertilizer composition that can be used directly or supplemented to meet commercial specifications, thereby offsetting petroleum-based fertilizers.
Implementation Method 1
utilizing various treatments such as thermal, mechanical, and chemical processes to extract and separate these nutrients
Implementation Method 2
utilizing various treatments such as thermal, mechanical, and chemical processes to extract and separate these nutrients
Implementation Method 3
utilizing various treatments such as thermal, mechanical, and chemical processes to extract and separate these nutrients
Implementation Method 4
fermenting the pretreated biomass to provide a fermentation beer
Data Source
AI summary
The present disclosure includes methods of making a fertilizer composition from pretreated biomass by removing one or more inorganic nutrients from a fermentation beer to form an aqueous fertilizer composition. The present disclosure also includes systems configured to make a fertilizer composition from pretreated biomass, where the systems include one or more apparatuses in fluid communication with a fermentation vessel, wherein at least one apparatus is configured to remove one or more inorganic nutrients from the fermentation beer to form an aqueous fertilizer composition.