Two-Stage Biogas Recycling for Food Waste and Wastewater
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing food waste treatment systems generate significant energy costs, environmental pollution risks, and require substantial outsourcing of wastewater and waste materials, while producing residual waste with high nitrogen content that is difficult to recycle effectively.
Innovation Solution
A two-stage system integrating anaerobic digesters, dryers, and deodorizing boilers, which recycles and recovers dried materials and wastewater within the process, minimizing external discharge and utilizing biogas as an internal energy source.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Stability of the object's composition
If food waste is processed through drying and carbonization to reduce moisture content, then the moisture content is reduced and solid materials are produced, but leachate and condensate are generated requiring treatment and posing environmental pollution risks
Solution Approach 1:
The patent converts the harmful leachate and condensate generated during drying into useful resources by recycling them back into the anaerobic digestion process. The leachate, which would normally be treated as waste requiring external disposal, is now utilized as a nutrient-rich substrate to enhance bio-gas production, transforming an environmental hazard into a beneficial input material.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements an internal recycling system where dried materials and process wastes are recovered and reused within the same facility. Instead of discarding leachate and condensate to external treatment facilities, the system recovers these materials and reintroduces them into the anaerobic digestion process, eliminating the need for external waste disposal services.
2Stability of the object's composition
If drying is performed to reduce moisture content, then solid materials with low moisture content are produced, but substantial thermal energy is consumed continuously
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates a self-sufficient energy system where the bio-gas produced during anaerobic digestion is used to generate thermal energy for the drying process. The organic waste material serves dual purposes: it is both the substrate for bio-gas production and the fuel source for thermal energy generation, eliminating the need for external energy inputs.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent merges the anaerobic digestion process with the drying process by using the bio-gas from digestion to provide thermal energy for drying. This integration allows the system to combine waste treatment with energy production, where the output of one process (bio-gas) becomes the input for another process (drying energy supply).
3Productivity
If food waste treatment processes are implemented, then bio-gas is produced, but wastewater and waste materials must be outsourced for disposal increasing costs
Solution Approach 1:
The patent designs a multi-functional system where the anaerobic digestion facility handles multiple streams of waste materials simultaneously. The system processes not only the primary food waste but also recycles leachate, condensate, and dried materials back into the digestion process, creating a universal waste treatment solution that eliminates external disposal needs.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent establishes a continuous recycling loop where waste materials are constantly fed back into the anaerobic digestion process. Instead of a linear process where waste is generated and then disposed of, the system creates a continuous cycle where outputs from one stage become inputs for the next, maintaining continuous useful action throughout the process.
4Quantity of substance
If dried material with high nitrogen content is produced, then the material can be used as feed, but high nitrogen content makes it difficult to achieve high-quality feed production
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and removes excess nitrogen from the dried material through the anaerobic digestion process. By subjecting the high-nitrogen dried material to anaerobic digestion, the system selectively removes nitrogen in the form of bio-gas (methane and carbon dioxide), leaving behind a low-nitrogen residue that meets quality standards for animal feed production.
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
Increases bio-gas production, reduces energy costs, and minimizes waste discharge, producing high-quality compost with low nitrogen content, thereby enhancing corporate profitability and environmental sustainability.
Implementation Method 1
a primary digester configured to anaerobically treat food wastewater, which is discharged from the oil remover of the food waste pretreatment part, and digested sludge, which is circulated from a maturation tank, to produce bio-gas
Implementation Method 2
a primary deodorizing boiler configured to incinerate waste gas discharged from the primary dryer
Implementation Method 3
an ammonia stripping reactor configured to strip ammonia by adding an alkaline agent to the digested sludge, which is discharged from the maturation tank, thereby increasing a pH to at least about 11
Implementation Method 4
a primary dryer configured to dry-treat organic sludge discharged from the dehydrator of the food waste pretreatment part
Data Source
AI summary
Provided is a system that recycles high-concentration organic food wastewater and organic sludge generated during the food waste treatment process within the process itself to increase bio-gas production and minimize process waste. The present invention provides a system for maximizing bio-gas production and minimizing process waste discharge by constructing key facilities, such as anaerobic digesters, dryers, and deodorizing boilers, in a two-stage configuration and integrating these facilities into an interconnected process. By implementing this system, dried materials generated in the dryers, as well as digested slurry and condensed wastewater generated during the treatment process, may be recycled and recovered within the process. As a result, energy costs may be reduced by increasing bio-gas production, by minimizing external discharge of process waste, outsourcing treatment costs may be reduced.