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Herrera A, D’Imporzano G, Zilio M, Pigoli A, Rizzi B, Meers E, Schouman O, Schepis M, Barone F, Giordano A, Adani F. Environmental Performance in the Production and Use of Recovered Fertilizers from Organic Wastes Treated by Anaerobic Digestion vs Synthetic Mineral Fertilizers. ACS Sustain Chem Eng 2022; 10:986-997. [PMID: 35087697 PMCID: PMC8785226 DOI: 10.1021/acssuschemeng.1c07028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/14/2021] [Revised: 12/28/2021] [Indexed: 05/06/2023]
Abstract
Recovered fertilizers (RFs), in the form of digestate and digestate-derived ammonium sulfate, were produced from organic wastes by thermophilic anaerobic digestion (AD) at full scale. RFs were then used for crop production (maize), substituting synthetic mineral fertilizers (SFs). Environmental impacts due to both RF and SF production and use were studied by a life cycle assessment (LCA) approach using, as much as possible, data directly measured at full scale. The functional unit chosen was referred to as the fertilization of 1 ha of maize, as this paper intends to investigate the impacts of the use of RF (Scenario RF) for crop fertilization compared to that of SF (Scenario SF). Scenario RF showed better environmental performances than the system encompassing the production and use of urea and synthetic fertilizers (Scenario SF). In particular, for the Scenario RF, 11 of the 18 categories showed a lower impact than the Scenario SF, and 3 of the categories (ionizing radiation, fossil resource scarcity, and water consumption) showed net negative impacts in Scenario RF, getting the benefits from the credit for renewable energy production by AD. The LCA approach also allowed proposing precautions able to reduce further fertilizer impacts, resulting in total negative impacts in using RF for crop production. Anaerobic digestion represents the key to propose a sustainable approach in producing renewable fertilizers, thanks to both energy production and the modification that occurs to waste during a biological process, leaving a substrate (digestate) with high amending and fertilizing properties.
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Affiliation(s)
- Axel Herrera
- Gruppo
Ricicla—DiSAA, Università
degli Studi di Milano, Via Celoria 2, 20133 Milano, Italy
| | - Giuliana D’Imporzano
- Gruppo
Ricicla—DiSAA, Università
degli Studi di Milano, Via Celoria 2, 20133 Milano, Italy
| | - Massimo Zilio
- Gruppo
Ricicla—DiSAA, Università
degli Studi di Milano, Via Celoria 2, 20133 Milano, Italy
| | - Ambrogio Pigoli
- Gruppo
Ricicla—DiSAA, Università
degli Studi di Milano, Via Celoria 2, 20133 Milano, Italy
| | - Bruno Rizzi
- Gruppo
Ricicla—DiSAA, Università
degli Studi di Milano, Via Celoria 2, 20133 Milano, Italy
| | - Erik Meers
- Department
of Green Chemistry and Technology, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, University of Ghent, Coupure Links 653, 9000 Ghent, Belgium
| | - Oscar Schouman
- Alterra,
Part of Wageningen UR, P.O. Box 47, 6700 AA Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Micol Schepis
- Acqua
& Sole s.r.l., Via
Giulio Natta, 27010 Vellezzo Bellini, PV, Italy
| | - Federica Barone
- Acqua
& Sole s.r.l., Via
Giulio Natta, 27010 Vellezzo Bellini, PV, Italy
| | - Andrea Giordano
- Acqua
& Sole s.r.l., Via
Giulio Natta, 27010 Vellezzo Bellini, PV, Italy
| | - Fabrizio Adani
- Gruppo
Ricicla—DiSAA, Università
degli Studi di Milano, Via Celoria 2, 20133 Milano, Italy
- . Phone: +3902-50316545
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