Environmental sustainability of anaerobic digestion of household food waste.

摘要: Abstract Consumers are the leading producers of food waste (FW) in developed countries and majority household FW is still embedded general where it incinerated or landfilled. There increasing awareness value collecting as a separate stream for production compost recovery energy through anaerobic digestion (AD). This study focuses on AD to evaluate life cycle environmental sustainability recovering fertilisers from UK. The analysis carried out two different functional units: i) treatment 1 tonne FW, which compared incineration landfilling; ii) generation 1 MWh electricity, other electricity options. former results net negative greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions (−39 kg CO2-eq./t) primary demand (−2 GJ/t) due displacement grid mineral fertilisers. has lower impacts than both landfilling across 15 19 impacts. However, application digestate land release ammonia nitrates lead higher marine eutrophication (ME), terrestrial acidification (TA) particulate matter formation (PMF). For second unit, emits 203 kg CO2-eq./MWh, 357 kg CO2-eq./MWh UK mix. Compared renewables, such wind solar, demand, toxicity potentials metal depletion. global warming potential, ME, TA PMF. At level, treating 4.9 Mt kerbside collected annually could provide 0.37% national save 190,000 t CO2-eq./yr electricity. produced displace 1% industrial nitrogen Although small fractions demands, they represent valuable return largely unutilised help towards implementation circular economy.