Piloting Bioethanol Production from Source-Separated Food Waste Boosts Technology Readiness

Fotis Chatzimaliakas, Diogenis Christianides, Dimitris Malamis, Sofia Mai and Elli Maria Barampouti ()
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Fotis Chatzimaliakas: Unit of Environmental Science & Technology, School of Chemical Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, Zographou Campus, 9 Iroon Polytechniou Str., GR-15780 Athens, Greece
Diogenis Christianides: Unit of Environmental Science & Technology, School of Chemical Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, Zographou Campus, 9 Iroon Polytechniou Str., GR-15780 Athens, Greece
Dimitris Malamis: Unit of Environmental Science & Technology, School of Chemical Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, Zographou Campus, 9 Iroon Polytechniou Str., GR-15780 Athens, Greece
Sofia Mai: Unit of Environmental Science & Technology, School of Chemical Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, Zographou Campus, 9 Iroon Polytechniou Str., GR-15780 Athens, Greece
Elli Maria Barampouti: Unit of Environmental Science & Technology, School of Chemical Engineering, National Technical University of Athens, Zographou Campus, 9 Iroon Polytechniou Str., GR-15780 Athens, Greece

Sustainability, 2023, vol. 15, issue 23, 1-15

Abstract: By the end of 2023, biowaste must be completely separated or recycled at source, based on EU legislation. Separate biowaste collection and valorisation for biofuels could play an essential role in the biobased circular economy. In this context, the principal goal of this paper was to demonstrate on a pilot scale the technological solution of bioethanol production via the utilisation of urban source-separated biowaste within the city context of Athens, Greece. More specifically, the main aim was the demonstration of a pilot system for more than 10 consecutive operating cycles with real feedstock—wet; separately collected biowaste. From the 11 pilot trials performed with wet feedstock, the mean starch and cellulose degradation of the pilot trials amounted to 80.69 ± 16.27% and 79.41 ± 10.37%, respectively, while the bioethanol yield was 74.05 ± 6.82%. The latter was comparable to that of more intensive pretreatment methods. Homogenization and shredding, which were applied in this study, stand as promising pretreatment methods for bioethanol production from wet feedstock. Further research is needed to optimize conditions and evaluate scalability. Nevertheless, pilot-scale testing is a crucial step in the deployment of this technology since it serves as a bridge between laboratory research and full-scale implementation, offering a practical and controlled environment to validate and optimize the technology while minimizing risks and uncertainties. Conclusively, this study could stand as a flagship case study for the implementation of circular and sustainable approaches in the management of organic fractions of source-separated municipal waste, showcasing the technical feasibility of the whole value chain from waste collection to final bioethanol product recovery.

Keywords: source-separated kitchen waste; simultaneous saccharification and fermentation; bioethanol yield; pilot-scale; fresh food waste (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
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