Ozone-Based Advanced Oxidation Processes for Removing Contaminants of Emerging Concern from Digestate Supernatant

Abstract

Organic waste constitutes a substantial portion of global waste, posing environmental challenges. Anaerobic Digestion (AD) plants offer a circular bioeconomy solution by converting organic waste into renewable energy and nutrients. While AD primarily yields methane, the resulting nutrient-rich digestate holds significant agronomic value for land applications. However, the direct application of digestate is banned in several countries due to environmental and health hazards, including the presence of contaminants of emerging concern (CECs). This circumstance leads to landfilling as the primary alternative—a non-sustainable solution.

This thesis explores the application of ozone-based Advanced Oxidation Processes (AOPs) as a potential post-AD treatment for liquid digestate, aligning with the fundamental objectives of fostering sustainable circular economy practices in waste management.....