This deliverable (D) 2.5 was developed under Work Package 2 (WP2) of the WalNUT Project, led by 3R. The WalNUT project, funded under Horizon 2020, focuses on closing waste water nutrient cycles by assessing nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) availability and recovery potential in Europe.

The dairy food industrial WW stream acidic whey is the overwhelming largest and problematic liquid by-product stream of the dairy food industry with significant economic importance that is unexploited, consisting of 93% water content and characterized by extreme high BOD/COD/TOC and as low pH as 4.5. The D2.5 development is upcycling this problematic liquid WW stream with high nutrient recovery efficiency and converting into P/Ca based multi-functional compound biofertilizer with combined effects by multi-stage processing for wide range of product functional applications. The safety, quality and labelling compliance defined by the (EU) 2019/1009 PFC categories and REACH while environmental impacts minimized.

Key Results:

ABC animal bone char is highly optimal and efficient to adsorb macromolecular organic contamination in liquid stream and adjust pH. The ABC animal bone char adsorbent is recently REACH registered and certified by the EU ECHA Authority over 1000 tons/y that is the regulatory precondition for lawful TRL5 implementations. The combination of fungus biotech fermentation main process with adsorption processing is suitable for WalNUT added value new nutrient recovery business model with “Blue Ocean” Strategy.

In this context the problematic WW is transformed into resource and converted into market competitive multifunctional biofertilizer production for sustainable reuse to close the nutrient loop for the dairy farmers and food processing industry. The reduction of pollution, energy use and greenhouse gas emissions targeted, aiming to fully close the dairy industry nutrient cycle for dairy food processing where energy- and climate neutrality are in focus. The high nutrient density compound BBF BIO-NPK-C output products delivered to regional users, who will use it for their onsite CMC3 green compost material enrichment and improvement where the technological irrigation water effluent is also reused.

Conclusions and Next Steps

1. The combination of biotech fermentation main process with adsorption processing of the separated fermentation liquid residuals, reuse of irrigation effluent to moisturize co-compost cattle manure and close the nutrient cycle is the most efficient and viable solution for efficient upcycling of the unexploited dairy industrial WW acidic whey where the full circularity and zero emission targets implemented.
2. The combination of biotech fermentation main process with adsorption processing of the separated fermentation liquid residuals is suitable for WalNUT added value nutrient recovery new business model.
3. The ABC animal bone char adsorber with high macro-porosity is highly optimal substance to specifically treat the unexploited dairy WW streams with macromolecular contaminations.
4. The ABC animal bone char adsorber is recently REACH validated, registered and certified by the EU ECHA Authority (no. 01-2119490075-38-0042) and ready for lawful WP3 and WP4 TRL5 implementations, which is supporting the User and exploitation oriented highlights of lawfulness in D6.3, D7.1, D7.3, D7.4 and D8.1.
5. The adsorption treatment objectives of the dairy industrial WW adsorption in the case of combination of biotech fermentation main process with adsorption processing of the separated fermentation liquid residuals and reuse of effluents are fully achieved.
6. The biotech fermentation upcycling process is considered as the main treatment line and the adsorption processing is a support to complete and close the nutrient and water cycle for the dairy farmers and processors.
7. The direct adsorption processing of the dairy WW stream acidic whey is a technical possibility, but the input target contamination is too high to make cost efficient one step treatment. 

Based on the D 2.5 results 3R is developing, designing, implementing and testing a TRL5 WP3 pilot liquid and solid-state fermentation technology where the food industrial waste water WW acidic whey will be used as liquid medium during the fermentation process.

 

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