Browsing by Author "Pages-Diaz, Jhosane"

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    Enhanced methane production from protein and lipid-rich wastewater using powdered oat husk-biochar
    (2024) Pages-Diaz, Jhosane; Vidal, Ivan; Huilinir, Cesar; Hernandez-Velez, Leslie; Lorenzo-Llanes, Junior
    BACKGROUNDDue to the lower degradation and the potential inhibitory compounds present in slaughterhouse wastewater (SW), its industrial applications are often limited to methane production. This study investigated the combined effect of conductive material such as oat husk-biochar at different concentrations (0, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25 g L-1) and particle sizes (i.e., Powder Biochar (PB) (0.05-0.08 mm) vs. Granular Biochar (GB) (0.8-1.0 mm)) in the methane production, biodegradability, kinetic parameters, methanogenic activity and digestate quality of SW, using a multilevel factorial design.RESULTSExperimental results showed that lower concentration (5, 10 g L-1) increased the methane yield up to 35% for PB and between 11 and 13% for GB compared to the control reactor. The total ammoniacal nitrogen concentrations in the digestate declined between 14% and 52% for all biochar dosages and particle sizes. PB improved the specific methanogenic activity of the biomass compared with GB, indicating that PB can support a well-balanced methanogenic community compared with GB inside the digester. The multiple response optimization process computed that 7.5 g L-1 of PB is optimal to increase the methane yield, the COD degradation efficiency and shorten the lag phase. On the other hand, doses higher than 15 g L-1 hinder methane generation.CONCLUSIONSPB supplementation has significant potential to improve the anaerobic degradation of SW. The improvement is attributed to the higher specific surface area, contributing to better support and microbial activity. (c) 2024 Society of Chemical Industry (SCI).
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    Process simulation and techno-economic assessment of vinasse-to-biogas in Cuba: Deterministic and uncertainty analysis
    (2021) Alfonso-Cardero, Arael; Pages-Diaz, Jhosane; Contino, Francesco; Rajendran, Karthilz; Lorenzo-LLanes, Junior
    This paper presents a process simulation model in Aspen Plus (R) and a techno-economic assessment for the anaerobic digestion of Cuban sugarcane vinasses considering three scenarios for biogas application: electricity production (S_1), biomethane as vehicle fuel (S_2), and biomethane for gas grid injection (S_3). From the simulation model, non-significant differences (p value >= 0.1779) between experimental and simulation results were found. S_1 showed the best economic performance among the assessed biogas applications. From the sensitivity analysis, the mean electricity price leading to a net present value of zero for S_1 was 90 USD/MWh, while for S_2 and S_3 the mean incentive required was 0.33 USD/m(biomethane)(3) and 0.67 USD/m(biomethane)(3), respectively. The uncertainty analysis showed a chance for investment failure in S_1 less than 10%, whereas for S_2 and S_3 it ranged between 31-37%. The minimum scale required (milling and distillery capacities, ethanol yield) for getting profits from biomethane projects was targeted at 10,800 t(cane)/day, 108 m(ethanol)(3)/d at 10 L-ethanol/t(cane), respectively. To this end, Cuban plants should significantly increase their average capacities; otherwise, a centralized biomethane production by limiting the number of biomethane plants to one or two per province could be implemented. (C) 2021 Institution of Chemical Engineers. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
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    To dream or not to dream in Havana: multi-criteria decision-making for material and energy recovery from municipal solid wastes
    (2023) Alfonso-Cardero, Arael; Pages-Diaz, Jhosane; Kalogirou, Efstratios; Psomopoulos, Constantinos S.; Lorenzo-Llanes, Junior
    Currently, solid waste management strategies in Havana are outdated. This paper aimed to select the most suitable alternative for integrating material recovery facilities (MRF) with waste-to-energy technologies in the city of Havana, Cuba. Seven scenarios were considered: combustion, gasification, and hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) with and without carbon capture, and anaerobic digestion (AD). The selection was based on environmental, techno-economic, and social parameters using an analytic hierarchy process (AHP) as a multi-criteria decision-making tool (MCDM). The MCDM-AHP accounted for qualitative criteria (based on experts' judgments) and quantitative (based on Aspen Plus simulation models). From the MRF, 63% of the input recyclable materials were recovered, representing an energy saving of 256 kW-h/t(MSW). The AHP results showed that environmental criteria had the highest priority, resulting in similar to 63% and similar to 73% higher than social and techno-economic criteria, respectively. Likewise, from the techno-economic, environmental, and social sub-criteria analysis, investment risk, pollution, and work safety had the major concern compared with the other sub-criteria levels. Overall, MRF+AD was the most suitable scenario (21% preference) for treating Havana's municipal solid waste (MSW), followed by combustion and gasification with carbon capture, respectively. This study confirms that AD is a preference option for emerging economies like Cuba, mainly due to low environmental pollution, high social acceptance, and financial stability in the long term.