CCR Seminar: Life Cycle and Techno-economic Analyses for Aiding the Development of Nutrient Circular Economy Routes

Abstract:

The concept of planetary boundaries outlines the restrictions on the effects of humankind's actions onthe Earth's ecosystem. If these boundaries are crossed, the environment may lose its ability to self-balance. Nutrient biochemical flows across the biosphere and oceans are one crucial planetary boundary, where industrial and agricultural activities radically changed the natural biogeochemical cyclesof nitrogen and phosphorus. Hence, various technologies capture and recover nutrients fromanthropogenic point sources (organic materials) and non-point origins (agricultural fields).

Holistic analysis like life cycle assessment (LCA) and techno-economic analysis (TCA) supplyenvironmental and economic performance of nutrient recovery and upcycling technologies, products, and services. Also, these evaluation techniques improve productivity, source reduction, reuse, recycling, andprevent and minimize releases and disposal rates. Therefore, this talk offers an overview of LCA andTCA applications for quantifying the environmental and economic benefits of nutrient recovery andupcycling technologies, novel fertilizers, and circular economy routes versus conventional linearsystems. Finally, this presentation…