| dc.description.abstract | Because of the cost and environmental issues, what to do with the waste, mainly sludge, from wastewater treatment is a critical issue to make a cleaner and more sustainable world. Thermal hydrolysis process (THP) before anaerobic digestion of the sludge is getting attention because of its simple implementation and advantages for both economic and environmental aspects. THP needs energy and additional cost, but more benefit can be gained by using sludge as a renewable energy source, fertilizer or feedstock for the monetization strategy because of reduction of operating cost and Green House Gas (GHG) emission. Since GHG is a primary reason of climate change which raises the devastation of sustainability of the world, it is momentous to make an effort to reduce the emission of GHG.
In the eco-industrial park (EIP), for more process water reuse and water disposal under the stricter regulation, the need for wastewater treatment facilities is growing. Also, there is surplus energy from the processes that can be used to operate the THP, so the EIP can serve as a ‘sustainable center’ where GHG emission is reduced by treating bio-waste in the centralized structure with its surplus heat. By having THP, EIP can improve its sustainability and economy while preparing for the impact of a carbon tax in the near future.
In this study, economic feasibility of THP, impact of carbon tax on the economy of the biological wastewater treatment system with THP, adequate tipping fee range for the outer bio-waste, sensitivity analysis on the characteristic of bio-waste, and impact of THP within EIP having a centralized water exchange network were investigated to assess the possibility of EIP as a sustainable center. Through this study, the spectrum of water-energy nexus can be broadened to deal with the interconnection between energy, water, and waste to improve the sustainability and economic benefit to the EIP and communities around it as well. | en |
