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Papers
20 resultsShowing papers similar to Two Birds with One Stone: Bioplastics and Food Waste Anaerobic Co-Digestion
ClearAnaerobic Co-Digestion of Bioplastics and Food Waste under Mesophilic and Thermophilic Conditions: Synergistic Effect and Biodegradation
Researchers investigated anaerobic co-digestion of bioplastics (PLA and PHA) with food waste under mesophilic and thermophilic conditions, finding synergistic effects that enhanced methane production yields, demonstrating that co-digestion could be an effective strategy for managing bioplastic waste while generating renewable energy.
Effects of co-substrates’ mixing ratios and loading rate variations on food and agricultural wastes’ anaerobic co-digestion performance
This study optimized anaerobic co-digestion of food and agricultural waste to produce biogas, exploring how mixing ratios and loading rates affect performance. Diverting organic waste to bioenergy reduces the fraction of municipal waste that enters landfills and ultimately contributes to microplastic generation.
Organics Recycling Tradeoffs: Biogas Potential and Microplastic Content of Mechanically Depackaged Food Waste
Researchers examined the tradeoffs between biogas energy recovery potential and microplastic contamination in mechanically depackaged food waste intended for anaerobic digestion, finding that imperfect separation of packaging materials introduces microplastics into the resulting digestate.
Biogas conversion into biopolymers: strategies to boost process performance
This study explores how biogas — a renewable energy source from organic waste decomposition — can be used as a feedstock to produce biopolymers as alternatives to conventional petroleum-based plastics. Developing sustainable bioplastics from waste streams could help address both plastic pollution and greenhouse gas emissions simultaneously.
Impact of micro-nanoplastics on biochemical phases of anaerobic digestion in sewage sludge treatment: mechanistic insights and future prospects
Micro- and nanoplastics were found to disrupt the biochemical phases of anaerobic digestion, affecting the efficiency of the biological process used to treat organic waste. Understanding these impacts is important because anaerobic digestion is a common wastewater and sludge treatment method that may both receive and process microplastic-contaminated materials.
Overcoming micro/nanoplastics-induced inhibition in anaerobic digestion: Advances in remediation techniques
This review examines how micro- and nanoplastics inhibit anaerobic digestion performance — reducing biogas yield and organic removal — and surveys remediation strategies including physical, chemical, and biological approaches to overcome their disruptive effects in waste treatment systems.
Biopolymers modulate microbial communities in municipal organic waste digestion
Researchers investigated how biopolymers (bio-based plastics) affect microbial communities and process outcomes when co-treated with municipal organic waste in anaerobic digestion and composting systems. They found that biopolymers can alter microbial community structure, raising questions about their persistence and biodegradability in waste treatment.
Microplastics divert carbon flow in anaerobic digestion: a meta-analysis reveals product-specific effects
Researchers conducted a meta-analysis of 55 studies and found that microplastics do not simply inhibit anaerobic digestion but redirect carbon flow within it — suppressing methane production while boosting volatile fatty acid accumulation — with the direction and magnitude of effects determined by polymer type, concentration, size, and temperature.
Unmasking microplastics in anaerobic digestion: Hidden threats, synergistic pollutants, and biodegradation Frontiers — A comprehensive hotspot review
Researchers reviewed how microplastics disrupt anaerobic digestion — the process used to convert organic waste into biogas — finding that microplastics suppress methane production, harm microbial communities, and carry along other pollutants like antibiotics and heavy metals into the system.
The co-conversion of methane and mixtures of volatile fatty acids into poly(3-hydroxybutyrate-co-3-hydroxyvalerate) expands the potential of an integrated biorefinery
Researchers used a methane-consuming bacterium to simultaneously convert natural gas and food waste byproducts into PHBV, a biodegradable plastic alternative, achieving yields that varied depending on the mix of waste acids supplied. This integrated biorefinery approach could reduce reliance on conventional petroleum-based plastics by making biodegradable polymers from waste streams.
Comprehensive meta-analysis reveals the impact of non-biodegradable plastic pollution on methane production in anaerobic digestion
This meta-analysis found that microplastics and nanoplastics interfere with anaerobic digestion, a process used to treat organic waste and produce methane. Smaller nanoplastics had a greater impact, suggesting that plastic contamination in waste could reduce the efficiency of this important waste treatment and energy recovery method.
Fate of a biobased polymer via high-solid anaerobic co-digestion with food waste and following aerobic treatment: Insights on changes of polymer physicochemical properties and the role of microbial and fungal communities
PBAT/PLA biopolymer bags were co-digested with food waste in an anaerobic digestion plant and then subjected to aerobic composting, with only partial degradation achieved under both conditions and the remaining polymer fragments altering microbial community composition, raising questions about bioplastic end-of-life claims.
Plastic waste impact and biotechnology: Exploring polymer degradation, microbial role, and sustainable development implications
Researchers reviewed how microorganisms and their enzymes can break down different types of plastic waste through both aerobic (oxygen-using) and anaerobic (oxygen-free) pathways. The review highlights biotechnological tools like genetic modification that could accelerate plastic biodegradation, supporting a shift toward a circular economy.
Pretreatment and Anaerobic Co-digestion of Selected PHB and PLA Bioplastics
Researchers evaluated thermal and alkaline pretreatments for PHB and PLA bioplastics to enhance anaerobic digestion, finding pretreatment increased biochemical methane potential by over 100% and reduced lag times before methane production. Bench-scale co-digesters fed synthetic primary sludge with PHB achieved 80-98% conversion to biomethane, with a 5% increase in total biomethane output.
Revealing the Mechanisms of Polyethylene Microplastics Affecting Anaerobic Digestion of Waste Activated Sludge
Researchers studied how polyethylene microplastics affect the anaerobic digestion of sewage sludge, a common wastewater treatment process. They found that higher concentrations of microplastics significantly reduced methane production by disrupting microbial communities and enzyme activities essential for digestion. The study reveals that microplastic contamination in wastewater systems can undermine the efficiency of sludge treatment and biogas generation.
Can anaerobic digestion be a suitable end-of-life scenario for biodegradable plastics? A critical review of the current situation, hurdles, and challenges
Researchers reviewed the feasibility of anaerobic digestion (AD) as an end-of-life treatment for biodegradable plastics, identifying process parameters, microbial communities, and pretreatment strategies that influence degradation rates and arguing that AD deserves more research attention alongside industrial composting.
Occurrence of macroplastics and microplastics in biogenic waste digestate: Effects of depackaging at source and dewatering process
Researchers investigated plastic debris in digestate from anaerobic digestion of biogenic waste, finding that both preprocessing and dewatering steps significantly influence the quantity of macroplastics and microplastics in the resulting material used as a soil conditioner.
Microbial community acclimatization enhances bioplastics biodegradation and biogas production under thermophilic anaerobic digestion
Three sequential anaerobic digestion runs showed that microbial community acclimatization enhanced biodegradation and biogas production from starch-based and polylactic acid bioplastics, demonstrating that inoculum adaptation is key to improving bioplastic treatment in anaerobic systems.
Effects of Micro(nano)plastics on Anaerobic Digestion and Their Influencing Mechanisms
This review examines how micro- and nanoplastics from organic waste streams affect anaerobic digestion (AD) performance, covering impacts on methane production, microbial community structure, and enzyme activity. It identifies plastic polymer type and concentration as key variables determining whether MPs stimulate or inhibit digestion processes.
Size-dependent effects of polystyrene microplastics on anaerobic digestion performance of food waste: Focusing on oxidative stress, microbial community, key metabolic functions
Researchers investigated how polystyrene microplastics of different sizes affect anaerobic digestion of food waste and found that smaller particles caused greater inhibition of methane production, with reductions up to 33%. The study suggests that small microplastics induce more oxidative stress in microbial communities and suppress key enzymes involved in methane-producing metabolic pathways.