Making Cardboard and Paper Recycling More Sustainable: Recycled Paper Sludge For Energy Production and Water-Treatment Applications

By: Peretz R., Mamane H., Wissotzky E., Sterenzon E., Gerchman Y.
Published in: Waste and Biomass Valorization
SDGs : SDG 12  |  Units:   | Time: 2021 |  Link
Description: Rising socioeconomic level and increasing popularity of e-commerce have dramatically increased the use of cardboard pack aging materials, and consequent related recycling and wastes. Large amounts of sludge (up to 40% of input mass) is formed through the recycling process, with sludge solids that are very rich in cellulose fibers (~ 75% w/w). To date this sludge is mostly disposed in landfills, resulting in added economic and environmental costs to the recycling process. Short ozonation pretreatment of RPS resulted in enzymatic release of ~ 34% of the cellulosic fraction of the sludge as sugar, and fermentation of these sugars by yeasts resulted in production of ~ 15 g/L ethanol. The solid remnants, were used as a bio-sorbent, efficiently removing dyes from textile wastewater. Recycled paper sludge waste was thus a good source for both energy and water-treatment applications, increasing sustainability and circular economy in the paper and cardboard recycling industry. © 2020, Springer Nature B.V.