NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y. -
May 5, 2015 -
PRLog -- Based on a comprehensive life cycle analysis comparing the environmental impacts and economic outcomes for managing manure and food waste produced on a dairy farm, researchers found that anaerobic co-digestion of the waste products had substantial cost, energy, and environmental benefits compared to digestion of manure but disposal of food waste in a landfill. A detailed discussion of the potential for bioenergy production, increased profitability, and reductions in global warming and smog is presented in an original research article in
Industrial Biotechnology, a peer-reviewed journal from
Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers (http://www.liebertpub.com)
. The article is available free on the
Industrial Biotechnology(http://online.liebertpub.com/
doi/full/10.1089/
ind.2014.0029)
website until June 1
st, 2015.
Rui Che, M. Melissa Rojas-Downing, Yuan Zhong, Christopher Safron, and
Wei Liao, Michigan State University, East Lansing, report that a calculated 25-year net value of more than $8.4 million for co-digestion of dairy farm manure and food waste, which greatly exceeds a loss of $7.5 million if only the manure undergoes anaerobic digestion and food waste is landfilled. The authors report the results of their economic analysis and the effects on global warming and air and water quality based on co-digestion at a hypothetical dairy farm in the article “Life Cycle and Economic Assessment of Anaerobic Co-digestion of Dairy Manure and Food Waste (
http://online.liebertpub.com/doi/full/10.1089/ind.2014.0029).”
The article is part of an
IB IN DEPTH special research section on Anaerobic Digestion led by Guest Editor Wei Liao, PhD. The issue also includes an Overview by Dr. Liao entitled “Anaerobic Digestion: A Potential Energy and Environmental Solution” and two Review articles: “Anaerobic Digestion-Based Biorefinery for Bioenergy and Biobased Products” by K.C. Surendra et al.; and “Anaerobic Digestion Potential of Coproducts Associated with Ethanol Production from Sweetpotato:
A Review,” by W.A. Mussoline and A.C. Wilkie.
“Efforts to take organic waste materials and find added value creates exciting opportunities for industrial biotechnology innovation and commercialization even when applying existing and familiar technology,"
says Co-Editor-in-
Chief
Larry Walker, PhD, Biological and Environmental Engineering Department, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY.
About the Journal
Industrial Biotechnology (
http://www.liebertpub.com/ind), led by Co-Editors-in-
Chief
Larry Walker, PhD, Biological and Environmental Engineering Department, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, and
Glenn Nedwin, PhD, MoT, CEO and President, Taxon Biosciences, Tiburon, CA, is an authoritative journal focused on biobased industrial and environmental products and processes, published bimonthly in print and online. The Journal reports on the science, technology, business, and policy developments of the emerging global bioeconomy, including biobased production of energy and fuels, chemicals, materials, and consumer goods. The articles published include critically reviewed original research in all related sciences (biology, biochemistry, chemical and process engineering, agriculture)
, in addition to expert commentary on current policy, funding, markets, business, legal issues, and science trends.
Industrial Biotechnology (http://www.liebertpub.com/
ind) offers the premier forum bridging basic research and R&D with later-stage commercialization for sustainable biobased industrial and environmental applications.
About the Publisher
Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers (http://www.liebertpub.com)
is a privately held, fully integrated media company known for establishing authoritative peer-reviewed journals in many promising areas of science and biomedical research, including
Environmental Engineering Science and
Sustainability: The Journal of Record. Its biotechnology trade magazine,
Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News (GEN), was the first in its field and is today the industry’s most widely read publication worldwide. A complete list of the firm’s 80 journals, books, and newsmagazines is available on the
Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers (http://www.liebertpub.com)
website.