Energy recovery and saving in municipal wastewater treatment engineering practices

IF 25.7 1区环境科学与生态学 Q1 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES

Nature Sustainability Pub Date : 2024-11-22 DOI:10.1038/s41893-024-01478-5

Ao Gong, Guangteng Wang, Xiang Qi, Yunfei He, Xufei Yang, Xia Huang, Peng Liang

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Abstract

Municipal wastewater treatment (MWT) plays a critical role in safeguarding aquatic ecosystems but is highly energy intensive. Assessing the energy recovery and saving potential of MWT technologies is essential to propel the sustainable transformation of this sector. Prioritizing practical viability, this study compiled data from 50 real-world cases, including both full-scale engineering projects and pilot studies, to systematically evaluate the energy recovery and saving potential of different technologies. The effectiveness of these technologies was systematically assessed by comparing their theoretical and practical energy densities. The results indicate that anaerobic digestion for methane production is so far the most efficient method for chemical energy recovery. Among various energy-saving strategies, water source heat pumps were identified as an effective approach for substantial energy savings. However, it is important to recognize that the heat energy, calculated solely on the basis of the temperature difference in wastewater, cannot be directly compared with the electrical energy recovered from other conversion processes. The role of heat energy in energy saving needs to be carefully reassessed and repositioned. This study provides valuable guidance for future energy optimization and the sustainable transformation of MWT practices. Reshaping the currently energy-intensive municipal wastewater treatment (MWT) practices is urgently needed. This study systematically assessed the energy recovery and saving potential of different technologies, providing valuable guidance for future optimizations of MWT practices.

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城市污水处理工程中能源回收与节约的实践

城市污水处理（MWT）在保护水生生态系统方面发挥着关键作用，但其能耗高。评估MWT技术的能源回收和节约潜力对于推动该行业的可持续转型至关重要。为了优先考虑实际可行性，本研究收集了50个实际案例的数据，包括全面的工程项目和试点研究，以系统地评估不同技术的能源回收和节约潜力。通过比较理论能量密度和实际能量密度，系统地评价了这些技术的有效性。结果表明，厌氧消化生产甲烷是迄今为止最有效的化学能量回收方法。在各种节能策略中，水源热泵被认为是一种有效的节能方法。然而，重要的是要认识到，仅根据废水中的温差计算的热能不能直接与从其他转换过程中回收的电能进行比较。热能在节能中的作用需要仔细地重新评估和重新定位。该研究为未来的能源优化和MWT实践的可持续转型提供了有价值的指导。重塑目前能源密集型城市污水处理（MWT）的做法是迫切需要的。本研究系统地评估了不同技术的能源回收和节约潜力，为未来MWT实践的优化提供了有价值的指导。

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来源期刊

Nature Sustainability Energy-Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment

CiteScore

41.90

自引率

1.10%

发文量

159

期刊介绍： Nature Sustainability aims to facilitate cross-disciplinary dialogues and bring together research fields that contribute to understanding how we organize our lives in a finite world and the impacts of our actions. Nature Sustainability will not only publish fundamental research but also significant investigations into policies and solutions for ensuring human well-being now and in the future.Its ultimate goal is to address the greatest challenges of our time.