Closing the Loop on Lignocellulosic-based Solid Waste Management: Production of Biochar for Agricultural Land and Contaminant Adsorption Applications and for Climate Change

This research project is focused on examining the feasibility of converting lignocellulosic -based solid waste streams destined for landfill, into a valuable biochar product. Biochar has many applications including a soil amendment to improve soil fertility and in low-cost adsorption applications such as control of odorous sulphur pollutants in air emissions, and as an adsorption surface for toxic metals in industrial waste streams. We have completed an inventory of lignocellulosic –based waste from municipal sources (and expanded our study to include university, demolition and garden wastes), We have produced small amounts of biochar samples and chemically tested their properties for applications stated above. This a long term project, however, through funding from the Harris Centre’s applied research Fund we have been able to address some of the objectives outlined in the original proposal aimed at diverting a major solid waste stream from landfills to the production of a useful biochar product

Characterization of Seafood Proteins Causing Allergic Diseases

[Extract] Food allergy is increasing at a faster rate than any other allergic disorder (Gupta et al., 2007). In the last few decades, a large movement toward healthier eating makes seafood one of the major foods consumed worldwide (Wild & Lehrer, 2005). Consequently, the international trade of seafood has been growing rapidly, which reflects the popularity and frequency of consumption worldwide. The United States has become the third largest consumer of seafood in the world, with 1.86 billion kg of crustaceans in 2007 (6.04 kg/capita/year)(Food and Agriculture Organisation, 2007). Since seafood ingestion can cause severe acute hypersensitivity reactions and is recognized as one of the most common food allergies, the increased production and consumption of seafood has resulted in more frequent health problems (Lopata & Lehrer, 2009; Lopata et al., 2010). Exposure to seafood can cause a variety of health problems, including gastrointestinal disorders, urticaria, immunoglobulin E (IgE)-mediated asthma and anaphylaxis (Bang et al., 2005; Lopata & Lehrer, 2009; Malo & Cartier, 1993; Sicherer et al., 2004; Wild & Lehrer, 2005)

Pyrolysis of waste plastic fish bags (polyethylene and polypropylene) to useable fuel oil

The objective of this study is to determine the feasibility of pyrolysis of waste plastic fish feed bags to heating oil. Pyrolysis is a thermal treatment without oxygen and produces three products (gas, oil, and solid), the yields depend on the feedstock and operating conditions. The fish feed bags are polyethylene (PE) or polypropylene (PP) and are typically contaminated with a small amount of residual fish feed. This limits the treatment and disposal options. Thermal decomposition of the bags to their original oil base could potentially produce a fuel for use in heating and possibly power for the plant. Unused and used bags were pyrolyzed and compared to determine the impact of the fish feed on the oil and the residual solids and gas evolved during the process. The temperature for the pyrolysis temperature is a function of the feed material. For waste plastic the temperature can range between 400−550°C depending on the type of plastic. In this work a series of pyrolysis experiments were performed where key factors that would impact the oil quality produced, were varied including; temperature of pyrolysis 400−550°C) type of bag (PE, PP, and mixtures of the two), mass of residual fish feed retained in bag (0-40% by mass of feedstock) and gas residence time. Based on these experiments the optimum operating conditions were obtained. A temperature of 500°C produced the maximum wax/oil yields, 69-75wt% of feedstock with a solids (residue) between 6-7wt%, and gas between 23-25wt%, depending on the feedstock. The melting point of wax/oil samples varied between 53-62°C. The melting point of the wax/oil samples decreased slightly with increasing amounts of fish feed. The increase in wax/oil yield is likely a result that the FF pyrolysis products are predominantly lipids, this would both add to the overall oil content and possibly decrease the uncondensable gas content through co-pyrolysis. The heating values of the wax/oil samples varied from 42.8- 45.7 MJ/kg. The pure fish feed heating value was 25.47 MJ/kg. The heating values of all waxes are comparable to standard fuels, 44-46 MJ/kg petrol/gasoline, 43 MJ/kg for diesel, and from 43-44 MJ/kg for fuel oil. Although, the wax/oil samples are solid (wax) at temperatures below 50oC, heating to above 60oC produces a liquid oil with a high heating value. The gas produced in 2 the pyrolysis, largely methane and ethane, could be used as a fuel gas. Based on 100 metric tonnes of waste bags per year this translates to 2.8 MJ/yr from the oil and 1.38 MJ/yr from the gas

Organic Waste in Newfoundland and Labrador: A Review of Available Agriculture, Fishery, Forestry and Municipal Waste Literature

Re-utilisation of organic waste is globally widely employed to maximise both economic and environmental sustainability of human activities. Re-utilisation of organic waste nutrients of biochars produced from such wastes do offer a critical element for enhancing soil fertility and thus supporting sustainable agriculture. Newfoundland and Labrador produces a variety of organic waste streams ranging from municipal to farm, fishery and timber production. We carried out a best estimate of the amount of these waste streams with a goal to understand the potential utility of each as a source of nutrients or biochar for sustaining agricultural activities in the province. Municipal sources, i.e. municipal organic waste streams and wastewaters, and fishery waste were estimated to offer the largest potential for nutrient recovery. Dairy industry is the largest producer of nutrient rich organic waste among agricultural activities. The dairy industry might possibly produce most of the nutrients required to fertilise their own land base; note that the dairies in the province still import a significant portion of their feed and that is reflected in the waste stream. Nutrients currently available in the estimated waste streams are likely sufficient to support most fertilisation needs of the current land-base, or nearly double the current land base in the case of phosphorus. Given the estimated balance of waste nutrients in the province any expansion in agricultural land base would require supplementary imports of fertilizers or, preferably, an integrated livestock and crop agriculture expansion. A secondary estimation was carried out to assess the value of the same organic waste streams for biochar production. This offered an alternative to nutrient reutilisation, an alternative that is also in support of soil fertility. Sawmill waste, that carried little nitrogen and phosphorus value, was also included in biochar estimates. The assessment has shown a significant potential for biochar production mainly for fishery and municipal organic waste. However, pursuing a biochar agenda for these materials would require a trade-off with the nutrients lost during pyrolysis. The assessment presented here confirms that organic wastes are a valuable resource for agricultural production and sustainability. However specific decisions would require a more detailed analysis of the geographic integration of waste streams and agricultural production

Surfactant-mediated matrix-assisted laser desorption/ ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry of small molecules

A variety of surfactants have been tested as matrix-ion suppressors for the analysis of small molecules by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of flight mass spectrometry. Their addition to the common matrix a-cyano-4-hydroxycinnamic acid (CHCA) greatly reduces the presence of matrixrelated ions when added at the appropriate mole ratio of CHCA/surfactant, while still allowing the analyte signal to be observed. A range of cationic quaternary ammonium surfactants, as well as a neutral and anionic surfactant, was tested for the analysis of phenolics, phenolic acids, peptides and caffeine. It was found that the cationic surfactants, particularly cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB), were suitable for the analysis of acidic analytes. The anionic surfactant, sodium dodecyl sulfate, showed promise for peptide analysis. For trialanine, the detection limit was observed to be in the 100 femtomole range. The final matrix/surfactant mole ratio was a critical parameter for matrix ion suppression and resulting intensity of analyte signal. It was also found that the mass resolution of analytes was improved by 25–75%. Depth profiling of sample spots, by varying the number of laser shots, revealed that the surfactants tend to migrate toward the top of the droplet during crystallization, and that it is likely that the analyte is also enriched in this surface region. Here, higher analyte/surfactant concentration would reduce matrix-matrix interactions (known to be a source of matrix-derived ions). Copyright # 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd

Biological waste-treatment of hydrocarbon residues: effects of humic acids on the degradation of toluene

The biological degradation potential on toluene of the bacteria Pseudomonas fluorescens isolated from soil, as influenced by humic acids, was investigated. The major environmental factors considered of interest for this experiment were temperature, pH of the media, and agitation (rpm), which were optimized using Response Surface Methodology. A face-centered cube design was adopted for this study, and the optimal values for these factors were predicted by the resulting experimental equations. The degradation of toluene by P. fluorescens was tested by incorporating different concentrations (0.02, 0.04, 0.06, 0.08 and 0.10%) of humic acids, extracted from peat moss, in a hydrocarbon degradation medium. The results showed that the microbial degradation of toluene was inhibited by the presence of humic acids.Biological degradation Humic acids Hydrocarbon degradation medium Pseudomonas fluorescens Toluene

Absolute quantification method and validation of airborne snow crab allergen tropomyosin using tandem mass spectrometry

Measuring the levels of the major airborne allergens of snow crab in the workplace is very important in studying the prevalence of crab asthma in workers. Previously, snow crab tropomyosin (SCTM) was identified as the major aeroallergen in crab plants and a unique signature peptide was identified for this protein. The present study advances our knowledge on aeroallergens by developing a method of quantification of airborne SCTM by using isotope dilution mass spectrometry. Liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry was developed for separation and analysis of the signature peptides. The tryptic digestion conditions were optimized to accomplish complete digestion. The validity of the method was studied using international conference on harmonization protocol, Where 2–9% for CV (precision) and 101–110% for accuracy, at three different levels of quality control. Recovery of the spiked protein from PTFE and TopTip filters was measured to be 99% and 96%, respectively. To further demonstrate the applicability and the validity of the method for real samples, 45 kg of whole snow crab were processed in an enclosed (simulated) crab processing line and air samples were collected. The levels of SCTM ranged between 0.36–3.92 μg m−3 and 1.70–2.31 μg m−3 for butchering and cooking stations, respectively