Adding Value to Digestate and Ash (the AVAnD project) : elucidating the role and the value of alternative fertilisers on the soil-plant system

Lag Brotons, Alfonso and Marshall, Rachel and Herbert, Ben and Hurst, Lois and Inam, Edu J. and Semple, Kirk (2020) Adding Value to Digestate and Ash (the AVAnD project) : elucidating the role and the value of alternative fertilisers on the soil-plant system. In: Resource Recovery from Wastes : Towards a Circular Economy. Royal Society of Chemistry, London. ISBN 9781788013819

Abstract

While bioenergy generation represents a step towards sustainability, residues and by-products are generated as a result of this process. In order to take the next step and ‘close the loop’ on the generated residues, resource recovery from these materials is required. In this chapter we will focus on the use of blends of biomass ash and anaerobic digestate, derived from industrial scale bioenergy production processes, as potential alternatives to conventional inorganic fertilisers. Topics will not only cover waste streams, their nature and relevance to agriculture, but also experimental assessments at different scales of the effects of these waste stream combinations on the soil–plant system and the wider environment.