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Pereira, José Luís da Silva

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  • Evaluation of Tomato-Based Packing Material for Retention of Ammonia, Nitrous Oxide, Carbon Dioxide and Methane in Gas Phase Biofilters: A Laboratory Study
    Publication . Pereira, José L.S.; Perdigão, Adelaide; Marques, Francisco; Coelho, Catarina; Mota, Mariana; Fangueiro, David
    Biofilters are an effective air pollution control technology to break down gaseous contaminants and produce innocuous end products. This laboratory study aimed to evaluate a biofilter media, mainly composed by tomato waste, as packing material to reduce NH3, N2O, CO2 and CH4 losses from stored pig slurry. Three mixtures of packing materials, with and without oxalic acid, were arranged in treatments, namely: mixture of tomato waste, pine bark and agricultural compost; mixture of tomato waste and rice husk; tomato waste only. A control treatment (no biofilter) was also included. The experiments were conducted using a system of laboratory scale biofilters connected to jars filled with pig slurry and under a constant airflow rate. The gas concentrations were measured for 14 days and the physicochemical of the packing materials were assessed. Results showed that biofilter media mixtures had a potential for NH3 retention ranging from 51 to 77% and the addition of oxalic acid to these biofilters increased NH3 retention to 72–79%. Additionally, the biofilter media mixtures with and without oxalic acid showed a potential retention for CH4 (29–69%) but not for N2O, yet with no impact on the global warming potential. It can be concluded that tomato based biofilters had the potential to reduce gaseous emissions from slurry.
  • Evaluation of a Tomato Waste Biofilter for the Retention of Gaseous Losses from Pig Slurry Hygienization by pH Modification
    Publication . Pereira, José L.S.; Perdigão, Adelaide; Fangueiro, David
    The use of pig slurry as organic fertilizer in intensive horticulture could be possible after hygienization to avoid contamination of products. This research aimed to evaluate a mixture of a tomato waste and rice husk as biofilter media to reduce NH3, N2O, CO2, and CH4 losses from a simple and low-cost solution for slurry hygienization by pH modification. The experiment was made in a system of laboratory scale biofilters connected to jars filled with raw slurry as control and three treatment methods: acidified slurry, alkalinized slurry, and neutralized slurry. The gas concentrations were measured for 35 days, and the composition of slurries and biofilters were determined. The results of this study showed that the mixture of biofiltering media, composed of tomato waste and rice husk, has the potential to retain NH3 and greenhouse gases (GHG) from a simple and low-cost solution for slurry hygienization by pH modification. Compared to the treatment raw slurry biofilter, the treatment neutralized slurry biofilter, subjected to a combined treatment by alkalinization/neutralization, retained 19% NH3, 4% CO2, and 83% CH4 losses and had no impact on N2O and global warming potential. Thus, the use of tomato waste biofilter during alkalinization did not increase the loss of NH3 and reduced GHG compared to raw slurry, avoiding the subsequent neutralization of slurry for environmental reasons, and could be used as an organic fertilizer in horticulture. However, using the combined alkalinization/neutralization treatment will improve the fertilizer value of the slurry by adjusting the pH from 9.5 to 7.5.