Tel Aviv University researchers have developed a groundbreaking method to transform wet organic waste directly into liquid and solid biofuels, bypassing the energy-intensive drying process. This innovative technology has the potential to significantly reduce Israel’s reliance on fossil fuels, with estimates suggesting that biofuels produced from organic waste could meet up to one-third of the country’s marine fuel demand.
Israel has always been at the forefront of developing alternative energies, being that it is a desert country with few natural resources. And this now also applies to biofuels.
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Biofuel is a fuel derived from renewable biological sources, such as plants, algae, and animal waste. It’s an alternative to fossil fuels like gasoline and diesel. And you can also use waste and other kinds of byproducts to create biofuels.
And Israel certainly has plenty of waste as its waste problem is escalating. In 2019, the country generated approximately 5.8 million tons of municipal waste, averaging about 1.76 kg of waste per person per day — about 30% more than the European average. This figure increases every year by about 2.6%. Currently, about 80% of household waste in Israel ends up in landfills. Organic waste presents a significant challenge, harming the environment through greenhouse gas emissions, leachate formation, and the pollution of air, water, and soil, often accompanied by unpleasant odors.
“Organic waste emits methane, which is a greenhouse gas, and also contaminates groundwater,” explains Prof. Golberg of Tel Aviv University’s Porter School of Environment and Earth Sciences who led the research. “The treatment of waste is a critical issue. Landfill sites in Israel are reaching capacity, and despite the desire to reduce landfill to a minimum, we are forced to open new sites, because there is no other solution. The major advantage of our proposal is that we will reduce the need for so many landfill sites. Municipalities invest considerable funds on waste transportation and treatment, and this solution has the potential to significantly cut those expenses.”
In order to assess the potential of municipal waste in Israel, the researchers analyzed the results of a groundbreaking 2018 survey conducted by E. Elimelech et al. from the University of Haifa. The over the course of a week. The findings revealed that measurable organic waste constitutes about 36.4% of food waste and about 16.4% of total household waste. The category of measured organic waste was further analyzed, showing that it comprised 67 percent fruits and vegetables, 14 percent breads, pastas and cereals, 8 percent eggs and dairy products, 5% by-products such as peels and skins, 3 percent meat, fish and poultry, 2 percent sweets and cookies, and 1% soft drinks. In general, this organic waste contains around 80% water.
“The results of this survey formed the basis for the waste model in our study,” says Prof. Golberg. “We built a continuous reactor — which will eventually be adaptable for solar energy usage — to heat the waste to 280 degrees Celsius, and we were able to significantly reduce the amount of water and oxygen in the biofuel. We found cost-effective catalysts that make it possible to control the ratio between the liquid and solid fuel products. Solid fuel can be used as biochar, effectively sequestering carbon dioxide for extended periods. The biochar can be burned in power plants like regular coal, and liquid biofuels, after upgrading, can power planes, trucks, and ships.”
The Tel Aviv University researchers successfully converted representative organic waste samples into biofuels, achieving a liquid biofuel yield of up to 29.3% and a solid biofuel yield of up to 40.7% based on dry waste. This versatile process can handle a wide range of wet organic waste, including byproducts from food processing, institutional kitchens, and hospitals.
The researchers conclude: “The production of biofuels from organic waste components can
significantly reduce the volume of municipal waste sent to landfills, thereby decreasing
environmental pollution of soil, water, and air. Moreover, reducing landfilling will lower
greenhouse gas emissions and decrease reliance on oil and coal. Converting waste into energy also offers a local solution for Israel’s energy independence and security.”
