Chilton, Wisconsin (WI) based DVO, Inc., a leader in the environmental engineering industry and North America’s largest provider of anaerobic digesters, has introduced a simple and practical solution that it says removes 75 to 95 percent of phosphorus from anaerobically-digested wastes.
Phosphorus is essential to all living things – and is a particularly valuable nutrient for agriculture. Without it, crops cannot grow. Phosphorus is also a “non-renewable” resource with a finite global supply. However, too much of it can find its way into rivers and lakes, leading to algae blooms and sometimes causing severe damage to sensitive aquatic ecosystems.
Farm and commercial/industrial biowastes can contribute to excess phosphorus in the environment. By treating these wastes in DVO’s patented Two-Stage Mixed Plug Flow anaerobic digester (AD) and then employing this new phosphorus recovery (PR) system, one can both conserve and recycle this valuable resource, as well as help, protect natural waterways.
DVO has successfully commissioned this system for a large dairy farm in the Northwest. A commercial mixed-waste anaerobic digestion facility in Indiana, as well as a dedicated poultry litter digester in Ohio also have installed this system at full-scale.
Cost-effective condensed solid
It is, in part, the “guaranteed retention time” offered by the DVO anaerobic digester that allows this PR process to be uniquely economical and effective. As a result, the majority of a waste stream’s phosphorus resides in a condensed solid — a new and useful byproduct from digestion that is stackable, storable, spreadable, and profitable.
Operating costs for this new phosphorus recovery system average one-eighth of a penny per gallon of liquid processed – a very small amount compared to the cost of transporting that gallon longer distances. The phosphorus-rich solids generated by DVO’s phosphorus recovery solution can be easily transported from the area and are marketable as a soil amendment, fertilizer, or potting soil/peat moss replacement.
Not only is DVO’s PR system a low-maintenance, sustainable treatment solution that works for agriculture and industry — it also provides real benefits for the environment. Largely because these ‘plant- ready’ fertilizers and micronutrients are captured in a form that can now be safely transported and utilized in areas that need them. DVO’s mission has always been to provide our customers with groundbreaking nutrient management solutions that work, said Doug VanOrnum, VP Strategy, and Technology for DVO.
