TY - JOUR
T1 - Technological Approaches for the Capture and Reuse of Biogenic Carbon Dioxide Towards Sustainable Anaerobic Digestion
AU - Theodoropoulou, Anastasia
AU - Bagaki, Dimitra Antonia
AU - Gaspari, Maria
AU - Kougias, Panagiotis
AU - Treu, Laura
AU - Campanaro, Stefano
AU - Hidalgo, Dolores
AU - Timmers, Rudolphus Antonius
AU - Zrimec, Maja Berden
AU - Reinhardt, Robert
AU - Grimalt-Alemany, Antonio
AU - Goonesekera, Estelle Maria
AU - Angelidaki, Irini
AU - Vasilaki, Vasileia
AU - Malamis, Dimitris
AU - Barampouti, Elli Maria
AU - Mai, Sofia
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2025 by the authors.
PY - 2025
Y1 - 2025
N2 - Anaerobic digestion (AD) produces renewable energy but releases biogenic CO2 and generates digestate requiring management. This paper evaluates four emerging pathways for CO2 capture and reuse in AD systems: (1) in situ CO2 conversion to CH4 via microbial electrolysis cells (MECs), (2) hydrogenotrophic CO2 methanation using green hydrogen, (3) enzymatic CO2 capture coupled with autotrophic algae cultivation, and (4) digestate pyrolysis with syngas biomethanation. Each pathway is assessed in terms of technical feasibility, biocatalyst performance, system configuration, and key implementation challenges. Integrated scenarios demonstrate up to 98% CO2 emission reduction, substantial bioenergy yield improvements, and enhanced nutrient and biomass recovery compared to conventional AD. MEC-based and hydrogenotrophic pathways show the highest energy efficiency, while algae-based systems provide added bioproduct valorization. The remaining limitations include cost, process integration, and scale-up. The study defines development priorities to advance zero-emission AD technologies for the agri-food and waste management sectors.
AB - Anaerobic digestion (AD) produces renewable energy but releases biogenic CO2 and generates digestate requiring management. This paper evaluates four emerging pathways for CO2 capture and reuse in AD systems: (1) in situ CO2 conversion to CH4 via microbial electrolysis cells (MECs), (2) hydrogenotrophic CO2 methanation using green hydrogen, (3) enzymatic CO2 capture coupled with autotrophic algae cultivation, and (4) digestate pyrolysis with syngas biomethanation. Each pathway is assessed in terms of technical feasibility, biocatalyst performance, system configuration, and key implementation challenges. Integrated scenarios demonstrate up to 98% CO2 emission reduction, substantial bioenergy yield improvements, and enhanced nutrient and biomass recovery compared to conventional AD. MEC-based and hydrogenotrophic pathways show the highest energy efficiency, while algae-based systems provide added bioproduct valorization. The remaining limitations include cost, process integration, and scale-up. The study defines development priorities to advance zero-emission AD technologies for the agri-food and waste management sectors.
KW - Anaerobic digestion
KW - Biogenic CO reuse
KW - Enzymatic CO capture
KW - Hydrogenotrophic methanation
KW - Microbial electrolysis cells
KW - Syngas biomethanation
U2 - 10.3390/su172210385
DO - 10.3390/su172210385
M3 - Review
AN - SCOPUS:105023072858
SN - 2071-1050
VL - 17
JO - Sustainability
JF - Sustainability
IS - 22
M1 - 10385
ER -
