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Research question / project object:

The CarboMass joint project aims to achieve optimisation in the area of technical development and the expansion of inter-municipal cooperation in sewage sludge processing. The innovative approach to technical development relates to the regional utilisation of sewage sludge and residual biomass to produce the novel soil substitute "CarboMass", which can then be used for the recultivation of residue dumps. With the CarboMass process, the CO2-emissions can be reduced, phosphorus bound and the new soil substitute used directly without further treatment processes.

Project data

Project name:Regional circular economy for the local reuse of sewage sludge and biomass with the option of CO2 balancing
Running time:07/2021 - 06/2024
Project organiser:
Project management:

Prof Dr Uta Breuer

Employee:

Project coordinator and technical development:

Dr.-Ing. Anja Schreiber

Municipal cross-cutting issues:

Prof Dr Elmar Hinz

Project partners:

including the Thuringian Innovation Centre for Recyclable Materials (THiWert) in the Faculty of Engineering at Nordhausen University of Applied Sciences

Funding amount:
Third-party donors:

Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) in the Innovation & Structural Change programme family

Summary of the project

Together with municipal partners from two regions in the federal states of Thuringia and Saxony-Anhalt, the potential of municipal processes for a circular economy in the area of wastewater / sewage sludge flow is being analysed, taking into account the different structures of municipalities and their public institutions, and strategic optimisation proposals are being developed.

The optimisation objective is to improve regional water quality while further developing the established structures. Regional cooperation is to be strengthened without the establishment of new public companies and in cooperation with private players. In terms of content, this cross-cutting topic focuses on the needs-based and future-oriented fulfilment of public tasks: regional and sustainable management in cycles can bring about greater resource efficiency and stimulate economic development in the Südharz region.

Project news

01.08.2023

Six scientific and practical partners have been working for two years on the question of whether a mixture of pyrolysed sewage sludge and biomass can represent a sustainable alternative to the mono-incineration of regional sewage sludge. In addition to engineering research, the practical problems and cross-cutting municipal issues are being analysed from an administrative science perspective.

To the press release "Milestone..."

24.05.2023

The association presented the current project status at the 3rd Bioeconomy Workshop Saxony in Markranstädt. The event was organised by Veolia Klärschlammverwertung GmbH and the German Biomass Research Centre. The event focussed on the topics of circular economy and nutrient recycling with their interfaces to the bioeconomy. The aim of the workshop is to support the transfer of knowledge in the circular economy between research institutions, universities and industry.

As part of the Bioeconomy Workshop Saxony event on 24 May 2023, the joint project "CarboMass" was presented in a keynote speech by Prof. Uta Breuer (project manager). In the subsequent workshops, which were divided into four different topics - raw materials, nutrient recycling, bio-based plastics, interdisciplinary topics such as transfer - the opportunity was used for an intensive exchange of experience and discussion. As an example, closer co-operation between politics and research was a recurring point in all topics. The issue of "Sewage sludge, including biological residues - waste or not?" should also be mentioned here, as it involved a review of existing legislation. Representatives from ministries, scientists and employees from various companies came together in lively discussion rounds. Different opinions were openly discussed, contacts exchanged and new networks established.

In conclusion, it can be said that further participation in this group is also interesting for other research projects, as the exchange was not limited to results and procedures, but problems and obstacles were also openly communicated.

Organiser of the event:     

  • Veolia Klärschlammverwertung GmbH, Markranstädt
  • German Biomass Research Centre gGmbH, Leipzig
A scientist in a white shirt points to a screen on which a presentation on the "pilot pyrolysis plant" is projected.
CarboMass at the 3rd Biocoenomics Workshop Saxony

10.02.2022

The Thuringian research project "CarboMass" is driving forward the transformation of waste management into a recycling economy. The participants are developing a plant in which a soil substitute is produced from biomass and sewage sludge.

You can find the entire BMBF article here ...

26.11.2021

Since the start of the 2021/22 winter semester, five Indian students from the Renewable Energy Systems master's programme have been supporting the CarboMass project as part of the "Sientiffic project" seminar. In their scientific work, the students are investigating the effect of sewage sludge biochar on the germination rate and growth of cress. The test is intended to prove that the pyrolysis char produced in the CarboMass joint project does not cause a significant reduction in the germination rate or a reduction in the fresh plant weight. Whether the stimulating effect of the more volatile pyrolysis condensates on germination reported in the literature for some pyrolysis charcoals also applies to this pyrolysis charcoal is also part of the investigations.

Indian students carrying out biological tests on sewage sludge pyrolysates
Biological tests on sewage sludge pyrolysates

20.10.2021

On 20 October 2021, the six partners of the joint project "Regional circular economy for the local reuse of sewage sludge and biomass with the option of CO2 Balancing (CarboMass)" met to exchange expertise. Under the direction of Prof Breuer, the local conditions and technical details of the pilot pyrolysis plant to be built in Bleicherode at the Wipperaue wastewater treatment plant were discussed. From the second half of next year, partial quantities of sewage sludge from the Sangerhausen sewage treatment plant (Wasserverband Südharz) and the Wipperaue sewage treatment plant (Abwasserzweckverband Bode Wipper) will be processed into biochar and refined into the product "CarboMass". Preliminary tests are currently being carried out on a laboratory scale at Nordhausen University of Applied Sciences. In addition to the technical issues surrounding "CarboMass", the consideration of cross-cutting municipal issues also plays a central role in a holistic approach. These include, above all, aspects of resource efficiency, which are reflected, for example, in the adjustment of fee calculations, the calculation of investment costs for plants, the choice of process and the legal framework. In this context, the team led by Prof Hinz (IMPG - Institute for Public Management and Governance) presented the procedure for analysing impact models over the coming months. The main aim is to identify the potential of the region and the available levers.

07.10.2021

Sabina Skambraks is another employee who has been recruited for the CarboMass project. As part of her bachelor's thesis on "Phytotechnical investigations into the suitability of CarboMass as a soil substrate for the recultivation of potash dumps", Ms Skambraks is researching the correct composition of the product "CarboMass". In addition to the physical properties of the soil, the effects on plant growth also need to be determined.

Parallel to her bachelor's thesis, Ms Skambraks was hired in October 2021, before completing her URT studies, as an employee of the network partner, the district of Nordhausen, and is supporting the project at municipal level.

Sabina Skambraks taking samples of sewage sludge pyrolysates
Sampling of pyrolysates

05.10.2021

The new PYREKA P9053 laboratory pyrolyser with a production capacity of 2 kg/h from Pyrec GmbH has arrived. The first investigations into the pyrolysis of sewage sludge are now starting in the CarboMass project. Sewage sludge from the two project partners Wasserverband Südharz and Abwasserzweckverband Bode Wipper will be pyrolysed and scientifically analysed in the project.

PYREKA laboratory pyrolysis plant - view into the open room
PYREKA laboratory pyrolysis plant
Material task - a young man wears a white FFP2 mask and fills black granulate into a funnel
Material task

22.07.2021

The "REGION.innovativ" funding programme of the Federal Ministry of Education and Research supports regional alliances to dedicate themselves to new research and innovation topics and to collaborate with new partners. The three-year research project "CarboMass - Regional recycling management for the local reuse of sewage sludge and biomass with optimised CO2 balancing", which was newly acquired by HSN, is one of them.

To the press release "Kick-off..."

Project contexts in graphic recording

Making visible what is not immediately visible is the aim of combining images and text. It is often difficult to convey complex tasks and key messages in just a few words. The CarboMass project can be summarised effectively and simply with the help of visual representation and the precision of words.

GR_CarboMass

The starting point for analysing the cycle is groundwater. The drinking water extracted and treated from it is made available to private households and businesses. The used water (and precipitation) is channelled through pipes into sewers that lead to wastewater treatment plants via various routes. There, as part of the treatment process, the water is purified and returned to natural waters. In addition to the purified water, the treatment process also produces sewage sludge, which can be disposed of in various ways. The classic disposal methods include the incineration of sewage sludge and the spreading of sewage sludge on fields.

However, the groundwater is heavily polluted with nitrogen as a result of field exports, which is why the use of sewage sludge as a fertiliser in an agricultural context will largely no longer be permitted from 2029 or 2032. However, the alternative of burning the sewage sludge in (mono-)incineration plants results in high CO2 emissions and therefore clearly contradicts the climate targets.

As an innovative research approach, CarboMass represents an alternative to these classic disposal methods for wastewater treatment plant operators. At the same time, potash stockpile operators have the problem of covering their potash stockpiles in such a way that (saline) seepage water caused by precipitation does not seep inexorably back into the groundwater. The project aims to find a solution to both problems: On the one hand, the sewage sludge produced is processed within a pyrolysis plant, whereby phosphorus and CO2 are bound. The resulting carbonisate is then mixed with compost to produce the novel soil substitute "CarboMass". It can also be used as a covering material for the recultivation of post-mining landscapes such as potash dumps, thus reducing the discharge of pollutants through the dump leachate, which has an overall positive effect on groundwater quality and the CO2 balance.

In addition to technical development, the project also focuses on cross-cutting municipal issues such as the creation and expansion of inter-municipal cooperation, the examination of fee regulations and other economic and legal framework conditions.