Comparative Analysis of Success Factors for Waste Anaerobic Digestion Globally and Their Educational Potential for Engineering Institutions through the Integration of Interdisciplinary Approaches

Many of the major strides made towards sustainable development over the past 15 years have had the goal of achieving a circular economy. Effective collection, storage, and recycling of various wastes is vital to achieving this goal and continues to be a critical issue in modern society. A variety of factors including the political environment, waste flow composition, and other geopolitics play major roles in determining how waste is to be addressed. Decisions have to be made at every level of government and industry on not only how to manage these wastes, but also how to divert waste from storage sites to be recycled or converted to energy: combining technical (i.e. engineering) and other intersectional areas of study (i.e. sustainability, political science, and economics). Anaerobic digestion is just one of these processes that has great potential to divert and reuse waste through the breakdown of biodegradable materials into bio-energy and other byproducts in anoxic conditions.
The intent of this study is to examine where efforts are being made globally in implementing anaerobic digestion processes, as well as how and why they have succeeded using relevant literature. This is followed by an examination of how that knowledge can be used to change public policy and increase utilization of anaerobic digestion processes in the United States. Attention will be paid to the technical feasibility, the economics, and the environmental impacts, specific to its current successes. This approach illustrates the connectivity and necessity of an interdisciplinary approach to achieve a sustainable future which needs to be integrated into educational institutions for complex issues.

Author(s):

Nicholas Thomas    
Environmental Engineering Sciences
University of Florida
United States

Mayuko Mizutani    
Environmental Engineering Sciences
University of Florida
United States

Christina Finizio    
Environmental Engineering Sciences
University of Florida
United States

Christopher Cuevas    
Environmental Engineering Sciences
University of Florida
United States

Fazil Najafi    
Civil and Coastal Engineering
University of Florida
United States