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Fulton Schools: In the News

Researchers repurpose wastewater treatment greenhouse gases to grow algae, make useful products

Researchers repurpose wastewater treatment greenhouse gases to grow algae, make useful products

Biogas byproducts produced by the carbon dioxide and methane gases that emanate from wastewater treatment plants typically are burned away as part of the treatment process. But now Fulton Schools Professor Bruce Rittmann and his team at ASU’s Swette Center for Environmental Biotechnology, which he directs, are repurposing the process to grow algae and make other useful products. Manufacturers are able to turn microalgae into fuel, food additives and other valuable materials, and methane can be captured and sold to various industries that use it. Working with a city of Mesa water reclamation plant operators, the ASU researchers are developing a sustainable, large-scale system to reclaim valuable waste materials for beneficial uses.

See also: Algae could be key to reducing carbon emission in wastewater treatment process, ABC15 News Arizona, December 9

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