The name biofactory comes from the improvements which different installments of traditional health services (
wastewater treatment
Wastewater treatment is a process used to remove contaminants from wastewater and convert it into an effluent that can be returned to the water cycle. Once returned to the water cycle, the effluent creates an acceptable impact on the environme ...
and
water treatment
Water treatment is any process that improves the quality of water to make it appropriate for a specific end-use. The end use may be drinking, industrial water supply, irrigation, river flow maintenance, water recreation or many other uses, inclu ...
plants) have been through; this has been done by reassessing them into a
Circular Economy (CE). The concept was first used by Chilean company Aguas Andinas’ CEO, Narcís Berberana. Yves Lesty, Carlos Castro and Lisette Gajardo were the engineers that took part in its origin.
Overall, biofactories have gone from a lineal processing approach, where resources are extracted and then processed, thus generating waste; to factories that supply with new
valuable resources, such as
electricity
Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter that has a property of electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as describ ...
,
natural gas
Natural gas (also called fossil gas or simply gas) is a naturally occurring mixture of gaseous hydrocarbons consisting primarily of methane in addition to various smaller amounts of other higher alkanes. Low levels of trace gases like carbon ...
, agricultural fertilizer or
clean water
Drinking water is water that is used in drink or food preparation; potable water is water that is safe to be used as drinking water. The amount of drinking water required to maintain good health varies, and depends on physical activity level, ...
, which are obtained from what it used to be considered as waste.
The first biofactory complex was created in 2017 by Aguas Andinas, when this new strategy was applied to its different wastewater treatment plants, La Farfana and Mapocho-Trebal; and La Florida water treatment plant, grouping them all together under the name of Biofactoría Gran Santiago.
During its first year, Biofactoría Gran Santiago generated a total of 51.792.240
kWh
A kilowatt-hour ( unit symbol: kW⋅h or kW h; commonly written as kWh) is a unit of energy: one kilowatt of power for one hour. In terms of SI derived units with special names, it equals 3.6 megajoules (MJ). Kilowatt-hours are a common bi ...
of
electrical energy
Electrical energy is energy related to forces on electrically charged particles and the movement of electrically charged particles (often electrons in wires, but not always). This energy is supplied by the combination of electric current and electr ...
, 160.337
BTU
The British thermal unit (BTU or Btu) is a unit of heat; it is defined as the amount of heat required to raise the temperature of one pound of water by one degree Fahrenheit. It is also part of the United States customary units. The modern SI un ...
of
biogas
Biogas is a mixture of gases, primarily consisting of methane, carbon dioxide and hydrogen sulphide, produced from raw materials such as agricultural waste, manure, municipal waste, plant material, sewage, green waste and food waste. I ...
, 111.842
tonnes
The tonne ( or ; symbol: t) is a unit of mass equal to 1000 kilograms. It is a non-SI unit accepted for use with SI. It is also referred to as a metric ton to distinguish it from the non-metric units of the short ton ( United States ...
of
fertilizer
A fertilizer (American English) or fertiliser (British English; see spelling differences) is any material of natural or synthetic origin that is applied to soil or to plant tissues to supply plant nutrients. Fertilizers may be distinct from ...
destined to
agricultural crops
A crop is a plant that can be grown and harvested extensively for profit or subsistence. When the plants of the same kind are cultivated at one place on a large scale, it is called a crop. Most crops are cultivated in agriculture or hydroponics ...
, and 603 millions cubic metre of clean water that was returned to its natural sources.
Principles
According to the company that coined this new concept, biofactories operate under 6 main principles:
# Water run: Using the energy of water as a resource, they create new opportunities for its use after being cleaned; such as irrigation and underwater aquifer refill.
# Run with its own energy: Using a renewable source such as water, the main objective of a biofactory is to take over the total amount of its operations’ electrical requirements and feed its own system, both as energy and as biomethane.
# Waste transformation: They understand waste as a source of new resources, such as the mud that comes from the process of wastewater cleaning, which is used as agricultural fertilizer.
# Air protection: Within its facilities, they have deodorization systems that neutralize the odour, they reduce gas emission, and they take over the reforestation of its surroundings; minimizing its environmental impact.
# Biodiversity protection: They promote initiatives that generate an optimal ecosystem for wildlife. A few of them are the cleansing of rivers contaminated with wastewater, the preservation of its environment, and the creation of artificial lakes that aim to protect the same environment.
# Social involvement:
#* Community engagement: Funding of social initiatives.
#* Collaboration with other companies: Boosting of projects that deal with the processing of water that comes from other areas.
#* Research: Enhancing both biotechnology and process engineering investigations.
Acknowledgements
In September 2018, Aguas Andinas’ biofactory project was awarded with the Momentum for Change recognition, given by the United Nations (UN) during its Climate Change conference; acknowledging its contribution to this new strategy that seeks to prevent climate change.
Furthermore, in October 2018, Chilean foundation Recyclápolis gave it
Recyclápolis Environmental National Awardref> to Biofactoría Gran Santiago's biomethanation plant, implemented by Chilean companies Metrogás and Aguas Andinas.
References
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Waste management
Water treatment facilities