Department of Biosystems and TechnologyPhD Project: Valorization and Risk Assessment of Anaerobic Digestates for Sustainable Horticultural ProductionThird-cycle subject area: Horticultural ScienceDescription of the doctoral project The transition to circular food and energy systems requires safe, high-quality products that can return nutrients and organic matter to horticultural production. Anaerobic digestate from biogas production is a promising resource containing plant nutrients and organic fibre originating from, for example, manure, food and household waste, slaughterhouse by-products, park and garden residues, and biomass from intermediate crops or roadside vegetation. The digestate can be separated into a nutrient-rich liquid fraction and a fibre fraction. While the liquid fraction has potential for use in nutrient solutions, the fibre fraction is particularly relevant as a constituent of growing media and a potential partial replacement for peat and other fibre materials. Developing safe, functional and locally available alternatives to peat is an important challenge for sustainable horticultural production. A key barrier is the possible presence of pyralid herbicide residues. These herbicides can accumulate in crop material, persist during anaerobic digestion and cause growth disturbances in sensitive horticultural crops at very low concentrations. The project will investigate the occurrence and fate of pyralids in selected feedstocks and digestate fractions, with particular focus on the fibre fraction and its use in growing media.About the positionThe doctoral project will combine greenhouse and growth-chamber bioassays with laboratory studies and chemical characterisation. It will assess effects on plant growth and nutrient uptake, examine the…DoktorandDoktorander
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