Dr Daya Pandey | Circular farming: Harnessing animal waste for energy and nutrient recovery

Описание: Looking at turning animal waste into useful forms and whether the by-products produced can meet EU fertiliser standards. Presented by Dr Daya Pandey, an Assistant Professor at the School of Mechanical Engineering, University of Leeds and chaired by Tim Cockerill, Professor of of Efficient Energy Utilisation, School of Mechanical Engineering, University of Leeds, followed by 10 minutes for Q&A.

According to a report from the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), agriculture makes up nearly a third of the world's greenhouse gas emissions. Within this sector, livestock farming is a major contributor, employing around 1.3 billion people. It also accounts for 40% of the value added in agriculture and provides about one-third of the world's protein. In the UK, agriculture produces approximately 48 million tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions, mainly from nitrous oxide (71%) and methane (49%). This sector is also known to be one of the most difficult to make more environmentally friendly.

Animal waste, such as manure, urine, compost, bedding, and effluents, has traditionally been used to add nutrients to farmland because it is rich in nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium (N-P-K). However, intensive farming often creates more waste than nearby land can safely handle, which can lead to environmental problems like water pollution, bad odours, heavy metals, harmful germs and air pollution.

With increasing energy needs and growing concerns about sustainability, it is important to find new ways to manage waste. This seminar looked at technologies that can convert animal waste into useful forms of energy and recover valuable nutrients. It also examined whether the by-products produced can meet EU fertiliser standards and whether they are suitable for use in farming systems.

Dr Pandey completed his PhD at the University of Limerick through a Marie Curie Fellowship. He specialises in thermochemical conversion, process systems engineering, and resource recovery from biomass and waste. He has held prior academic and research appointments at the University of Huddersfield and Brunel University London. Dr Pandey is a member of the IMechE Thermofluids Board, recognised as a Global Talent by the Royal Academy of Engineering (RAEng), and was conferred with the BRICS Young Scientist Award in 2022. He has worked as a Climate Advisor (Energy) for the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and is currently contributing to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) – Climate Technology Progress Report 2025, to be released during COP30 in Belém, Brazil.

Daya's staff profile: https://eps.leeds.ac.uk/mechanical-en...