INDUSTRIAL AND ENVIRONMENTAL MICROBIOLOGY
“In nature, there are no landfills.”
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Release the potential of waste material and side streams with our Industry like Nature -biorefinery solutions. We specialize in advanced biorefinery technologies, excelling in a range of services from local consulting to global research projects.
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Our expertise spans diverse areas such as industrial side stream utilization, biogas production, and beyond. Join us in our way towards a full circular economy provided by our smart microbial friends and collaborators.
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Components in bioprocess
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Biorefineries as a basis for circulation economy
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Figures above: Hygienic waste utilization with mobile biorefinery used in ABOWE project.
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Re-defining the economic value of industrial and agricultural side streams
At Finnoflag, we are pioneering valuable side stream utilization, demonstrating how intelligent and eco-friendly Industry like Nature -approach can lead to a more sustainable and resource-efficient future. With our services, we provide unique possibilities for turning overlooked side streams into high value-added products such as various chemicals, enhanced biogas and biohydrogen. By venturing into biorefinery technologies, we actively contribute to a full circular economy that minimizes waste and maximizes economic value of the resources.
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"Hakalehto, E. Microbial presence in foods and in their digestion. In: Hakalehto, E. (ed.) Microbiological Food Hygiene. New York, NY, USA: Nova Science Publishers, Inc; 2015, pp. 1-17.”
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We are currently participating as key technology provider in an EU-funded BIORESQUE-project that aims at implementing a patented water-smart circular economy concept into a large pulp and paper mill in Finland. The BioResque project tests the patented circular economy concept for the forest industry and prepares its full industrial scale. The project uses water-smart Industry Like Nature® biorefining technology for resource recovery and production from side streams. The process utilizes the principles of nature's material cycles by using microbes and their enzymes as biocatalysts. Biorefining can also produce valuable biochemicals from sludge, replacing fossil resources. Our technology can help industries to meet not only their resource wisdom goals, but also GHG-emission reduction goals incentivized by EU Emission Trading System.
"In the project, laboratory tests are conducted with the pulp and paper industrial Collaborator’s side streams of different sludges to optimize the biorefining process and products. Based on this, a semi-industrial pilot plant is designed and prepared to be tested at the Collaborator's site. Cooperation with collaborators and sub-contractors in Finland and Sweden gives a wide network of high-level experts to carry out this project.”
Previously, we have implemented many biorefining pilot projects for various industrial sectors. Our technology has successfully piloted i.e. how tens of years old zero fiber in the bottom of a single gulf of the lake Näsijärvi in Tampere can be utilized as a resource of important biochemicals worth of one hundred million and how agricultural side steams in a Polish potato chips factory can be turned into carbon neutral biofuel and organic chemicals.
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Soil Enhancement for Sustainable Agriculture
Our unique biorefinery technologies are also capable to deliver organic and eco-friendly fertilizers. Moreover, the soil improvement effect will increase the crop yield for many years, and stimulates the microflora for better circulation of substances, with better nutrient and water balance and soil health.
The main products in our current BioResque project are organic, microbiologically enriched soil amendments. These fight hunger and poverty in areas of high erosion, climate pressure and low soil resilience.
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Smart Water Quality Control
Our patented PMEU-technology (Portable Microbe Enrichment Unit) provides trusted, cost-efficient and mobile water quality monitoring solutions. We specialize in lake water analysis, wastewater tracing, household and recreational waters, process water and irrigation water screening. Our PMEU-technology is also trusted as tap water monitoring technology by municipalities. We provide both monitoring services conducted by our specialists, but we also sell our PMEU-devices with customized training. Contact us for best solution based on your needs!
Trustworthy Industrial Hygiene Solutions
From wood industry water systems to dairy industry hygiene, we offer comprehensive industrial hygiene control. Our expertise includes screening for food spoilage and mold control in various environments.
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Developing waste treatment
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Developing of wastewater management
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Our customers and collaborators (some examples)
- Stora Enso Oyj
- Powerflute Oy
- Yara Finland Oy
- THL (Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare, Finland)
- Maitomaa Oy
- Savonia AMK (Savonia University of Applied Sciences)
- GTK (Geological Survey of Finland)
- Kuopion vesi (Kuopio Water Company)
- Turun vesi (Turku Water Company)
Our work in the Media
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Selected Publications
den Boer E, Łukaszewska A, Kluczkiewicz D, Lewandowska D, King K, Reijonen T, Suhonen A, Jääskeläinen A, Heitto A, Laatikainen R, Hakalehto E (2016). Volatile fatty acids as an added value from biowaste. Waste Management, 58: 62-69.
Abstract:
The aim of the present work was to provide proof of concept of employing a co-culture of K. mobilis and E. coli for producing short and medium chain volatile fatty acids (VFAs) from kitchen biowaste and potato peels. To this aim, experiments were carried out at pilot-scale installation with a bioreactor of 250 L. Different feeding strategies were tested under microaerobic conditions, at pH 6.0–6.5 in order to enhance chain elongation. Acetic acid and ethanol were dominating products in the initial stages of the bioprocess, but in a relatively short time of approx. 20–22 h from the process start accumulation of propionic acid took place followed by a chain elongation to butyric and valeric acids. The highest final products yield of 325 mg/g TS was achieved for the substrate load of 99.1 g TS/L (VS of 91.1 g/L) and pH 6.5, with the productivity of 448 mg/L/h. However, the highest average VFAs chain length (3.77 C) was observed in the process run with the loading of 63.2 g TS/L and pH 6.0. In this study, we demonstrated that the existing symbiosis of the co-culture of K. mobilis and E. coli favours formation and chain elongation of VFA, induced most likely by the enhanced ethanol formation. Our finding differs from the previous research which focus mostly on anaerobic conditions of VFAs production. The results provide good basis for further optimisation of VFAs production process.
den Boer E, den Boer J, Hakalehto E (2020). Volatile fatty acids production from separately collected municipal biowaste through mixed cultures fermentation. Journal of Water Process Engineering, 38.
Abstract:
Substituting the conventional crude oil-based products, such as volatile fatty acids (VFAs) derived from oil refineries by adequate substances produced in biowaste refineries triggers a lot of attention. There is also interest in combining wastewater treatment and biowaste treatment and focus it on bio-products production, other than the currently established methane fermentation. This paper summarizes investigations of VFAs generation from separately collected municipal biowaste, inoculated with anaerobic digestion plant wastewater, in a batch laboratory bioreactor with 20 L volume under varying conditions. The production of VFAs within 72 h from batch with 7.5 % TS and OLR of 21.5 g/(L·d) amounted to 11.5 g/L; 13.5 g/L and 20.5 g/L for pH 5.0; 5.5 and 6.0, respectively. The highest yield of VFAs production (0.310 g VFAs/g VSfed) was determined for pH 6.0 and OLR of 21.5 g/(L·d). Moreover, at pH 6.0 the dominating products were higher chain acids, in form of valeric and butyric acids, constituting 53 % and 41 % of the total mass of VFAs produced, which distinguishes this study from existing literature.
Hakalehto E, Dahlquist E (2018). A microbiological approach to the ecosystem services. In: Hakalehto E (ed.) Microbiological Environmental Hygiene. New York, NY, USA: Nova Science Publishers, Inc.
Hakalehto E, Heitto A (2016). Microbiological monitoring of the sugar industry processes. In: Hakalehto E (ed.) Microbiological Industrial Hygiene. New York, NY, USA: Nova Science Publishers, Inc.
Hakalehto E, Humppi T (2018). Monitoring microbes in the ambient air. In: Hakalehto E (ed.) Microbiological Environmental Hygiene. New York, NY, USA: Nova Science Publishers, Inc.
Hakalehto E, Humppi T (2023). What biocatalysis has to offer for green industries and city planning? Maintworld 4/2023.
Hakalehto E, Jääskeläinen A (2017). Reuse and circulation of organic resources and mixed residues. In: Dahlquist E and Hellstrand S (eds.) Natural resources available today and in the future: how to perform change management for achieving a sustainable world. Springer Verlag, Germany.
Hakalehto E, Heitto A, Heitto L, Humppi T, Rissanen K, Jääskeläinen A, Hänninen O (2011). Fast monitoring of water distribution system with portable enrichment unit - Measurement of volatile compounds of coliforms and Salmonella sp. in tap water. Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health Sciences, 3(8), 223-233.
Hakalehto E, Jääskeläinen A, Humppi T, Heitto L (2013). Production of energy and chemicals from biomasses by micro-organisms. In: Dahlquist E (ed.) Biomass as energy source: resources, systems and applications. CRC Press, Taylor & Francis Group, London, UK.
Hakalehto E, Heitto L, Heitto A (2016). Hygiene control cases of milk, soft drink and raw water production. In: Hakalehto E (ed.) Microbiological Industrial Hygiene. New York, NY, USA: Nova Science Publishers, Inc.
Hakalehto E, Heitto A, King K, Niska H, Suhonen A, Laatikainen R, Heitto L, Antikainen E, Jääskeläinen A (2016). Forest industry hygiene control with reference to waste refinement. In: Hakalehto E (ed.) Microbiological Industrial Hygiene. New York, NY, USA: Nova Science Publishers, Inc.
Hakalehto E, Sauramäki E, Sauramäki N, Sauramäki J, Pesola J, Humppi T (2018). Microbiology in traffic systems and vessels. In: Hakalehto E (ed.) Microbiological Environmental Hygiene. New York, NY, USA: Nova Science Publishers, Inc.
Humppi T, Mustalahti S, Lehto T, Hakalehto E (2016). In situ decontamination of airborne Bacillus atrophaeus spores by vaporized hydrogen peroxide (VHP). In: Hakalehto E (ed.). Microbiological Industrial Hygiene. New York, NY, USA: Nova Science Publishers,
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Schwede S, Thorin E, Lindmark J, Klintenberg P, Jääskeläinen A, Suhonen A, Laatikainen R, Hakalehto E (2017). Using slaughterhouse waste in a biochemical based biorefinery -results from pilot scale tests. Environmental Technology, 38: 1275-1284.
Abstract:
A novel biorefinery concept was piloted using protein-rich slaughterhouse waste, chicken manure and straw as feedstocks. The basic idea was to provide a proof of concept for the production of platform chemicals and biofuels from organic waste materials at non-septic conditions. The desired biochemical routes were 2,3-butanediol and acetone–butanol fermentation. The results showed that hydrolysis resulted only in low amounts of easily degradable carbohydrates. However, amino acids released from the protein-rich slaughterhouse waste were utilized and fermented by the bacteria in the process. Product formation was directed towards acidogenic compounds rather than solventogenic products due to increasing pH-value affected by ammonia release during amino acid fermentation. Hence, the process was not effective for 2,3-butanediol production, whereas butyrate, propionate, γ-aminobutyrate and valerate were predominantly produced. This offered fast means for converting tedious protein-rich waste mixtures into utilizable chemical goods. Furthermore, the residual liquid from the bioreactor showed significantly higher biogas production potential than the corresponding substrates. The combination of the biorefinery approach to produce chemicals and biofuels with anaerobic digestion of the residues to recover energy in form of methane and nutrients that can be utilized for animal feed production could be a feasible concept for organic waste utilization.
Wirtanen G, Salo S (2010). PMEU-laitteen validointi koliformeilla (Validation of the PMEU equipment with coliforms). Report VTT-S-01705-10, Statement VTT-S-02231-10.
