Biomethanation Potential (BMP) Study of Mesophilic Anaerobic Co-Digestion of Abundant Bio-Wastes in Southern Regions of Tunisia

Abstract

Tunisia is a country that suffers from energy demand problems and environmental matters. Thus, Tunisian authorities desire to encourage the development of renewable energy sources, especially from biological processes, like anaerobic digestion. Therefore, this study is focused on the evaluation of biogas and bio-methane yield from the co-digestion of three available and abundant bio-wastes in the southern regions of Tunisia. The three different raw materials are an organic fraction of municipal solid waste, chicken manure, and olive mill wastewater. In this context, experimental work to evaluate the potential of biogas and bio-methane production was carried out at mesophilic temperature 35 °C and batch mode. The present work highlights the possibility of generating biogas from these organic wastes and reducing the amounts of the wastes to dispose of in landfills. The experimental study of the co-digestion process under specific conditions of carbon to nitrogen ratio (C/N), T, pH, and inoculums to substrate ratio ISR provided a high yield of net methane and net biogas, in comparison with other research works. Results showed a higher specific net methane production per kg of volatile solids, which is equal to 0.338 Nm3 methane/kg VS and 0.430 Nm3 methane/kg VS for two studied cases. The obtained volatile solids reduction was found to be 91% of the initial content, for a hydraulic retention time (HRT) of 40 days.