Aerobic Granular Sludge as a Substrate in Anaerobic Digestion—Current Status and Perspectives

Abstract

Even though many wastewater treatment systems have been applied so far, there is still a need to develop methods, the implementation of which are technologically and economically justified. The aerobic granular sludge (AGS) method, which has been developed for several years, may represent an alternative to traditional technologies. One of the barriers to AGS deployment is the limited knowledge on the determinants and efficiency of the anaerobic digestion (AD) of AGS, as little research has been devoted to it. Therefore, the aim of the present paper is to summarize the current state of knowledge on the subject, including a review of technological conditions, process performance, and AGS parameters that can impact AD, and currently used pre-treatment methods. The anaerobic stabilization performance of AGS is compared against conventional activated sludge (CAS). The paper also identifies avenues for further research and practical implementations to further optimize the process and to determine whether AD is viable in full-scale plants.