Evaluation by Kinetic Models of Anaerobe Digestion Performances for Various Substrates and Co-substrates

Abstract

Anaerobic digestion is a complex process that allows the conversion of organic wastes into biogas with minimal costs and benefits for the environment. The goal of this study is to evaluate the anaerobic digestion potential of two common agricultural biomass wastes (degraded corn and degraded wheat) used as single substrates or as co-substrates together with wastewater from a waste water treatment plant. The results reveal that the co-digestion is an improved solution, both in terms of biogas amount produced and its methane concentration. Two kinetic models (modified Gompertz model and logistical growth model) were applied to study the methane production. For each case, the kinetic parameters were estimated. One demonstrates that the modified Gompertz model fitted very well the measured methane potential, for all studied cases.