Exploring the Biochemical Methane Potential of Wholesale Market Waste from Jordan and Tunisia for a Future Scale-Up of Anaerobic Digestion in Amman and Sfax

3 Figuras.-- 2 TablasLocal open markets, trading fruits and vegetables, are widespread in Mediterranean countries, such as Tunisia and Jordan, producing large amounts of organic waste. Applying an anaerobic digestion process on this substrate makes it crucial to evaluate the waste mixture composition and seasonal variability properly. In this study, after defining an average composition of the fruit and vegetable waste (FVW) mixture produced in Sfax (Tunisia) and Amman (Jordan) in three seasonal intervals (autumn–winter, spring, and summer), the biochemical methane potential (BMP) of an artificially created FVW mixture was individually determined by three European institutions located in Spain, Italy, and Greece. The average BMP from all three seasons and laboratories was 286 ± 52 NmL CH4 g CODadded−1, close to the theoretical maximum yield of 350 NmL CH4 g CODadded−1, indicating a high biodegradability of the waste. Τhe biochemical methane yields of the spring mixtures were not statistically different across the three labs. The most significant differences among the BMP results were obtained for the autumn/winter and the summer mixtures used in Spain, likely due to the variety or ripeness of fruits and vegetables collected in the local markets. In the other two labs in Italy and Greece, no statistical difference was observed for the BMPs of the three season mixtures within the same lab. Therefore, not a critical difference in the biodegradability of such FVW is expected along the different seasons, indicating that the operation of a full-scale digester over a whole year would constantly benefit from the supplementation of a high biochemical methane potential feedstock. Graphical Abstract: [Figure not available: see fulltext.]This work was funded by the project entitled “Employing circular economy approach for OFMSW management within the Mediterranean countries – CEOMED” number A_B.4.2_0058, funded under the ENI CBC MED 2014–2020 programmePeer reviewe

Simulation of DEHP biodegradation and sorption during the anaerobic digestion of secondary sludge

Di-ethylhexyl phthalate (DEHP) has commonly been found in the sludge of municipal wastewater treatment plants especially during anaerobic processing. It is slowly biodegradable under anaerobic conditions. Due to its high hydrophobicity, sorption-desorption processes can be rate-limiting for the compound biodegradation. In this study, the anaerobic biodegradation of DEHP was investigated through batch kinetic experiments and dynamic transitions of a continuous stirred tank reactor (CSTR) fed with secondary sludge contaminated with DEHP. A widely accepted model (ADM1) was used to fit the anaerobic digestion of secondary sludge and was properly extended to. account for DEHP removal, in which mass transfer processes are also involved. It was shown that DEHP removal was limited by the transfer of DEHP within the solid fraction. The criterion selected for the distinction of the two sites was whether the compound sorbed in those sites was bioavailable for biodegradation or not. Thus, the aqueous phase and the surface of the biosolids were considered as suitable sites for the compound to be bioavailable and the main bulk of the solid matrix was regarded as. sites, where the compound remains "protected" against biodegradation. The model, fitted to the batch experimental data, was able to predict DEHP removal in the CSTR operated at various HRTs

Optimal and suboptimal control of anaerobic digesters

Anaerobic digester failure due to entry of inhibitors or sudden changes in the feed substrate concentration may be encompassed beneficially by applying optimal control theory. An almost proportional relationship between the dilution rate and the methane production rate leads to a simple suboptimal control law with only minor loss in performance, after the occurrence of the above mentioned events