Pulses of oil were added to completely mixed reactors fed with dairy cow manure and food waste, after
achieving a stable performance at an organic loading rate of 4.6 ± 0.1 gCOD/(lreactor day), an oily waste
effluent from a canned fish processing industry was fed in the form of pulses. The oil concentration rose
up to 9, 12, 15 and 18 gCODoil/lreactor, after the pulse feeding in the reactor. The highest fat concentration
of 18 gCODoil/lreactor promoted a persistent inhibition in the process of the continuous reactor, although in
batch assays, the reactor content evidenced a capacity to degrade more oil and to degrade the accumulated
organic matter. All the other pulses had a positive effect in the methane production. From a practical
point of view, this work demonstrates that controlled intermittent inputs of oil can enhance the
methane production in a co-digestion of cow manure and food waste.Fundo Social Europeu (FSE) - SFRH/BD/18174/2004Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia (FCT)
