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A kinetic study of anaerobic digestion of olive mill wastewater at mesophilic and thermophilic temperatures

A kinetic study of anaerobic digestion of olive mill wastewater at mesophilic and thermophilic temperatures
A kinetic study of anaerobic digestion of olive mill wastewater at mesophilic and thermophilic temperatures
The kinetics of the anaerobic digestion of olive mill wastewater (OMW) was studied in the mesophilic and thermophilic ranges of temperature. Two completely mixed continuous flow bioreactors operating at 35°C and 55°C and with an average biomass concentration of 5·45 g VSS litre?1 were used. The thermophilic reactor worked satisfactorily between hydraulic retention times (HRT) of 10 to 40 days, removing between 94·6 and 84·4% of the initial chemical oxygen demand (COD). In contrast, the mesophilic reactor showed a marked decrease in substrate utilization and methane production at a HRT of 10 days. TVFA levels and the TVFA/alkalinity ratio were higher and close to the suggested limits for digester failure. The yield coefficient for methane production (1 CH4 STP g?1 CODadded) was 28% higher in the thermophilic process than in the mesophilic one.

Macroenergetic parameters, calculated using Guiot's kinetic model, gave yield coefficients for the biomass (Y) of 0·18 (mesophilic) and 0·06 g VSS g?1 COD (thermophilic) and specific rates of substrate uptake for cell maintenance (m) of 0·12 (mesophilic) and 0·27 g COD g?1 VSS.day?1 (thermophilic).

The experimental results showed the rate of substrate uptake (Rs; g COD g?1 VSS.day?1), correlated with the concentration of biodegradable substrate (Sb; g COD litre?1), through an equation of the Michaelis-Menten type for the two temperatures used.
anaerobic digestion, olive mill wastewater, kinetics, mesophilic and thermophilic temperatures
0269-7491
13-18
Borja, R.
ed513484-04ff-4424-ab79-dc715ca63146
Martin, A.
169f0afa-12fc-43b5-a72d-7bfc493aa170
Banks, C.J.
5c6c8c4b-5b25-4e37-9058-50fa8d2e926f
Alonso, V.
a44c7b8d-a340-4ea6-8c61-cb661c54403d
Chica, A.
62610391-8346-475a-bab8-2384e84476a8
Borja, R.
ed513484-04ff-4424-ab79-dc715ca63146
Martin, A.
169f0afa-12fc-43b5-a72d-7bfc493aa170
Banks, C.J.
5c6c8c4b-5b25-4e37-9058-50fa8d2e926f
Alonso, V.
a44c7b8d-a340-4ea6-8c61-cb661c54403d
Chica, A.
62610391-8346-475a-bab8-2384e84476a8

Borja, R., Martin, A., Banks, C.J., Alonso, V. and Chica, A. (1995) A kinetic study of anaerobic digestion of olive mill wastewater at mesophilic and thermophilic temperatures. Environmental Pollution, 88 (1), 13-18. (doi:10.1016/0269-7491(95)91043-K). (PMID:15091564)

Record type: Article

Abstract

The kinetics of the anaerobic digestion of olive mill wastewater (OMW) was studied in the mesophilic and thermophilic ranges of temperature. Two completely mixed continuous flow bioreactors operating at 35°C and 55°C and with an average biomass concentration of 5·45 g VSS litre?1 were used. The thermophilic reactor worked satisfactorily between hydraulic retention times (HRT) of 10 to 40 days, removing between 94·6 and 84·4% of the initial chemical oxygen demand (COD). In contrast, the mesophilic reactor showed a marked decrease in substrate utilization and methane production at a HRT of 10 days. TVFA levels and the TVFA/alkalinity ratio were higher and close to the suggested limits for digester failure. The yield coefficient for methane production (1 CH4 STP g?1 CODadded) was 28% higher in the thermophilic process than in the mesophilic one.

Macroenergetic parameters, calculated using Guiot's kinetic model, gave yield coefficients for the biomass (Y) of 0·18 (mesophilic) and 0·06 g VSS g?1 COD (thermophilic) and specific rates of substrate uptake for cell maintenance (m) of 0·12 (mesophilic) and 0·27 g COD g?1 VSS.day?1 (thermophilic).

The experimental results showed the rate of substrate uptake (Rs; g COD g?1 VSS.day?1), correlated with the concentration of biodegradable substrate (Sb; g COD litre?1), through an equation of the Michaelis-Menten type for the two temperatures used.

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More information

Published date: 1995
Keywords: anaerobic digestion, olive mill wastewater, kinetics, mesophilic and thermophilic temperatures

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 75475
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/75475
ISSN: 0269-7491
PURE UUID: ec049c40-8a2e-4524-b96a-3dea7282c73c
ORCID for C.J. Banks: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0001-6795-814X

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Date deposited: 11 Mar 2010
Last modified: 14 Mar 2024 02:39

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Contributors

Author: R. Borja
Author: A. Martin
Author: C.J. Banks ORCID iD
Author: V. Alonso
Author: A. Chica

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