Study of ultrasonic pre-treatment effect on the methanogenic potential of University Canteen Waste

Abstract

Anaerobic digestion (AD) of organic waste requires pretreatment to improve its performance. The substrate chosen for this study is easily degradable it's from a University canteen in Morocco. This process was studied at the laboratory scale, under mesophilic conditions, using a mixed stirred reactor (CSTR: Continuous Stirred-Tank Reactor). The main objective of this research is to study the effect of ultrasonic pre-treatment on methane production. After ultrasonic pretreatment, the waste showed a decrease in VS from 156.2 g/Kg (93.75%) to 134.03 g/Kg (92.95%) and the recorded methanogenic potential was in the order of 461 (NmL CH4/g VS added), which is a 31% improvement compared to the methanogenic potential recorded by an experiment without ultrasonic pretreatment. Thus the process operated under good pH and alkalinity conditions.