Anaerobic co-digestion of food waste and piggery wastewater: Focusing on the role of trace elements

• Published in: Bioresource technology Vol. 102; no. 8; pp. 5048 - 5059
• Main Authors: Zhang, Lei, Lee, Yong-Woo, Jahng, Deokjin
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Kidlington Elsevier Ltd 01-04-2011; Elsevier
• Subjects: Anaerobic digestion; Anaerobic processes; Anaerobiosis; Animal productions; Animals; Applied sciences; Biological and medical sciences; Biological treatment of sewage sludges and wastes; Biotechnology; Chromatography, Gas; Co-digestion; Environment and pollution; Exact sciences and technology; Fatty acids; Focusing; Food industries; Food waste; Foods; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Industrial applications and implications. Economical aspects; Industrial Waste; Mass Spectrometry; Methane; Piggery wastewater; Pollution; Swine; Terrestrial animal productions; Trace elements; Trace Elements - metabolism; Use and upgrading of agricultural and food by-products. Biotechnology; Vertebrates; Waste water; Wastes; Wastewaters; Water Pollutants - metabolism; Water treatment and pollution; Food waste; Trace elements; Piggery wastewater; Anaerobic digestion; Co-digestion; Trace element; Pig barn; Waste water
• ISSN: 0960-8524; 1873-2976
• DOI: 10.1016/j.biortech.2011.01.082

The objective of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of anaerobic co-digestion of food waste and piggery wastewater, and to identify the key factors governing the co-digestion performance. The analytical results indicated that the food waste contained higher energy potential and lower concentrations of trace elements than the piggery wastewater. Anaerobic co-digestion showed a significantly improved biogas productivity and process stability. The results of co-digestion of the food waste with the different fractions of the piggery wastewater suggested that trace element might be the reason for enhancing the co-digestion performance. By supplementing the trace elements, a long-term anaerobic digestion of the food waste only resulted in a high methane yield of 0.396m3/kg VSadded and 75.6% of VS destruction with no significant volatile fatty acid accumulation. These results suggested that the typical Korean food waste was deficient with some trace elements required for anaerobic digestion.