Increasing the Biogas Potential of Rapeseed Straw Using Pulsed Electric Field Pre-Treatment

Dawid Szwarc and Katarzyna Głowacka
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Dawid Szwarc: Department of Environmental Engineering, Faculty of Geoengineering, University of Warmia and Mazury in Olsztyn, 10-720 Olsztyn, Poland
Katarzyna Głowacka: Department of Plant Physiology, Genetics and Biotechnology, University of Warmia and Mazury in Olsztyn, 10-720 Olsztyn, Poland

Energies, 2021, vol. 14, issue 24, 1-11

Abstract: Due to the high availability of lignocellulosic biomass, which can be obtained from terrestrial plants, agricultural waste biomass, and the agro-food, paper or wood industries, its use for energy production by methane fermentation is economically and environmentally justified. However, due to their complex structures, lignocellulosic substrates have a low conversion factor to biogas. Therefore, scientists are still working on the development of new methods of the pre-treatment of lignocellulosic materials that will increase the biogas productivity from lignocellulosic biomass. The presented research focuses on the use of a pulsed electric field (PEF) to disintegrate rapeseed straw prior to the methane fermentation process. Scanning electron microscopy observation showed that, in the disintegrated sample, the extent of damage to the plant tissue was more severe than in the control sample. In the sample disintegrated for 7 min, the chemical oxygen demand increased from 4146 ± 75 mg/L to 4920 ± 60 mg/L. The best result was achieved with a 5-min PEF pre-treatment. The methane production reached 290.8 ± 12.1 NmL CH 4 /g VS, and the biogas production was 478.0 ± 27.5 NmL/g VS; it was 14% and 15% higher, respectively, compared to the control sample.

Keywords: pulsed electric field; anaerobic digestion; methane fermentation; biogas production; lignocellulose; rapeseed straw (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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