Specific Methane Yield of Wetland Biomass in Dry and Wet Fermentation Technologies

Robert Czubaszek, Agnieszka Wysocka-Czubaszek, Wendelin Wichtmann and Piotr Banaszuk
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Robert Czubaszek: Faculty of Civil Engineering and Environmental Sciences, Bialystok University of Technology, Wiejska 45A Str., 15-351 Bialystok, Poland
Agnieszka Wysocka-Czubaszek: Faculty of Civil Engineering and Environmental Sciences, Bialystok University of Technology, Wiejska 45A Str., 15-351 Bialystok, Poland
Wendelin Wichtmann: Succow Foundation, Partner in the Greifswald Mire Centre, Ellernholzstraße 1, 17489 Greifswald, Germany
Piotr Banaszuk: Faculty of Civil Engineering and Environmental Sciences, Bialystok University of Technology, Wiejska 45A Str., 15-351 Bialystok, Poland

Energies, 2021, vol. 14, issue 24, 1-20

Abstract: Our study evaluated the specific methane yield (SMY) of selected wetland species subjected to wet and dry anaerobic digestion: Carex elata All. (CE), a mixture (~50/50) of Carex elata All. and Carex acutiformis L. (CA), Phragmites australis (Cav.) Trin. ex Steud. (PA), Typha latifolia L. (TL) and Phalaris arundinacea L. (PAr). Plants were harvested in late September, and therefore, the study material was characterised by high lignin content. The highest lignin content (36.40 ± 1.04% TS) was observed in TL, while the lowest (16.03 ± 1.54% TS) was found in CA. PAr was characterised by the highest hemicellulose content (37.55 ± 1.04% TS), while the lowest (19.22 ± 1.22% TS) was observed in TL. Cellulose content was comparable in almost all plant species studied and ranged from 25.32 ± 1.48% TS to 29.37 ± 0.87% TS, except in PAr (16.90 ± 1.29% TS). The methane production potential differed significantly among species and anaerobic digestion (AD) technologies. The lowest SMY was observed for CE (121 ± 28 NL kg VS −1 ) with dry fermentation (D–F) technology, while the SMY of CA was the highest for both technologies, 275 ± 3 NL kg VS −1 with wet fermentation (W–F) technology and 228 ± 1 NL kg VS −1 with D–F technology. The results revealed that paludi-biomass could be used as a substrate in both AD technologies; however, biogas production was more effective for W–F. Nonetheless, the higher methane content in the biogas and the lower energy consumption of technological processes for D–F suggest that the final amount of energy remains similar for both technologies. The yield is critical in energy production by the AD of wetland plants; therefore, a promising source of feedstock for biogas production could be biomass from rewetted and previously drained areas, which are usually more productive than natural habitats.

Keywords: paludi-biomass; wetlands; anaerobic digestion; specific methane yield (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 (4)

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