Operation performance of up-flow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB) bioreactor for biohydrogen production by self-granulated sludge using pre-treated palm oil mill effluent (POME) as carbon source

Safa Senan Mahmod, Azratul Madihah Azahar, Jian Ping Tan, Jamaliah Md Jahim, Peer Mohamed Abdul, Mohd Shahbudin Mastar, Nurina Anuar, Mohammed Faisal Mohammed Yunus, Ahmad Jaril Asis and Shu-Yii Wu

Renewable Energy, 2019, vol. 134, issue C, 1262-1272

Abstract: Palm oil mill effluent (POME), an agro-industrial wastewater with high solids content, was subject to hydrolysis by 1% (w/v) nitric acid in order to increase its solubility and the fermentable sugar content from its cellulosic component. POME hydrolysate was then evaluated in an up-flow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB) bioreactor for the production of biohydrogen gas via mixed culture under thermophilic conditions. The bioreactor was fed with pre-treated POME under varied hydraulic retention time (HRT) between 48 and 3 h at constant cycle length of 24 h to test the productivity of H2 and the stability of UASB; no washout of biomass occurred at any cycle and the system managed to recover its H2 production rate (HPR) after initial fluctuations. In this study, H2-producing granules (HPGs) were formed shortly after the start-up period, and were analysed by FESEM, FTIR, SEM-EDX, and their extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) content. The maximum HY and HPR achieved were 2.45 mol-H2/mol-sugar and 11.75 LH2/LPOME d−1, respectively, at HRT 6 h. Acetic acid was found to be the major by-product at all HRTs, followed by butyric acid, while Clostridium spp. was found to be the most dominant H2-producing bacteria in the system. Results suggest that UASB has a good potential for stable H2 production with high POME digestion rate.

Keywords: Biohydrogen; Hydraulic retention time; Palm oil mill effluent; UASB; H2-producing granules (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:renene:v:134:y:2019:i:c:p:1262-1272

DOI: 10.1016/j.renene.2018.09.062

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