A Preliminary Study of the Effect of Bioavailable Fe and Co on the Anaerobic Digestion of Rice Straw

Gabriele Mancini, Stefano Papirio, Piet N. L. Lens and Giovanni Esposito
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Gabriele Mancini: Department of Civil and Mechanical Engineering, University of Cassino and Southern Lazio, via Di Biasio 43, 03043 Cassino (FR), Italy
Stefano Papirio: Department of Civil, Architectural and Environmental Engineering, University of Naples Federico II, via Claudio 21, 80125 Naples, Italy
Piet N. L. Lens: Department of Environmental Engineering & Water Technology, IHE Delft, Westvest 7, 2611 AX Delft, The Netherlands
Giovanni Esposito: Department of Civil and Mechanical Engineering, University of Cassino and Southern Lazio, via Di Biasio 43, 03043 Cassino (FR), Italy

Energies, 2019, vol. 12, issue 4, 1-11

Abstract: Rice straw is an abundant and sustainable substrate for anaerobic digestion (AD), but it is often deficient in essential trace elements (TEs) for proper microbial growth and metabolism. A lack of TEs leads to AD imbalances and suboptimal biogas yields. However, the total TE concentration is not a sufficient indicator of the amount of TEs available to the microorganisms. Therefore, this study investigated the degree of bioavailability of iron (Fe) and cobalt (Co) during the AD of rice straw, and correlated it to the biomethane yields and volatile fatty acids (VFAs) produced. When the two TEs were dosed at 205 µg Fe/g TS and 18 µg Co/g TS of rice straw, the biomethane production was approximately 260 mL CH 4 /g VS, i.e., similar to that obtained when Fe and Co were not added. Despite an increased bioavailable fraction of 23 and 48% for Fe and Co, respectively, after TEs addition, the AD performance was not enhanced. Moreover, VFAs did not exceed 250 mg HAc/L both in the presence and absence of added TEs, confirming no enhancement of the methanogenesis step. Therefore, the bioavailability of Fe and Co was not a limiting factor for the biomethane production at low total VFAs concentration.

Keywords: anaerobic digestion; bioavailability; biogas; rice straw; sequential extraction; trace elements (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: 2019
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (6)

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