Food Waste Bioconversion Features Depending on the Regime of Anaerobic Digestion

Marta Zofia Cieślik, Andrzej Jan Lewicki, Wojciech Czekała and Iryna Vaskina ()
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Marta Zofia Cieślik: Department of Biosystems Engineering, Faculty of Environmental and Mechanical Engineering, Poznan University of Life Sciences, Wojska Polskiego 50, 60-637 Poznan, Poland
Andrzej Jan Lewicki: Department of Biosystems Engineering, Faculty of Environmental and Mechanical Engineering, Poznan University of Life Sciences, Wojska Polskiego 50, 60-637 Poznan, Poland
Wojciech Czekała: Department of Biosystems Engineering, Faculty of Environmental and Mechanical Engineering, Poznan University of Life Sciences, Wojska Polskiego 50, 60-637 Poznan, Poland
Iryna Vaskina: Department of Biosystems Engineering, Faculty of Environmental and Mechanical Engineering, Poznan University of Life Sciences, Wojska Polskiego 50, 60-637 Poznan, Poland

Energies, 2025, vol. 18, issue 17, 1-17

Abstract: Approximately one-third of global food production is wasted annually, which contributes significantly to greenhouse gas emissions and economic costs. Anaerobic digestion (AD) is an effective method for converting food waste into biogas, but its efficiency depends on factors such as temperature and substrate composition. This study compared mesophilic and thermophilic AD of selectively collected fruit and vegetable waste, quantifying process efficiency and identifying factors leading to collapse. Studies were performed in 1 dm 3 reactors with gradually increasing organic loading rates until process collapse. Process dynamics, stability, and gas yields were assessed through daily biogas measurements and analyses of pH, FOS/TAC ratio, sCOD, ammonia, volatile fatty acids, alcohols, total and volatile solids, and C/N ratio. Research has shown that peak methane yields occurred at OLR = 0.5–1.0 kg VS·m −3 ·d −1 , with thermophilic systems producing 0.63–5.48% more methane during stable phases. Collapse occurred at OLR = 3.0 in thermophilic and 4.0 in mesophilic reactors, accompanied by sharp increases in methanol, acetic acid, butyric acid, propionic acid, and FOS/TAC. The pH dropped to 5.49 and 6.09. While thermophilic conditions offered higher methane yields, they were more susceptible to rapid process destabilization due to intermediate metabolite accumulation.

Keywords: waste management; sustainability; process stability; biogas (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: 2025
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