Anaerobic Co-Digestion to Enhance Waste Management Sustainability at Yosemite National Park

Julia Burmistrova, Marc Beutel (), Erin Hestir, Rebecca Ryals and Pramod Pandey
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Julia Burmistrova: Environmental Systems Graduate Group, University of California, Merced, CA 95343, USA
Marc Beutel: Environmental Systems Graduate Group, University of California, Merced, CA 95343, USA
Erin Hestir: Environmental Systems Graduate Group, University of California, Merced, CA 95343, USA
Rebecca Ryals: Environmental Systems Graduate Group, University of California, Merced, CA 95343, USA
Pramod Pandey: Biological and Agricultural Engineering Department, University of California, Davis, CA 95616, USA

Sustainability, 2022, vol. 14, issue 19, 1-12

Abstract: This study evaluated the co-digestion of domestic wastewater solids (WWS) and food waste (FW) at the bench-scale for Yosemite National Park, California, which operates a 1900 m 3 /d wastewater treatment plant in El Portal, California. A 35-day biochemical methane potential test was performed on varying amounts of FW as a percentage of total waste (WWS plus FW) on a volatile solids basis (%FW). Specific methane yield and volumetric methane yield increased substantially with increasing %FW. A higher %FW was also associated with slower degradation kinetics but higher methane content in biogas. The 75 %FW treatment had relatively rapid kinetics, a high cumulative specific methane yield (453 mL CH 4 /g VS), and an elevated methane content in biogas, and is suggested as an upper limit %FW mixture for full-scale co-digestion. This, coincidently, is near the estimated ratio of WWS and FW production at the Park (70 %FW). Co-digesting the Park’s feedstock of FW with WWS in existing anaerobic digestion facilities could increase methane production five-fold. Combusting this methane in a combined heat and power system would produce about twice the energy needed to heat anaerobic digestors and power the treatment plant.

Keywords: biochemical methane potential test; combined heat and power; food waste; wastewater solids (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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