Abstract
Several sorghum cultivars including sweet, grain and ‘high energy’ were examined to determine their anaerobic biodegradability. The highest methane yield (0·40 liters g −1 VS (volatile solid) added) was obtained from a sweet sorghum cultivar, Rio. Methane yields from the other cultivars ranged from 0·27 to 0·36 liters g −1 VS added. These methane yields represented organic conversion efficiencies (volatile solids reductions) of greater than 90%. A methane yield of 0·36 liters g −1 VS added was achieved in a non-mixed vertical flow reactor fed Rio sorghum at a 3·2 g VS liter −1 day −1 loading, a 28 day HRT (hydraulic retention time) and a 75 day SRT (solids retention time). This represented a 36% increase in methane yield over a CSTR (continuously-stirred tank reactor) operated at the same loading and HRT. The methane production rate from a thermophilic OSR (occasionally-stirred reactor) operated at a 4·8 g VS liter −1 day −1 loading and a 75 day HRT/SRT was 1·8 v/v day −1 in comparison to a methane production rate of 1·2 v/v day −1 from the mesophilic NMVFR (non-mixed vertical flow reactor).
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