Biogas production from food waste via anaerobic digestion with wood chips

Abstract

In many countries, the uncontrolled generation of large amounts of food waste has resulted in severe environmental issues. Among various treatment methods that have been proposed, anaerobic digestion to produce biogas from food waste is a proven and environmentally friendly route for simultaneous food waste treatment and energy recovery. In this study, we suggest an effective methane fermentation of food waste by mixing wood chips with feedstock to minimize the sludge generation in the process. The food waste generated in an apartment complex in the Republic of Korea was used as biogas feedstock. The use of wood chips in the process increased the production of methane and hydrogen. At the food waste to wood chip ratio of 0.5, 20 ml g−1 of methane and 13.9 ml g−1 of hydrogen were produced for 15 days at 35°C. The results of this study suggest the successful application of wood chips to the anaerobic digestion of food waste for producing biogas.